charming cities in Spain
 

Hi! We are traveling to Spain in June, my husband, myself and 2 kids, ages 12 and 17. We will be staying in Barcelona for 4-5 days and in Madrid for 7 days. I have been told to check out Segovia and Toledo. Are there any other quaint towns that I should look into for day trips from these places? We like to immerse ourselves in the culture and really like history. Also, what is the best way to book these day trips? We want to do this on a budget and don't want to be part of a large group. I thought about hiring a travel agent but not sure if that's necessary. Trying to plan as much as possible and book everything the most effective, time saving way. Thank you for your advice!!

Also, can you please recommend a good area to rent an apartment in Madrid? Not too loud but close to as much touristy stuff as possible. Haven't planned our itinerary yet. Was thinking of using Spain select to look for apartment. Any other companies? Thanks again!

"Segovia and Toledo. Are there any other quaint towns that I should look into for day trips from these places?"

Avila, Salamanca
Tarragona

Kwar,
I haven't been to Madrid and Toledo yet, but we have booked a trip to Spain for September that includes Madrid and Toledo. We are staying overnight in Toledo for one night. We plan on taking the train from Madrid to Toledo; it's only a 30-minute train ride. Based on my research, including posts from people on this forum, you don't need to use a travel agent or go on a group tour. We are doing it ourselves. You can set up train alerts so that you know when train tickets go on sale, and then book your train tickets to Toledo when they go on sale to get the cheapest fares. Buy a good guidebook and you can do your own sightseeing in Toledo. I bought Fodors, Lonely Planet, and Michelin Green Guide. Do you have time to stay overnight in Toledo?

Would you want to take the time to visit Córdoba from Madrid? To visit the Mezquita. You can take the train from Madrid to Córdoba; I think it's about 2 hours or 2 1/2 hours from Madrid. Just a thought. Or are you saving Andalusia for another trip?

Number of suggestion for apt. on treads you posted earlier i.

Salamanca.

Next question.

You don't need tours or a travel agent for any of the day trips from Madrid. Take a train.

The Madrid-Toledo tickets never go on sale, it's a main commutter line, but you can save 10% when buying a round-trip ticket.

>You don't need tours or a travel agent for any of the day trips from Madrid< That works when you already know everything about the place you're visiting, but sometimes a good local guide is worth the expense.

I strongly recommend that you consult some good guidebooks, perhaps the Michelin Green Guide or Rough Guide. In comparison to the cost of your trip, the cost of a guidebook will be nugatory, and you will have a wealth of information at your fingertips – including money saving tips and answers to questions you haven’t even realized you need to ask.

No need to book day trips or use a travel agent to visit Segovia, Toledo, or any of the other places people are mentioning, unless that’s your preference. But please note: These are not, IMO, “quaint towns” – they are cities with stunning Old Towns at their core.

And with only 4 or 5 days in Barcelona, and only 7 days in Madrid, you aren’t leaving yourself much time for these trips.

Good luck!

Alcalá de Henares - just outside Madrid - is Cervantes' birth-town and on the UNESCO world heritage list.
http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres...e_henares.html

Aranjuez: http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres.../aranjuez.html

And El Escorial is as 16th century Spain as it gets: http://www.sanlorenzoturismo.org/en

kja- I will definitely invest in a guide book. I am a bit overwhelmed which is why so many questions. We got lucky and found affordable tickets to Spain last week so I have not researched it at all yet as we had not planned to go. Nonetheless, we are beyond excited! The reason I mentioned a travel agent is for the entire Spain trip, not just Segovia and Toledo. I just want to be sure not to miss anything but I'm sure the books can help with that. It seems that 3 days in Barcelona should be enough but I am only saying that from the research I've done and mostly from people on these forums. Hence the reason I mentioned Travel agent. If I don't need one, I'd rather save money for something else but just don't want to miss out. I am open to any and all suggestions and they are greatly appreciated!

