1 week in Spain .... would love itinerary recommendation!!!
 

Dear Fodors friends

My husband and I have a last minute opportunity to go to Spain for one week (early September). We have not booked flights yet - and we would love recommendations on what would be the best use of a week in wonderful Spain! We are in our mid-thirties and are looking forward to experiencing Spanish bar food and nightlife, architecture and art galleries and markets etc. A little idealistic, I know.

We would be so grateful for any suggested lat minute itineraries, thank you!!!!

Sophie

3 days in Madrid and 3 days in Barcelona.

Be prepared for dry heat and bad air pollution.

Early September will be hot in Spain so I will not recommend Andalucia, my favorite part of Spain. How about Barcelona and San Sebastian?

"looking forward to experiencing Spanish bar food and nightlife, architecture and art galleries and markets etc"

Sounds like Madrid! A big city made up of very different and local feel neighbourhoods. Fabulous tapas bars and restaurants all over town, the best nightlife in the country, several world class museums, the famous Rastro market on every Sunday and wonderful parks.

Check out the Barrio de las Letras/Litterary quarter in the very heart of town. Excellent jazz cafés and flamenco tablaos and clubs as well as "normal" nightlife in this area. Café Central is the best jazz club in Madrid and Casa Patas is the best tablao in the country. Changing top of the shelf artists all the time in both places.
Barrio de las Letras: http://www.barrioletras.com/
Café Central: http://www.cafecentralmadrid.com/
Casa Patas: http://www.casapatas.com/Index.asp?idioma=in

And it also sounds very much like Barcelona. Here you also have the city beach Barceloneta (fabulous vibe, all kinds of people) with the bohemian, vibrant and local feel Barceloneta neigbourhood, and you have the spectacular Gaudí architecture, the Picasso museum, the Miró museum etc etc.

I recommend El Born district for tapas, for the Picasso museum, for the 14th century Santa María del Mar church - one of the finest Gothic buildings around - and for great nightlife. http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.c...s/el-born.html

About the Barceloneta area: http://www.theguardian.com/travel/20...taurants-spain

I also recommend the non-touristy Poble Sec district for tapas and local atmosphere into the night. Dozens of tapas bars side by side all around. http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.c...poble-sec.html

Architect genious Antoni Gaudí and Barcelona: http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.c...ona-gaudi.html

AND Madrid and Barcelona are only 2,5 hours apart, city cemter to city center, with the high speed AVE train (renfe.com).

...and these sites give good and updated info about both cities.

Madrid: http://www.esmadrid.com/en/portal.do
Barcelona: http://www.barcelonaturisme.com/

3 and 3 between Madrid and Barcelona makes a lot of sense given your limited time and expressed interests.

Some great tapas bars and night-spots in both Barcelona and Madrid that you might like. Two very different cities.

Barcelona.
In the Barceloneta district you'll find very cool Absenta bar with some 20 types of Absinth and fine tapas.: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio...Catalonia.html
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Absen...85131778207493

Filferro just across the street is also a great place for a late night drink and a bite. The two places also share the same terrace. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...Catalonia.html

Very popular Jai-Ca is also close by: http://unlike.net/barcelona/food/jaica

In El Born, I very much recommend having some delicious pintxos (Basque tapas) in Txakolín before moving into the bar district in and around Passeig del Born. This one is genuine and gives you an idea why the Basque country is the culinary heartland of Spain. Ask for the warm pintxos that are prepared directly on order: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...Catalonia.html

And dozens of great bars and clubs in El Born. This gives you an idea of the variety.

El Born Bar: http://vimeo.com/57124524
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...Catalonia.html

Barroc is twenty meters away: http://www.barroc-cafe.com/en/

Palau Dalmases is 70 meters away if you're up for some coctails and serious flamenco in a three hundred years old palace: http://palaudalmases.com/

Madrid:
Revuleta, just off Plaza Mayor, serves excellent fried bacalao tapas. I never leave Madrid without having had the squid in its own ink here. Very popular with locals.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHu8zGsFuy8
http://11870.com/pro/revuelta

Tapas guide for the area: http://tapastalk.wordpress.com/tapas-bars/

Many excellent late night places in Calle Echegaray, just off central and bustling Plaza Santa Ana. Cardamomo in nr. 15 is a high quality flamenco tablao, and next door El Burladero bar also have got a flamenco taint:
http://cardamomo.es/ http://www.elburladerocopas.com/index2.html

Excellent sherry-bar La Venencia in n. 7 has been around for ages. http://www.frommers.com/destinations/madrid/N26328.html
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio...ia-Madrid.html

And you are then close to late night jazz cafés Populart and Café Central.
http://www.populart.es/
http://www.cafecentralmadrid.com/

yep, agree with Kimhe, head for Madrid!If you get bored there , you can always do easy day trips to Toledo, Segovia, Avila.