If you travel regularly on Avant, you can now check in seconds whether the Pase Vía beats the 30-day passes. Renfe has added a calculator to its website and opened sales of the Pase Vía for the last quarter of 2026, from October to December.
The calculator makes working out your savings much simpler. Until now, you had to rely on a complicated table published by Renfe’s own president, which was only suitable for people with pleeeeenty of time on their hands!
How the calculator works
It is very simple. First, go to the page Renfe has created on its website. Sadly, it’s only available in Spanish.
Then, just enter the journeys you plan to make. The tool compares the cost of the pass you have been using with the cost of the Pase Vía over the quarter, so you can decide before you buy.
Renfe warns that your final savings depend on how often you travel and which route you take. The result is therefore a personalised estimate, not a general figure.
A pass with more than 2 million journeys
The Pase Vía launched in early 2026. In its first nine months, 2,068,990 journeys have been made with it. It offers discounts of up to 90% off the standard fare.
It works on a “pay as you travel” principle: you only pay for the journeys you make, and the discount grows the more you travel. It suits those who travel several times a month as well as those who travel in concentrated bursts at certain times of year. It is useful for commuting, studying, preparing for civil service exams or visiting family.
There is a catch, though: the Pase Vía requires a minimum of 20 Avant journeys per quarter. If you fall short, Renfe will charge you the difference between the journeys you made and those 20 trips on your most frequent route.
Avant in numbers
Avant carried 13.2 million passengers in 2025. These were the busiest routes:
- Madrid–Segovia–Valladolid: 2.66 million journeys.
- Madrid–Toledo: 2.09 million.
- Figueres–Barcelona: 1.58 million.
- Madrid–Puertollano: 1.40 million.
With passes, travelling 100 km costs around €3 on average. On many corridors, the train is up to 50% faster than the car, which cuts congestion and emissions. Renfe says it is carrying out a plan to provide more capacity, a more modern fleet and better quality.
Trainvelling tip
Before renewing your pass, simulate with your real journeys for the quarter. If your travel is irregular, the Pase Vía’s pay-per-use model may work out cheaper than a fixed pass.