Madrid from Palencia: IFEMA, Parque Warner, concerts and matches, the Estación Sur and hospital appointments, by AVE from Palencia station, coach, your own car along the A-62 or a car with a driver
From Palencia you reach Madrid by AVE from the city's station, which calls at Valladolid and arrives at Chamartín; by scheduled coach; by your own car along the A-62 to Valladolid and then the A-601 and AP-6 or the A-6; or by a car with a driver door to door. To IFEMA the transfer costs from 287,51 € per car, with about 182 min on the road, and to the Estación Sur, from 313,33 €. For Parque Warner, the stadiums and the Madrid hospitals, each destination page works out the price from every town in the province. The train suits someone travelling alone and returning in daylight; the car, when there is material, children, an appointment with waiting time or a return in the small hours.
Written by Ridelta - Taxi y VTC · reviewed on 29 October 2026
Train from Palencia, from Valladolid or car to get to Madrid?
Palencia station, close to the centre, is on the Madrid–León high-speed line, and its trains run down through Valladolid and cross the Guadarrama to Chamartín, in the north of Madrid. From there IFEMA is on metro line 8, with at least one change; the Estación Sur, by Cercanías through the central tunnel; and each hospital, with its own combination. Campo Grande, in Valladolid, has more trains to Madrid than Palencia, and some people from Palencia who cannot find a suitable time drive down to catch the train there: that leg costs from 74,56 €. Anyone living in the Montaña Palentina or Tierra de Campos first has another trip to the station, and the first trains do not match the province's bus timetables.
Your own car runs down the A-62 through Dueñas to Valladolid and from there has two routes: the A-601 through Cuéllar towards Segovia and the AP-6, or the A-6 from Tordesillas, which crosses the mountains through the toll tunnel or over the Alto del León. As far as Madrid it is a simple drive; the hard part is inside the city. Madrid has low-emission zones restricting traffic according to the vehicle's environmental label, with rules the City Council publishes and updates on its website, and they are worth reading before setting off in an older car. Add IFEMA parking on show days, hospital car parks in the morning and stadium exits, where traffic is closed off. A car with a driver solves all three.
How does a Palencia company exhibiting at a fair get to IFEMA?
Aguilar de Campoo's biscuit industry, companies from the capital and Venta de Baños, and producers from Tierra de Campos attend fairs at IFEMA with samples, leaflets and display stands that do not go by train. On build-up day you enter through the exhibitor gate at the time each fair's organisers set, and a car with a large boot, or two coordinated ones, collects from the factory or office and drops the material next to the hall. From Palencia it is 236 km, and from Aguilar de Campoo, which comes down the A-67 before joining the A-62, the direct transfer to the venue costs from 404,36 €. With a business account, the team's journeys during the fair are grouped on one invoice.
A visitor going to see the fair and returning the same day can take the AVE in Palencia or in Valladolid and continue by metro from Chamartín, provided the last train back leaves a margin after closing. When the day ends late, or when the team gathers from several towns in El Cerrato or the Montaña, the car collects each person at home and drops them at the hall door. If a colleague arrives by plane, Barajas is next to the venue and the terminal pickup can be chained with the arrival at the fair in the same booking. For multi-day fairs, the team books the same time each morning, or the outward trip on the first day and the return on the last, with nights in Madrid.
How do you get to Parque Warner with children from Palencia?
Parque Warner is in San Martín de la Vega, south-east of Madrid, and from Palencia you have to drive down to the mountains, cross them and skirt the capital on the M-40 or the M-50 to the south. By public transport the chain is long, with AVE to Chamartín, Cercanías southwards and an interurban bus to the gate, and with small children it becomes tiring. That is why nearly all families go by car. A transfer with a driver collects you at home, in the city, Villamuriel de Cerrato or Venta de Baños, and drops you at the park entrance. Child seats are requested when booking with each child's age and weight, and with a pushchair or a large group a people carrier is assigned. The park's page works out the price from each town in the province.
The return is what you notice most. At closing time the whole park leaves at once, and whoever drove in the morning faces the car-park queue, the M-50, the mountains and the A-62 at night, with the children asleep and after a whole day on foot. With a driver, the pickup time is set when booking and changed by message if the final show runs late, and the family travels back without anyone driving. For two families or a group of friends with children, a single large vehicle at a fixed per-car price usually works out more reasonably than two cars with two parking fees. On spring weekends and at Christmas it pays to book early, because the whole park's return is concentrated in the same short window.
How do you get back to Palencia after a concert or a match in Madrid?
A stadium concert or a night match ends when there is no AVE left to Palencia or Valladolid, and the coach does not cover those hours either. The options are three: sleep in Madrid and return the next day, drive the A-6 or the AP-6 and the A-62 in the small hours after hours on your feet, or book the return with a driver. Staying over adds a hotel and half a day; driving tired, with fog on the plateau or ice in the mountains in winter, is not the most prudent choice. For a supporters' club or a group of friends, the per-car price shared among everyone makes a booked return reasonable. Central Madrid is 257 km from Palencia, about 182 min in daytime with no incidents, and at night the road is clearer.
