Travelling alone and for the first time to Majorca and Barcelona
Apr 8th, 2016, 12:03 AM
#1
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Travelling alone and for the first time to Majorca and Barcelona
Hello everyone,
I am travelling alone from India to Barcelona and Majorca for the first time. I intend travelling from June 15th to June 25th, 2016. Also, this is my first trip that I am planning by myself for myself (call it a treat for my 45th birthday!). I need some real good advice on:
1.The places to visit in these 8-10 days besides Barcelona and Majorca
2. Any recommendations for 'must do' sight seeing and activities in these places
3. Clean, safe and happy places you recommend I stay at (hotels, Airbnb, etc)
4. Best way to commute within each place and from one place to another
5. Things that I should be careful and mindful about
6. My Budget for 8-10 days outside of the airfare is USD 1500-1600. Will that cover my stay, food and sigh seeing expenses?
Looking forward to your suggestions and fun ideas to make my birthday trip memorable.
With much gratitude and anticipation,
KT
I am travelling alone from India to Barcelona and Majorca for the first time. I intend travelling from June 15th to June 25th, 2016. Also, this is my first trip that I am planning by myself for myself (call it a treat for my 45th birthday!). I need some real good advice on:
1.The places to visit in these 8-10 days besides Barcelona and Majorca
2. Any recommendations for 'must do' sight seeing and activities in these places
3. Clean, safe and happy places you recommend I stay at (hotels, Airbnb, etc)
4. Best way to commute within each place and from one place to another
5. Things that I should be careful and mindful about
6. My Budget for 8-10 days outside of the airfare is USD 1500-1600. Will that cover my stay, food and sigh seeing expenses?
Looking forward to your suggestions and fun ideas to make my birthday trip memorable.
With much gratitude and anticipation,
KT
Apr 8th, 2016, 12:25 AM
#2
you could catch the ferry http://www.seemallorca.com/ferries/
you could fly
Ryanair 1h 0m from £31
Vueling Vueling 50m from £42
Air Europa Air Europa 45m from £59
Iberia Iberia 50m from £59
just check which airport called Barcelona each carrier is using (you want the one with good public transport links
Your 8-10 days seems about right for the two places, I'd give more time to Barcelona.
Palma is very safe, Barcelona has one district famous for pick pockets but no high levels of violent crime. The Spanish day is very long as they tend to siesta at midday so you will see kids (5 - 10 year old) out on the streets late (11pm) which would be an unusual sight in Northern Europe. Barcelona has good public transport links to most places of interest in the surrounding area, Palma less so but it does have an old train/tourist train that gets out into the countryside and, of course, thousands of tour buses.
English is spoken more on Majorca but even so you are unlikely to have any problems if you lack Spanish in Barcelona
you could fly
Ryanair 1h 0m from £31
Vueling Vueling 50m from £42
Air Europa Air Europa 45m from £59
Iberia Iberia 50m from £59
just check which airport called Barcelona each carrier is using (you want the one with good public transport links
Your 8-10 days seems about right for the two places, I'd give more time to Barcelona.
Palma is very safe, Barcelona has one district famous for pick pockets but no high levels of violent crime. The Spanish day is very long as they tend to siesta at midday so you will see kids (5 - 10 year old) out on the streets late (11pm) which would be an unusual sight in Northern Europe. Barcelona has good public transport links to most places of interest in the surrounding area, Palma less so but it does have an old train/tourist train that gets out into the countryside and, of course, thousands of tour buses.
English is spoken more on Majorca but even so you are unlikely to have any problems if you lack Spanish in Barcelona
Apr 8th, 2016, 01:31 AM
#3
Your budget of $1600 dollars is about €1000 so an average of c€100 per day. This is very tight especially if you include the cost of travel between Barcelona and Palma and accommodation in peak season. You then have the cost of food and entertainment on top of that.
Have a look at www.booking.com for the cost of accommodation in hotels and apartments and airbnb for apartments, but you might need to squeeze the budget a bit more to make it a comfortable stay. Having said that, there are hostels in both locations that are much cheaper, but you may not get a private room. These places are more suited to young backpackers than to a middle aged man, but have a look:
www.hostelworld.com/Barcelona
Have a look at www.booking.com for the cost of accommodation in hotels and apartments and airbnb for apartments, but you might need to squeeze the budget a bit more to make it a comfortable stay. Having said that, there are hostels in both locations that are much cheaper, but you may not get a private room. These places are more suited to young backpackers than to a middle aged man, but have a look:
www.hostelworld.com/Barcelona
Apr 8th, 2016, 03:09 AM
#4
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Thank you both. These initial responses are very useful.
I will try and squeeze out more budget so that I am able to stay in a good place and also travel to other places.
Looking for someone to suggest a strong itinerary for me for these 10 days since I don't know places that are worth visiting outside Majorca and Barcelona.
Please, please all of you out there, keep your advice coming.
Thank you!
I will try and squeeze out more budget so that I am able to stay in a good place and also travel to other places.
Looking for someone to suggest a strong itinerary for me for these 10 days since I don't know places that are worth visiting outside Majorca and Barcelona.
Please, please all of you out there, keep your advice coming.
Thank you!
Apr 8th, 2016, 03:37 AM
#5
Barcelona has a lot of well trodden tourist sights, but as you haven't been there before I presume that you'll want to see them. Have a look at the "Destinations" tab at the top of this page for a list of where to go.
As far as Mallorca is concerned, do you want to stay in the larger city of Palma and day trip out, or stay outside Palma in one of the resort areas? On the sea or within a few kms of the sea? With your budget, a hire car may be a euro too far especially in high season. In any case, you may want to see the Cave of Drach, the Cathedral in Palma, Soller, Valdemossa etc.
