ALSA Reviews 

I bought two bus tickets from San Sebastian to Porto from Alsa. Alsa provided these tickets which included a change in buses in Vilar Formoso. According to the tickets provided by Alsa, our first bus was set to arrive in Vilar Formoso at 1:15pm, with the connecting bus to Porto departing at 1:30pm.

At the beginning of our trip at San Sebastian, we showed our full tickets including the arrival and departure times of the changeover, and verified with our bus driver we were going to Porto changing at Vilar Formoso. During the trip, the bus driver assured us that the changeover for the bus to Porto was coming up soon, and then when we were dropped off at the changeover location (Vilar Formoso) at 2:15pm, the bus driver said that the bus was coming. After waiting 55 minutes with no second bus arriving, I contacted Alsa customer service to inquire. Nearly an hour after my inquiry, and two hours after being dropped off, I was told that the second bus had departed at 1:30pm. Alsa did not apologise, or provide any assistance for alternative travel to Porto. As a result, my party of two were required to organise a taxi ride out of town to catch a different bus which was the last available mode of transport to Porto for that day. Not only were additional monetary costs placed on us for this transport, but additional time costs of at least 6 hours. If we had not organised this alternative, we would have had to organise and pay for accommodation in Vilar Formoso, and forfeited prepaid accommodation in Porto.

As instructed by Alsa's customer service via Facebook, a claims form was submitted explaining that it was through no fault on the customer that we did not get the service we paid for but on the fault of Alsa's scheduling or operational decisions. Over two weeks later, a partial refund was provided without explanation or any cost breakdown. After following up with them about this inquiring about a full refund reiterating the situation, they responded that they refunded only the second bus tickets. I've since responded again reiterating the unresolved issue. I hope that this matter can be properly resolved and that Alsa prevents these issues from occuring in future.

I booked an international ALSA bus from Madrid to Lisbon with a “Flexible” ticket, assuming that meant I could cancel with minimal fees. I’m an ALSA Plus member and cancelled more than 48 hours before departure — and still lost 50% of my fare (€35 + 15 € to change the booking on a €67.80 ticket)?!

There was no clear warning during purchase that international cancellation fees are completely different and much harsher, even for Flexible tickets and Plus members.

I contacted support and was told it’s “company policy.” Apparently, for international trips:

Cancel 7–29 days before = 25% fee

Cancel 1–6 days before = 50%

Less than 1 day = 75%
Even if you're a loyalty member, you get no benefit on international routes.

It's such a scam. “Flexible” should mean what it says or be clearly explained and highlighted! The refund conditions are buried in the fine print and not visible at checkout. ALSA relies on travelers missing these details.

If you’re considering booking with ALSA, be very careful. Ask before booking. “Flexible” doesn't mean flexible.

This morning I got on the bus from Losar De La Vera and behind me was a woman with a newborn baby. I was shocked to see that she had to pay extra for the baby.

Esta mañana subí al autobús desde Losar De La Vera y detrás de mí había una mujer con un bebé recién nacido. Me sorprendió ver que tenía que pagar más por el bebé.