The pickup point is what decides the night. When a big event ends the streets around the venue are closed and the door lies inside the cordon: no car gets there and the group scatters in the crowd. When booking you agree a specific junction a few streets beyond the traffic closure, on the side facing the way out to the A-6, and walk to it. If there is extra time or the concert runs long, the time is changed by message. The Madrid events page explains how that point is chosen at each venue and works out the price from each town in the province. Many groups go by train in the afternoon, which leaves them at Chamartín, and book only the return by car.
What is the Estación Sur good for when leaving Palencia province?
The Estación Sur coach station is at Méndez Álvaro, next to metro line 6 and a Cercanías station, and it is the main hub for long-distance coaches to the south and east. Scheduled coaches leaving Palencia for Madrid end at whichever station each operating company sets, which is worth confirming on the ticket. For someone travelling from the province, the Estación Sur matters mostly as a connection: the student going home to another province, the older person visiting family who prefers a direct coach, or the worker joining an overnight line. Getting there with luggage from Chamartín means the Cercanías through the central tunnel and walking along platforms and corridors.
A direct transfer to Méndez Álvaro makes sense when the connecting coach leaves early and no train arrives with a margin, when travelling with lots of luggage or when the traveller has difficulty getting about. From Palencia it is about 182 min to the bus bay, and from Venta de Baños, El Cerrato's rail junction, the price starts at 303,78 €. In the other direction, someone arriving at the Estación Sur from the south and carrying on to the province can find the driver at the station with a name sign. The waiting included if the coach is late and what happens next are in the terms of service, which are read before booking.
How do you organise an appointment at a Madrid hospital from Palencia or the Montaña?
Río Carrión Hospital handles most of the province's appointments, and some specialities are referred to Valladolid. Madrid comes in fewer cases: a referral to a reference centre, service or unit of the National Health System, designated by the Ministry of Health for complex or uncommon conditions, a second opinion or a private insurer's specialist. The big Madrid hospitals are spread out: the Fundación Jiménez Díaz in Moncloa, close to where the A-6 comes in; La Paz and Ramón y Cajal in the north; Gregorio Marañón by the Retiro; and Doce de Octubre in the south. Each has several buildings, and it helps to have the exact block. The Madrid hospitals page works out the price from each town in the province.
From Guardo, central Madrid is 367 km away, with a local road before the motorway, and an early appointment means leaving in the dark or sleeping in Madrid the night before. It is booked as a return trip with waiting: the car collects you at home, drops you at the door of the outpatient building, waits while the appointment or test lasts and takes you home, with a companion if you wish and with a wheelchair-adapted vehicle if needed. It is not medical transport or an ambulance: it is for someone who can travel seated and needs no care during the journey. If the doctor has prescribed medical transport, the health service arranges it. For an insurer, the invoice includes the details given when booking.
Frequently asked questions
How much is Palencia to IFEMA with a driver?
The published 'from' fare is 287,51 € per car, not per person. The calculator gives the exact amount with your address, date and time, and it is fixed before you book, with no changes for traffic into Madrid.
Should I catch the train in Valladolid instead of Palencia?
Sometimes, yes: Campo Grande has more trains to Madrid. If Palencia's timetable does not suit you, compare on Renfe and, if it works better, book only the car leg to Valladolid station.
Can you wait during a long test at a Madrid hospital?
Yes, it is booked as a return trip with waiting and agreed before setting off; for tests lasting several hours, say so when booking. It is a car with a driver, not medical transport.
Where do you collect us after a match?
At a junction agreed when booking, a few streets outside the venue's traffic closure. Meeting at the door does not work; if the match runs long, you change the time by message.
Is the price per person or per car?
Per car and per journey, VAT included. A family going to Parque Warner or a group going to a concert shares a single amount; if a larger or an adapted vehicle is needed, you say so when booking.
Sources
- Renfe · AVE desde la estación de Palencia y Valladolid-Campo Grande a Madrid-Chamartín y Cercanías Madrid (consulted on 29 October 2026)
- Ayuntamiento de Madrid · zonas de bajas emisiones y movilidad (consulted on 29 October 2026)
- Ministerio de Sanidad · centros, servicios y unidades de referencia del Sistema Nacional de Salud (consulted on 29 October 2026)
- Sacyl · portal de salud de la Junta de Castilla y León: Hospital Río Carrión (consulted on 29 October 2026)
How we write, where the figures come from and how we correct an error: editorial policy.
Train and coach timetables and terminals belong to Renfe and the operating companies, venue times to each organiser, and the low-emission zone rules to Madrid City Council; all of it changes, so check before travelling. Distances and times are those of the route engine in daytime with no incidents; the exact price comes from the calculator with date and time.