WaypointSur
Edited by Andrew Lawrence
Spain never misses an opportunity for a good strike.
Before the strike week
The school run and the clinic appointment are on next week's fridge calendar. So are three strike days on the Costa, Tuesday 10 to Thursday 12 November. If a flight from Málaga or a shift is in there too, this weekend is when to give each fixed time a plan B.
Tuesday and Thursday are Renfe's drivers, all day on Tuesday and three windows on Thursday, so at least you know when the drivers are out, if not yet which trains will still run. Wednesday is a 24-hour general strike across Spain, and that is the day nobody can map in advance.
Tuesday: the drivers, all day
On Tuesday 10 November Renfe's drivers are out for the whole day. On the Costa that is the two local lines, the C1 between Málaga, the airport and Fuengirola, and the C2 inland to Álora.
Last time the drivers struck, on 29 October, both lines kept running on a reduced service. Trains were 15 to 20 minutes late and fuller than usual, and Renfe let passengers change or cancel tickets free for the day.
That is what a drivers' strike on these lines looked like last time: fewer trains, later and fuller, which is fine for lunch in Fuengirola and a poor bet for a 09:00 appointment or a flight. So for anything fixed on Tuesday, sort out a way there that does not involve the train: a lift, a taxi, a different day.
Wednesday: no timetable to plan around
Wednesday 11 November is a 24-hour general strike across Spain over housing and wages, called by CCOO and UGT, Spain's two largest unions. It is the first general strike the two have called together in 14 years, and in Andalucía the public-school teachers are striking with it.
Each worker chooses whether to go in. So nobody can say what will run or be open on Wednesday, and your school or health centre may not know in advance who will turn up. Health centres keep emergencies going. Routine appointments may move.
One more thing on Wednesday: the health centres' weekly walk-in flu jab sessions begin that same Wednesday, and the strike may affect the first one. If you were planning to go, have a second Wednesday in mind.
So for Wednesday, plan for whatever cannot move. A hospital appointment that took months to get, a child who has to be somewhere: a lift, a neighbour, a later slot already asked for, something that works with no train and half a staff.
Thursday: three windows
On Thursday 12 November the drivers are out again, in three windows: 06:20 to 09:20, 14:20 to 17:20 and 21:20 to 23:20. Those are the hours the drivers' union gave when it called the strike, confirmed November 2026. Most of the day falls outside them, so an 11:00 train to the airport is a different proposition from an 08:00 one.
If your fixed time falls inside a window, treat it like Tuesday: a lift, a taxi, a different day. If it falls in a gap, keep a backup that does not rest on the train, because last time the trains that did run were late and full.
What had not appeared by Friday afternoon
When we wrote this on Friday afternoon, the drivers' strike still stood and none of the minimum-services lists covering the Costa had appeared. They may be out before Tuesday, so here is what to look for.
For Tuesday and Thursday, the servicios mínimos — minimum services, the list of which trains run. It goes up on Renfe's notices page, and for 29 October it came about three days before the strike day.
Wednesday gets its own minimum-services lists too, covering trains, buses and metro, schools and health. None of those had appeared for Andalucía either. Even when they do, no list tells you whether your particular school or clinic will have its staff.
Also still open: whether tickets can be changed or cancelled free, as they could on 29 October. Renfe has not yet said.
Spanish-lite
Two phrases for Monday's phone calls, one for the school, one for the clinic:
¿Habrá clase el miércoles, con la huelga? — Will there be lessons on Wednesday, with the strike?
¿Se mantiene mi cita del miércoles o la cambiamos a otro día? — Is my Wednesday appointment still on, or shall we move it to another day?
The bottom line
Give every fixed time on all three days a plan B this weekend, or Monday at the latest. Do not wait for the minimum-services lists to do it for you; they say which trains run, not whether your school or clinic has its staff. Then open Renfe's notices page once before Tuesday.
Enjoy the weekend — A. and the WaypointSur team, with a plan B pencilled in for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
