Ok, nowadays you can travel with the ticket on your mobile. It's supposed to be like that, right? They advertise it out there. But the truth is that if you are going on a trip, it might not be very clear to you what is really valid as a train ticket and what is not. We are going to explain to you how to take your train ticket on your Android mobile and that it is completely valid.
What is not valid
Some users may be mistaken and think that some formats are valid which, in reality, are not. It is even possible that in some case this format is accepted, or that it is possible to solve it in the station, but that it is not really valid, so it is not recommended. It could be, for example, downloading the PDF of the ticket on your mobile, or even capturing it with a photograph. They could be options that one believes to be valid, but they are not. When you are going to try to access a train, you will have to have something that is really valid, and if you have a mobile you do not need to carry any other ticket, but you do have to carry a valid electronic ticket.
passbook
Does Passbook sound familiar to you? It is possible that yes, although it is actually an Apple service. The Cupertino folks released Passbook so it could be used as an electronic wallet. Here you carry your official and valid tickets, on your mobile. Passbook is built into all iPhones and iPads. But of course, if you are here it is precisely because you do not have an iPhone or an iPad. However, that is not a problem, because there are alternatives to Passbook for Android with which you can manage your tickets without any problem. In fact, there are more than one, so you can choose between them, and they work in a really simple way.
The two apps that I recommend are Passwallet and Pass2U, although the first of them is the one that I have used the most. It is not complex to use these apps. Before downloading your ticket, it is recommended that you download one of these apps. The two applications are available on Google Play, and you have the links to them below.
Google Play - Passwallet
Google Play - Pass2U
In the case of Renfe, when we buy a train ticket, at the end of the process, after having made the payment, we are given the option of receiving the ticket in Passbook format on our mobile. If we select this option, we will receive an email from Renfe containing a link with which we can download the Passbook. It does not refer to the application, but to the electronic ticket itself. And this is when it is vital to have an app that can manage these files. When we click on that link, we will be told with which application we want to manage the file, and that is when we will have to select Passwallet or Pass2U.
I have already downloaded the ticket and did not have an app, what do I do?
Now, it is also possible that you have carried out all this procedure without installing any app, and that you have downloaded the ticket on your mobile without having the app to manage it. What can you do? First, you can repeat the process again and download the ticket again. But, if you have already downloaded the ticket on your mobile without having any app, there is no problem either. With Passwallet, when you access the app, it automatically searches for the tickets that you already have downloaded to your mobile, so you will not even have to locate it in the Downloads folder, Passwallet will locate it for you and your ticket will appear in the application .
When asked for your ticket at the station, go to Passwallet and locate your ticket. The barcode or QR code that appears here is what becomes your actual ticket. Of course, keep in mind to have enough battery to be able to enter the train. And it is that while the tickets do not turn off, it is something that could happen with your mobile.