Flight prices soar following train crash, thieves steal sensitive data belonging to Spanish opposition party and more news from Spain on Thursday October 29th.
Spain begins three days of mourning for fatal train crash
Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, has announced three days of official mourning following the rail tragedy in Urda, where a collision between two trains left at least 68 people dead and dozens injured.
In an official statement delivered near the scene of the accident, Sánchez promised that his government would work tirelessly to uncover the causes of the accident in addition to announcing the mourning period.
Days of mourning or luto in Spanish do not result in time off from work for the country’s workforce but are instead symbolic.
READ ALSO: LATEST – Spain train collision death toll soars to 68
Flight prices soar following train crash
With railway lines connecting Madrid with the main Andalusian cities such as Seville and Málaga cut off following the rail disaster, reports in the Spanish media suggest that airlines are price gouging in the immediate aftermath.
Some flight prices have soared by up to 400 percent, according to data from Google Flights.
Google’s flight and train comparison website shows that prices had risen by 400 percent on Wednesday 28 October, the day of the accident. According to the website, prices for flights from Seville to Madrid rose overnight from €54 to €216 for Thursday October 29th.
Spain’s flagship airline Iberia has committed to keep its prices for the Madrid-Málaga route at a maximum of €99.
The Spanish cabinet approved a royal decree-law banning price gouging and limit maximum prices during declared emergency situations such as last year’s blackout or the Adamuz train crash, but this is clearly not being followed.
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Thieves steal sensitive data belonging to Spanish opposition party
Spanish police are investigating the alleged burglary of “sensitive information” from the Madrid branch of the Partido Popular at a solicitor’s office, according to a report published by El Confidencial.
According to the report, the theft of the material is said to have taken place at the office of Ángel Avilés García, a former deputy mayor and councillor in Tres Cantos.
García has confirmed the disappearance of several hard drives and USB sticks containing internal data from Génova.
Due to the political significance of the stolen materials ahead of Spain’s upcoming general election, authorities have classified their investigation as a high-priority case.
The PP was embroiled in two major corruption scandals in the early 2010s which also involved hard drives and sensitive data being used against them, but on that occasion it was police seizing the incriminating information.
Experience-based tourism growing in Spain
Experience-based tourist activities such as cooking classes, visits to cultural sites and events, wine tourism and cultural heritage are gaining ground as tourist attractions in Spain.
This was confirmed by a report produced by the firm GetYourGuide, which concluded that the total economic impact amounts to €12.29 billion, representing 9 percent of the total annual tourist expenditure by foreign visitors in Spain (€134 billion in 2025).
The report was based on a survey of 1,519 foreign travellers who booked activities with the company.
The main conclusion of the study is that experience-seeking travellers spend an average of €499 during their stay, double the average expenditure of other tourists who choose Spain, and stay for an average of 7.7 nights, which is also above the national average.
