ssander

Information on the 2-for-1 coupons (though over a year old, probably still true):

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...pon-thread.cfm

SS

FerrisFar

Re: Luggage. Given that we will be traveling for three weeks and that the carry on allowance on European flights is so little, I don't know how we could manage to travel with just a carry on apiece. Just taking a second pair of shoes (a must when a lot of walking is involved) will take up 1/4 of an allowed carry-on bag. So it's inevitable that we will have at least one checked bag between us. I know some people could do it, but we wouldn't be comfortable. I usually pack light, but not THAT light.

Re: Vigo versus Lugo. I must confess that I substituted Vigo for Lugo because "Vigo" is a popular brand of Spanish food that I buy fairly often. I will look into Lugo. Thanks for the link, Goldenautumn.

Re: Salamanca-- We would only be able to allow one day for it, if we went at all. Would you all recommend bus or train? We would be going from the center of Madrid, not the airport, and would want to return the same evening.

I need to find out what an Iberia card is, and whether it is open to tourists. (Thanks for the new tip, Ribeirasacra.)

I'll check more into the 2-for-1 coupons (thanks for the link Ssander.) I think I've seen something on the London information for tourists site also.

See next message for updated travel plans.

FerrisFar

New Travel Plans/Itinerary

Due to a change in my friends work schedule and the price of the plane ticket across the Atlantic, we are now traveling much later than I wanted--we will be traveling in mid June and returning to the US just before the fourth of July.

Another change in the plan outlined in my original post is that we are now going to be going to Santiago de Compostela before we do anything much in Madrid.

So:

Day 1 --Travel US to Madrid
Day 2 --Stay in Madrid (probably hotel near airport) and rest, probably do some sightseeing in the evening.
Day 3 --Travel to Santiago de Compostela, spend 4 nights in SdeC.
Day 4, 5, 6 Take two tours of the area and a train ride to someplace interesting--Lugo, La Coruna, whatever)
Day 7, travel back to Madrid.
Day 8-12 Tour Madrid and take day trips (guided or on our own) to places like El Escorial, Toledo, Avila, maybe Salamanca, etc.
Day 13 Travel from Madrid to London via Amsterdam (Any tips for Amsterdam airport? I've been in Amsterdam before, but not at the airport.) Sleep in London.
Day 14-20 Enjoy London and nearby areas.
Day 21 Leave London for USA. Sleep at home if all goes well.

The plane tickets for US to Madrid/ Madrid to London/ and London back to US have been purchased, but everything else is somewhat flexible still. Suggestions for things to do and so forth are still welcome.

Thanks.

kja

You might want to check your new plans against opening hours - many places in Spain (and elsewhere!) are closed on Monday, and may be closed on part/all of Sunday as well.

ribeirasacra

What a missed opportunity. With this reorganisation of the vacation you could have purchased flights from SdC or A Coruña direct to London.
Which airline takes you from Madrid to London via Amsterdam?

FerrisFar

Ribeirasacra-- We bought tickets through Delta, and they partner with KLM. (We wanted Delta because Atlanta airport is closest to home.)

We priced the Atlanta-Madrid/Madrid-London (via Amsterdam) and London-Atlanta against options that only included the transatlantic (Atlanta-Madrid and then London-Atlanta)and then fly Santiago directly to London but that actually took us through Madrid again (Iberia) and raised the cost more than we saved by cutting out the Madrid/Amsterdam/London.

We ended up having to change the dates because the ticket prices were going up so fast. Literally, I had entered the credit card number and hit return and they told me that the price had gone up. So we moved the trip another four days to get the lower fare.

KJA -- Good point. We looked at the dates. Our only Monday in Spain is the day slotted for "playing it by ear." (Maybe La Coruna, maybe Lugo, maybe looking up the towns where my grandparents were born, if my brother will find the name in the family papers.) We arrive in Madrid on a Thursday, relax, get somewhat adjusted to the new hemisphere, enjoy some good food, etc. The Friday we travel early to Compostela and get to enjoy the pilgrim city that day. Saturday and Sunday are scheduled for organized tours that leave only on those days. Monday, as I said, is still open, but we aren't aiming for museums or monuments, just the general area. Tuesday we head back to Madrid. The following Monday, we fly out of Madrid to London.

Anyway, thanks for all the comments. Right now I am trying to decide whether we would be better off staying at an airport near the hotel for the night in Madrid before heading to Compostela or whether it would make sense to spend that first night in the city, at the hotel where we have reservations for the rest of the time. (Hotel Preciados--very highly rated on TripAdvisor, and my exchange with them so far has been good.) I was thinking if we could leave our heavy luggage at the hotel, it would save us the hassle of lugging it all the way to Santiago de Compostela and back. What do the rest of you advise?

FerrisFar

<chuckle> Just caught a typo. I mean "a hotel near the airport" not an "airport near the hotel" of course.

GBbabe

I vote for doing Toledo on your own, if for no other reason, than you can get a bus from the train station to the Plaza de Zocodover and start walking from there. The organized tours start with a long walk up hill into town first (at least the ones I saw when I was there). Don't miss the Iglesia de San Ildefonso/Iglesia de los Jesuitas, there is a terrific view over Toledo and the countryside from the towers and the reliquary is fascinating.

You mentioned going to Mass. In Madrid, my I suggest Iglesia de Santa Barbara. The Catedral is nice, but BIG. Santa Barbara is impressive on a smaller scale. And when you see the Templo de Debod, I suggest walking over to the Museo Cerralbo. It has a fabulous collection and room decoration.

If you do stay near the Madrid airport, don't stay at the Tryp Diana, unless you get a very, very, very good rate and don't have high expectations.

ribeirasacra

"they partner with KLM"
So if you are flying with KLM please confirm with who you have booked that you have luggage which is checked in.
http://www.klm.com/travel/nl_en/camp...HP_wide_1stbag
On my posting of Feb 4th I wrote about which airlines fly directly between Galician and London.
I wonder where your family come from.
When you do post about this please add as much information as possible. The reason why I ask is that in Galicia village names are often repeated. For example: Near where I live on one side of the river is a village with a name, and just a few km away on the other side of he river is a village with the same name. A village can also be very very small. As soon as there are 2 houses it is a village.
Galicia is the Comunidad autónoma in Spain with the most villages

FerrisFar

Thanks for the tips GBbabe. We were originally planning to stay at the airport Hilton. (We get certain upgrades because we are Hilton Honors members.) The price went up astronomically for the day we were arriving (three days earlier or two days later it's just fine) so we are looking at other options.

Ribeirasacra: Regarding where my grandparents came from, I don't know the name of the villages--only that they were from different villages. My brother is going to check for me--he has some family papers. Until he does, it is a big question mark. I know lots of family stories, but not exactly where they took place. At least I will see the general area.

Regarding the choice not to go directly from Santiago to London, the problem was not that I didn't know of any airlines that went directly from Santiago to London (thanks for having given me the names) but that two "one ways" (Madrid to Santiago and Santiago to London) became far more expensive than an Iberia Express round-trip Madrid to Santiago and back together with the KLM portion included in my oversees Delta flight deal.

Thanks for the heads-up about KLM and the luggage. As the time for the trip gets closer, I'll be double-checking our options for luggage.

This brings me to a question about carry-on luggage on both transatlantic and European flights:

I usually carry a special pillow for my back when I travel in the U.S. This is not counted against my "carry on luggage" because I sit on it. It takes no space and in any case, it is soft.

Do you all think I may have a problem with that? Has anyone had any problem carrying small pillows aboard?

Thanks.