We are going back to Spain for almost 14 days at the end of August arriving to Madrid and departing from Barcelona. Ten years ago we visited Madrid, Toledo, Cordoba, Seville, Gibraltar, Malaga, Granada, Barcelona, Montserrat and Figueres. As much as we loved our first trip and want to revisit most of these places we want to tour some other parts of Spain this time.
We love architecture, picturesque towns, art, nature, food, wineries, and enjoy long walks; night life and shopping are not as important. We are planning to rent a car when leaving Madrid and return it in Barcelona.
We are trying to create enjoyable and interesting 8 days trip, leaving 6 days for Madrid and Barcelona. And this is what I have a great difficulty with. The more I read, the more places I want to see, and it’s never enough time to enjoy everything on the way. The following places are under consideration:
Salamanca – almost definitely will be included
Day trips from Madrid - Segovia, Avila, El Escorial, Aranjuez - which are truly special?
Valencia (would love to visit City of the Arts and Sciences)
Bilbao, Basque Coast, San Sebastián?
Is Rioja wine region worth a visit?
I look for your experience and advice to design the best trip possible.
Need help with Spain itinerary–Valencia? Basque County/North? other places?
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Have you checked into Maribel's Guides? She covers Madrid, the Basque country and the Rioja quite well.
If you love architecture dont miss Valencia. You could do Madrid(segovia day trip)Cuenca(hanging houses),Teruel(The Lovers of Teruel and Mudejar Towers) Valencia(City of Arts And Sciences),Tarragona(roman remains) then finish up in Barcelona. And if that is too much then you could cut out Tarragona.
http://theartichokeadventures.blogspot.com.es/2012/02/hi-there-this-is-my-first-entry-so.html
Travfirst:
Don't miss Valencia!!!! Really charming city, and the city of Science and Arts is really wonderfull!!.
You can read my report on Valencia and Madrid here:
http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/10-days-in-madrid-and-valencia.cfm
Related to other cities; Segovia is a must for one dat(with lunch at José María if possible); El Escorial is very interesting, Avila also good for a one day visit(or even some hors).The palace at Aranjuez is also charming(the gardens also); an if in season, strawberries are excelent.
Enjoy your trip!!!!(we are returning next june).
Robert, I took most books from my library – 8 total, but Maribel's Guides is not one of them, I will try to find it.
Cehegin, I read last night about Cuenca, will take a look again. I will be returning to check the updates on Patrick's blog. Thank you for the link.
jelopez, thank you for the interesting trip report. Was 3 days/3nights enough time to visit all major sites in Valencia? Unfortunately we will miss the strawberries at Aranjuez, just another reason to come back.
www.maribelsguides.com
Travfirst:
I think 3 days 3 nights was the munimum; you can easily fill one more day; and 2 days is way too short.Enjoy!!
Travfirst:
All you need to know about valencia(well almost...):
http://www.valencia-cityguide.com/
Really interesting information; the itineraries are really good and easy to follow.
Cruiseluv, thank you for the link. It's a great source of information.
Jelopez, I will check Valencia guide this weekend. Hope to decide on our itinerary soon, so we can begin planning details.