I think Segovia and Toledo are very good choices, and El Escorial for part of a day. That should be enough with the rest in Madrid, probably. Plenty of other good suggestions above, though.

I don't know who all told you that 3 days in Barcelona is enough. Some people are going to dislike any city, just preference. Some people on Fodors have remarked they dislike Madrid, for example, I think I've seen that more than Barcelona, but you've allocated it 7 days, which is interesting. I love Spain and like both cities, actually.

"I just want to be sure not to miss anything"

You have less than two weeks in Spain. You will miss MANY things. With that amount of time, you could easily visit Andalusia ONLY. Or Madrid and surrounds ONLY. Or Barcelona and surrounds ONLY. Etc. A travel agent will not be able to make choices for you. You and your family will have to decide.

The good news: You do not have any bad choices here, just very difficult ones.

From Madrid, yoi can go with bus from bus company Alsa, from Plaza Eliptica to Toledo. The round ticket is around 11€. You can go early in the morning and after that take a bus to Consuegra, to see the Windmills of Don Quixote. But, if you don't have time, go to Consuegra another day, bus from Madrid to Madrillejos - direct. And if you are searching for big and beautiful cities, Barcelona is must-see place! You can take a flight from buget airlines Vueling or Iberia to Barcelona. I have done this trip and i want to share my video for some of the places you must visit in this cities. https://youtu.be/kez_qJoWFFI I hope you will have a nice time in Spain! It's really beautiful country!

Also remember that Spain in June is prime tourist season and you will have to wait in line at most attractions in Barcelona. I would add a day to Barcelona simply to get the feel of the city.

ok so I think that we will do 5 days in Barcelona with a day trip to coastal town in France for a day and 7 days in Madrid with day trips to Toledo and Segovia. I think that trying to fit Andalusia in, might be too hectic for this trip? Also, I was going to do Toledo and Segovia on separate days. I have had a couple people advise me to do them on the same day. Seems like a bit much to me?

If it were just my husband and I traveling, we would want a lot of downtime to sit and people watch and just chill. Because we will have our teens with us, I am trying to pack in a lot, I know they will enjoy keeping very busy.

Good move! :-)

Yes, Andalusia is too much for this trip.

And yes, Toledo and Segovia are too much for one day. You might even want a night or two in Toledo!

Why a day trip from Barcelona into France? You have so many, many options right there in Spain -- Tarragona, Girona, Montserrat, Tossa del Mar, Figueres....

As for timing, even if you pack things into each and every single moment, you are in absolutely NO danger of running out of things to see or do. Or at least, I didn't run out of things to see and do, I had more time in each area that you are planning, and I absolutely FILL my days.

This is my kids first time to Europe, we live in Florida. My thought was to let them get a little view of France as well since we are so close. If we end up having time to do that, great. I'm not going to stress if we don't though, it was just a thought. In your opinion, would you do more time in Barcelona, more in Madrid or equal. I had been hearing that if I planned well, 3 days in Barcelona would work but now I am second guessing that.

Also, I was told that the eixample area is a good central and safe location. Is this true? Also, not seeing a ton of apartments so is there another area I can search as well for Barcelona? What abt best areas for Madrid?

One of the things that your children might find quite interesting is to see how places that are in the same country -- even the same state within that country -- can be so very different from one another! Going to France would defeat that purpose. Going to somewhere near Barcelona that is quite different -- and all the place mentioned are, IMO, quite different -- might bring that lesson home.

How much time any one place takes really depends on what one wants to see and experience. IMO, even planning well, 3 days would rarely allow people to see what interests THEM in Barcelona. IME, people with very diverse interests and preferred paces of travel generally report that (rarely) 4 or (more often) 5 days suit their interests. Again, the only way for you to know what will work for YOUR family would be to plot it out on a calendar.

Please note that if you plan on 5 days, and find yourselves "done" in 4, you can easily fit in a day trip to Tarragona or Montserrat or any number of other places -- it isn't like you will be forced to sit, twiddling your thumbs. ;-)