Hi Everyone!

I have been browsing these forums for the last few months, preparing for my honeymoon. These forums have a tremendous amount of info, it?s absolutely great. So, I thought I would submit my question to everyone. First, my fiancé and I have decided on visiting Spain for 12 days in early June. We are planning to stay 4 days in Barcelona and 5 or 6 days in Seville. First, I have decided to stay at the Hacienda Benazuza in Seville. Based on Mirabel's comments and other travelers comments on these forums. But, I have a question for Barcelona. I found a new hotel on the out skirts of the city called Gran Hotel La Florida. I found this hotel on Luxury Link and they are offering a package for this hotel. Has anyone had experience with this hotel? From the pictures, it looks amazing! It?s situated on a mountain top over looking Barcelona and the Mediterranean Sea and it only take 15 minutes to get into the city. Any thoughts or comments? Mirabel, do you know of this hotel? Before I found this city, I was planning on staying at the Hotel Claris. And, finally, does anyone have any ideas as to how we should then go from Barcelona to Seville? I was planning on taking the train. Finally, Mirabel, can you please give us ideas as to what to see in Barcelona and Seville or if you could please forward your files to me? My e-mail address is [email protected]. Thank you. I really appreciate everyone?s help and we?re really looking forward to Spain!

Best Regards,

Chirag

Hi Everyone,

Yes, again. OK, I feel very embarrassed! I spelled Maribel's name incorrectly in my orginal post. Sorry, Maribel!

Regards,

Chirag

Well, I am leaving on my trip for Spain in 2 days, so I am only offering help on one issue: how to get from Barcelona to Sevilla.

FLY! Go to www.iberia.com and look up flights. They are 1 hour and 25 minutes direct, and if you are flexible about your times, you can get one way fares of about 33 euros.

The train would take forever (although I didn't look how long). I am flying from Granada to Barcelona (which is a shorter distance than Sevilla), because the train was too long for me.

Hope this helps a little!

Karen

Hi Karen,

Thanks for your advise. I really appreciate it. I think we'll take the plane instead of the train, like you said. In fact, I was leaning more towards flying than anything else.

Regards,

Chirag

CKP,
Yes, I've read flurry of press releases about Barcelona's newest and most luxurious 5 star hotel atop Tibidabo mountain, actually a complete redo of the 1920s La Florida, rather than a brand new building, but unfortunately I haven't seen it.

Have you checked the web page?
www.hotellaflorida.com

Because of its location, you'd need to taxi constantly back and forth, as you already know.
Before you book, I think you should read 2 reviews, the first by my favorite booking site for charming, boutique hotels, "Inns of Spain", whose properties I use frequently, and Nick is a joy to deal with. I would email him and ask his opinion.
The second review by i-escape, paying attention to their "highs and lows" .
I like many of i-escapes charming hotel choices in Spain, and the reviews tend to be very candid.
Read both here:
www.innsofspain.com/hotelview.aspx?h=1216
www.i-escape.com/granhotellaflorida.php
It hasn't been rated or reviewed yet in the red Michelin '04 or in Gourmetour or the Campsa Guide, and it's too new to be a member of Relais & Chateaux or "Small Luxury Hotels" or "Leading Hotels of the World". But it's a JP Moser selection, and I like most of them.
www.jpmoser.com/laflorida.html

Only you can decide.

If you're thinking of those 2 luxury properties, I think also that you should fly from Barcelona to Sevilla. As Kaudrey says,
check Iberia's fares.

And I've sent you my files.
Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!

Hi Maribel,

Thank you very much for sending me your documents. I greatly appreciate it. Its very refreshing to meet people who are as generous as you in sharing their knowledge and experiences.

I will absolutely check out the sites that you have recommended. Thank you for your help!



Regards,

Chirag

Other airlines to try are Air Europa and Spainair which starts service from Barcelona to Sevilla 22 Feb.

www.air-europa.com
http://www.spanair.com/en/

These, along with Iberia will provide you with several flight times to choose from.

My husband and I are planning to do the overnight Trenhotel from Barcelona to Sevilla 21 Feb. So, I can post in a few weeks about that experience. We looked into the flights and pro'd and conned; but, in the end we opted for the train as a time-saver. The overnight train leaves Barcelona at 10 pm and arrives Sevilla at 8:08 am.

CKP,

Hello there. I am curious how you made out, as I am starting to plan a honeymoon in Spain for June 2005 and the Hacienda Benazuza was also recommended. What did you think? And do you have any good other recommendations. Planning on 15 days in total, with sometime spent on one of the islands.

Thanks

Michael

the hotel is really beautifully situated.
i have been there several times and know the decorator quite well.

it certainly is romantic .. and i do believe now there is a public bus that comes up the mountain that you could take.
also, you can take the teleferic to tibidabo and hope there is a cab there to take you over to hotel.
it would be worth calling/email them to see about this transportation set-up before discarding idea.
at least reserve yourselves dinner for evening view, or have a drink at endless pool during the day.

and ditto on plane to sevilla. i assume you will be doing some outskirts travelling as 5-6 days in sevilla itself would be more than plenty, and there are so many other lovely nearby places to see.

make a point of visiting alfonso X111 hotel there at least for coffee..and some of the paradors within 100 miles.

congratulations!!!