As far as Mallorca is concerned, do you want to stay in the larger city of Palma and day trip out, or stay outside Palma in one of the resort areas? On the sea or within a few kms of the sea? With your budget, a hire car may be a euro too far especially in high season. In any case, you may want to see the Cave of Drach, the Cathedral in Palma, Soller, Valdemossa etc.
Apr 8th, 2016, 06:35 AM
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1.The places to visit in these 8-10 days besides Barcelona and Majorca
With your limited time and budget I would not recommend going somewhere else. Mallorca is such a big island that it offers enough to do and to see for two weeks. So, spend 5 days on Mallorca and 5 days in Barcelona (inclung arrival and departure days). From Barcelona, you can do a daytrip e.g. to Montserrat (monastery) or Figueres (Salvador Dali museum), depending on your interests.
2. Any recommendations for 'must do' sight seeing and activities in these places
I strongly suggest to buy a good guidebook that covers Barcelona and Mallorca. You need all kinds of information, and the guidebooks will provide them.
3. Clean, safe and happy places you recommend I stay at (hotels, Airbnb, etc)
In Europe, it will be difficult to find places which are not clean and safe.
Mallorca is a typical vacation island with ten thousands of hotels, many of them pretty inexpensive. 90% of the European travellers book their accomodation with a travel agency. There are numerous travel companies with offers. Maybe start with this one: https://www.thomascook.com/
Barcelona is a city with normal hotels for business travellers and tourists. Hotwire.com is a good website for good hotel deals, also booking.com.
4. Best way to commute within each place and from one place to another
Public transport is reliable, safe and inexpensive. On Mallorca, you might want to rent a car for a day or two.
5. Things that I should be careful and mindful about
Cannot think of any.
6. My Budget for 8-10 days outside of the airfare is USD 1500-1600. Will that cover my stay, food and sigh seeing expenses?
Your budget will be € 1,400. This should be comfortable enough for 10 days. Food and drink is pretty cheap in Spain (for European standards). And bakeries, street stands and grocery stores are inexpensive alternatives to restaurants.
Many hotels on Mallorca offer half pension which is included into the rate or can be added for a small fee.
With your limited time and budget I would not recommend going somewhere else. Mallorca is such a big island that it offers enough to do and to see for two weeks. So, spend 5 days on Mallorca and 5 days in Barcelona (inclung arrival and departure days). From Barcelona, you can do a daytrip e.g. to Montserrat (monastery) or Figueres (Salvador Dali museum), depending on your interests.
2. Any recommendations for 'must do' sight seeing and activities in these places
I strongly suggest to buy a good guidebook that covers Barcelona and Mallorca. You need all kinds of information, and the guidebooks will provide them.
3. Clean, safe and happy places you recommend I stay at (hotels, Airbnb, etc)
In Europe, it will be difficult to find places which are not clean and safe.
Mallorca is a typical vacation island with ten thousands of hotels, many of them pretty inexpensive. 90% of the European travellers book their accomodation with a travel agency. There are numerous travel companies with offers. Maybe start with this one: https://www.thomascook.com/
Barcelona is a city with normal hotels for business travellers and tourists. Hotwire.com is a good website for good hotel deals, also booking.com.
4. Best way to commute within each place and from one place to another
Public transport is reliable, safe and inexpensive. On Mallorca, you might want to rent a car for a day or two.
5. Things that I should be careful and mindful about
Cannot think of any.
6. My Budget for 8-10 days outside of the airfare is USD 1500-1600. Will that cover my stay, food and sigh seeing expenses?
Your budget will be € 1,400. This should be comfortable enough for 10 days. Food and drink is pretty cheap in Spain (for European standards). And bakeries, street stands and grocery stores are inexpensive alternatives to restaurants.
Many hotels on Mallorca offer half pension which is included into the rate or can be added for a small fee.
Apr 9th, 2016, 12:17 AM
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Thank you fellow travellers for all the kind advice and suggestions. Great inputs for me as I plan my vacation.
Will make sure I come back and write about my experiences.
Take care and happy weekend.
Will make sure I come back and write about my experiences.
Take care and happy weekend.
Apr 15th, 2016, 10:56 AM
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In reply to Rubicund's comment, for hostels you and other low budget places to stay you can do a search of Booking and Hostelworld from Hostelz. http://www.hostelz.com/hostels/Spain/Barcelona
Apr 17th, 2016, 01:18 AM
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In Barcelona, I have often stayed in great value and basic hotel standard Hostal Orleans, about 50€ for a single room: http://www.hostalorleans.com/index.php?lang=en
Located in vibrant and medieval El Born, close to "everything": http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.c...s/el-born.html
http://www.barcelona-life.com/barcelona/born
Do as the locals and have the main meal of the day at lunch-time. Then most restaurants serve a great value three course Menú del día/Today's menu with drinks included. In most neighbourhood restaurants the menu is some 8-12€.
Navia, 50 meters from Orleans, has for exapmple got a Three course menu del dia With drinks incl. for some 11€, popular with locals and open almost 24/7. Today's soup or stew is usually delicious, especially late at night when it has simmerede for some hours, and it will only set you back some 4€: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaura...Catalonia.html
Located in vibrant and medieval El Born, close to "everything": http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.c...s/el-born.html
http://www.barcelona-life.com/barcelona/born
Do as the locals and have the main meal of the day at lunch-time. Then most restaurants serve a great value three course Menú del día/Today's menu with drinks included. In most neighbourhood restaurants the menu is some 8-12€.
Navia, 50 meters from Orleans, has for exapmple got a Three course menu del dia With drinks incl. for some 11€, popular with locals and open almost 24/7. Today's soup or stew is usually delicious, especially late at night when it has simmerede for some hours, and it will only set you back some 4€: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaura...Catalonia.html
