Para llegar al campus, tengo que hacer un transbordo y validar el abono en la estación.

Para + infinitive is a very common way to express purpose in Spanish: in order to / to do something.

So para llegar al campus means to get to the campus or in order to get to the campus.

It explains why the speaker has to do the actions in the rest of the sentence.

A few similar examples:

• Para entrar, necesitas una tarjeta. = To enter, you need a card.
• Para ir al centro, tomo el metro. = To go to the city centre, I take the metro.

Because a + el always contracts to al in Spanish.

So:

• a + el campus → al campus
• a + el colegio → al colegio

This contraction is mandatory.

One important exception:

• a + ella does not contract
• a + él does not contract

So:

• Voy al campus
• but Voy a él

Yes. Llegar normally uses a before the destination.

Examples:

• Llegar a casa
• Llegar al trabajo
• Llegar a Madrid

In your sentence, a + el campus becomes al campus, so llegar al campus is exactly what you would expect.

English learners sometimes want to copy English and think of arrive without a preposition, but in Spanish llegar usually needs a.

Tener que + infinitive means to have to + verb.

So:

• tengo que hacer = I have to make/do
• tengo que validar = I have to validate

In the sentence, tengo que governs both infinitives:

• hacer un transbordo
• validar el abono

So the full idea is:

• I have to make a transfer and validate the travel pass

This is one of the most common ways to express obligation in everyday Spanish.

Yes, often you can.

• Tengo que hacer un transbordo... = I have to make a transfer...
• Debo hacer un transbordo... = I must / I should make a transfer...

But there is a slight nuance:

• tener que often sounds more neutral and everyday
• deber can sound a bit more formal, more like must, or sometimes softer, like should, depending on context

In ordinary spoken Spanish, tener que is usually the safest and most natural choice.

In Spain, hacer un transbordo means to change from one line, vehicle, or service to another during a journey.

In English, you might say:

• make a transfer
• change lines
• change trains/metros/buses

For example:

• get on one metro line
• change at another station
• continue on a different line

That change is a transbordo.

In public transport contexts in Spain, this is a very common word.

Yes. Both are possible.

• hacer un transbordo
• hacer transbordo

Both are understood, and both are used.

Very generally:

• hacer un transbordo sounds a bit more like make one transfer
• hacer transbordo can sound slightly more fixed or general, like to transfer

In many transport contexts, either version is fine.

Here, validar means to validate/stamp/register your ticket or travel pass using the machine or scanner.

In public transport in Spain, you often need to:

• tap a card
• scan a pass
• insert a ticket into a machine

That action is commonly called validar.

So this is not validate in the abstract English sense of confirm that something is true. It is a practical transport word meaning something like:

• tap in
• validate your ticket/pass
• scan your pass

In Spain, abono often means a travel pass, season ticket, or subscription-type pass for public transport.

So in this context, el abono is not about fertilizer or a payment in general. It specifically means a transport pass.

For example:

• abono mensual = monthly travel pass
• abono transporte = transport pass

This is a very Spain-specific everyday word in transport contexts.

Because en la estación expresses location: the validation happens in/at the station.

• en = in / at
• a = to / toward

So:

• validar el abono en la estación = validate the pass at the station
• ir a la estación = go to the station

A helpful contrast:

• Voy a la estación. = I’m going to the station.
• Estoy en la estación. = I’m at the station.

Because both infinitives depend on the same tengo que.

So Spanish says:

• Tengo que hacer un transbordo y validar el abono

This works like English:

• I have to make a transfer and validate my pass

You do not need to repeat the structure:

• Tengo que hacer un transbordo y tengo que validar el abono

That repeated version is grammatically correct, but less economical. The original sentence sounds more natural unless you want extra emphasis.

Because Para llegar al campus is an introductory phrase placed at the beginning of the sentence.

The comma helps separate that introductory purpose phrase from the main clause:

• Para llegar al campus, tengo que...

In short sentences, Spanish punctuation can sometimes be a little flexible, but this comma is very natural and helps readability.

Yes, in Spanish campus is normally treated as masculine:

• el campus
• un campus

Even though the word comes from Latin/English, in modern Spanish it is commonly used as a masculine noun.

Examples:

• El campus está lejos.
• Voy al campus.

Yes, you could, but the nuance changes slightly.

• para ir al campus = to go to the campus
• para llegar al campus = to get to the campus

Ir focuses more on the action of going. Llegar focuses more on arriving at the destination.

In your sentence, llegar makes good sense because the speaker is describing the steps needed to reach the campus successfully.

Not exactly.

• estación = station
• parada = stop

Use estación for places like:

• metro stations
• train stations
• bus stations

Use parada more for a stop along a route, especially:

• bus stop
• tram stop

So en la estación suggests a larger transport point, which fits well with validating a pass and making a transfer.