Europe's Travel Strikes: Flight And Train Disruption You Can Expect In February

When, where and what disruption you can expect.

ADVERTISEMENT

Strikes are a regular occurrence in Europe, as employees withhold their labour to fight for better pay and conditions.

Walkouts are sometimes planned months ahead but others are announced last minute, showing that it always pays to check before you travel.

Luckily, we have gathered all of the strike information together below.

Read on to find out where and when are walkouts taking place.

If your flight or train is cancelled or delayed, you will be entitled to a new ticket or compensation. Read our guide for the full details.

Spain: Strikes expected to disrupt train travel throughout February

Rail travel across Spain will be severely disrupted this month as staff call walkout throughout February**.**

The first industrial action called by Spanish trade union CCOO began on 9 February with a 23-hour stoppage resulting in the cancellation of 310 long and mid-distance Renfe trains, including high-speed AVE trains.

A further 330 long-distance trains and 641 mid-distance services have also been scrapped.

There is still a skeleton service operating, which Spain’s Ministry of Transport confirms is a legal obligation, which will likely reduce the number of cancellations.

Another of Spain’s key unions UGT has confirmed partial nationwide stoppages for 2-hour periods every Monday this month affecting transport on 12, 19 and 26 February.

Both UGT and CCOO have also called walkouts for 16 and 17 February on Catalonia’s Rodalies trains between 7 and 9 am and 3 and 5 pm.

Unions say the strikes have been called after a 35-hour working week at rail infrastructure manager Adif and the elimination of income categories at Renfe were not brought in.

Italy: National rail strike to impact long-distance and regional travel

Rail transport in Italy will face severe disruption on 12 February as employees of state-owned railway company Trenitalia and Trenord as well as private long-distance operator Italo walk out.

The strikes will affect all types of rail services including long-distance and regional trains for eight hours between 9 am and 5 pm.

The stoppage was called last month by two of Italy's key transport trade unions CUB and SGB to protest against working conditions and recent proposals to privatise the railway sector.

As per national law, there will be a minimum number of services (servizi essenziali) guaranteed during the hours of the strike.

UK: London Underground staff call multi-day strikes

London Overground strikes will take place on 19-20 February and 4-5 March, union RMT has announced.

The 48-hour walkouts by security, station, revenue and control staff come after RMT members rejected a below-inflation pay offer. 

ADVERTISEMENT

Members of the Aslef union called strikes and an overtime ban earlier this month.

The walkouts impacted several different operators, including Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, West Midlands Trains, GTR, LNER, Southeastern, SWR and TransPennine Trains.

Train drivers are in a long-running dispute over pay, which they say has not increased in five years. 

France: Seven-month strike notice could hit Paris Olympics

Disruption is expected on the Ile-de-France bus and metro network as CGT-RATP has announced a seven-month strike notice from 5 February to 9 September.

Workers at the state-owned public transport company say they are walking out over pay. Strikes could hit during the Paris 2024 Olympics if a deal is not reached.

ADVERTISEMENT

If you know of a big strike happening in your country that we have missed, we'd love to hear from you via Twitter.

RECENT NEWS

These Are The Best Airport Lounges In The World – And Four Are In Europe

The Plaza Premium Lounge at Rome Fiumicino Airport was named the best on the continent, and second best overall. Read more

80 Years And Still Steaming: A Milestone Year For The Worlds Last Seagoing Paddle Steamer

This October, the Waverley paddle steamer is marking its 80th anniversary with cruises along London’s iconic River Tha... Read more

Aman Set To Open First Hotel In The Maldives Complete With An Entire Island Dedicated To Wellness

Amanolu in the Vaavu Atoll will have just 52 keys as well as 16 private residences, which also have their own island. Read more

The Worlds Best Spas For 2026 Have Been Revealed – And Italy Leads The Way

Italy took centre stage at this year’s World Spa Awards after being named the world’s best spa destination. Italian ... Read more

Project Sunrise Update: Qantas To Launch Non-stop Flights Between Sydney And New York From 2028

Passengers will spend 18 hours in the air on the specially configured Airbus A350-1000ULR aircraft. Read more

AI And Ski To Cruises And Gen Z: Dnatas CEO On The Trends Driving Travel In The UAE And Beyond

From AI-powered travel offers to growing demand for ski holidays, cruises and food experiences, dnata’s new Group CEO ... Read more