Marcel on Southern Spain any questions?.....
 

I am a proffessional Tourmanager, worked in Spain for 14 years,going back frequently....

Hi Marcel.

I'm planning a trip to Spain for the Holy Week, and I want to visit Andalucia. What can you recommend me there? Let´s say I got all that week (I will be before in Madrid and other places).

I know Seville's Holy Week is quite famous, but do you know if there are other festivites on that week in Granada or Cordoba?

Where can I stay (nice, clean, friendly and non-expensive)? Places for eating (local food with local people)?

Thanks in advance for your help, I'm from Mexico and will be pleased to help you if you got any doubts about my country.

Paco

My wife and I are flying to Barcelona on 5/3, taking a 7 day cruise onf SS Rembrandt. We arrive back in Barcelona on 5/11 and want to spend 2 days here before we meet our land tour in Zurich. I checked the hotels & cannot see paying $200-400 a night for a hotel. We visited Spain in 1970 and stayed at Pensionnes. We would like to get some information about them in Barcelona. Advice, Cost, Method of payment, how to make reservations, etc. Can you help.

I'll be in Southern Spain in June, and I'm looking for some out-of-the-ordinary things to do, more along the "adventure" lines (i.e. from bungee jumping to snorkeling). Any suggestions? We'll be based in Nerja, with planned trips to Seville, Granada, Gibraltar, Malaga, Marbella, and anywhere else interesting. The usual restaurants/nightspots/historical suggestions most welcome also! Much appreciated!

I was wondering if anyone knows about a travel company called Marketing Ahead inc.

We are taking a trip to Spain and we found their name in the Fodors Spain book and wondered if they have a good reputation. But we have never heard of them before. They seem very helpful over the phone in getting us various information about accommodations.

Thanks any help we be appreciated.

Since we will be going to southern Spain in late June, I'd like to find out if we can book a room at around 1 p.m. so that we can take a nap during the hot time of day. Or, can you only get into rooms later in the day? If so, that would be a problem if you need to "crash" during the afternoon. We plan to rent a car outside of cities and drive around Andalucia, then go on to Portugal. Thank you.

Since we will be going to southern Spain in late June, I'd like to find out if we can book a room at around 1 p.m. so that we can take a nap during the hot time of day. Or, can you only get into rooms later in the day? If so, that would be a problem if you need to "crash" during the afternoon. We plan to rent a car outside of cities and drive around Andalucia, then go on to Portugal. Thank you.

Hola Paco, pues visita Sevilla si puedes, 1 semana antes hay unos festejos en la localidad de Malaga, pero con una semana durante la feria de abril yo me iria a Sevilla, ten en cuenta que habra poco sitio. Todos los hoteles estan llenos, claro que hay pensiones afuera de la ciudad.
Tambien vale la pena Cordoba por 1 o dos dias,
Granada por 2 dias, y la zona de Malaga, Coin Alhaurin de la Torre, Cartama, Tolox, Benameji, Ronda Alhaurin el Grande,Ronda,- es alli donde encontraras Andalucia, sus pequenos pueblos blancos, en tu libro estudia la Ruta de los pueblos blancos, vale la pena sobre todo Las Alpujarras, Salobrena,
Y la zona costalera de Granada. Buena suerte y viaja con ciudado.

Hi, sorry for the late reply,-
Here an interesting site:
http://www.travelnow.com/europe/spai...barcelona.html
Pensiones is definetly the way to go- I have no recent info on pensiones as of now, but...
try the above site. Kind regards, Marcel.

Hola Rebecca, Hotel check-in is usually around 4pm, but if you stop at one of the many roadside restaurants with a "Comedor"- diningroom, and have lunch there, you might be able to crash after your lunch in a comfortable place. Eat small meals, try the ensalada mixta, or the ensalada de tomates.
I have driven a lot in Spain, lunch used to be around 1pm until 2.30pm, and then we crashed under a shady olive tree, we sometimes parked the car and "visited" the lobby of our hotel, it had a swimming pool with all the amenities to get comfortable.... later around 5pm we checked in!
I know about a perfect driving tour, but it depends on how much time you have. Do not leave ANY valuables in your car.
Kind Regards, Marcel

Hi Marcel,
Going to Costa Del Sol this Aug. Can you recommend beachfront hotel in Marbella or Torremolinos? Need English speaking staff. What do you think of Melia Hotels in these areas?
Know anything about El Fuerte Hotel in Marbella?
Have you heard anything about safety, reliability and service of Air Europa?
Thanks for any information you can give us.
Ron

Hi Marcel,
Going to Costa Del Sol this Aug. Can you recommend beachfront hotel in Marbella or Torremolinos? Need English speaking staff. What do you think of Melia Hotels in these areas?
Know anything about El Fuerte Hotel in Marbella?
Have you heard anything about safety, reliability and service of Air Europa?
Thanks for any information you can give us.
Ron

H,i this is free information, I like too share my knowledge with you.
Hotel Melia Don Pepe, or Don Paco is fine, both properties are on the Paseo Maritimo de Torremolinos
and right next to the beach, both have wonderfull swimmingpools, rooms etc. The stairs up- to downtown torremolinos are right next door.
The Paseo Maritimo, seaside boulevard now goes around the rock to la Carihuela, a former fishing village with many nice fish restaurants.
Some specialties you should try: Ensalada de tomates, Pescado frito:
Rape ali-oli, Almejas, Coquinas, Calamares a la Romana, Lubina a la sal,(big dish)Merluza en salsa verde (big dish)too much to mention... Hotel El Fuerte in Marbella is ok.
Have not heard anything about the airline you mentioned.Kind regards Marcel.

Hi, thank you in advance for your help. We are planning a trip to Spain and Portugal in September.We are not sure about staying in Malaga.
We have read in some of the tour books that crime is very high there. What is your opinion?

Hi! My husband and I are planning a trip to Mallorca in april and I was wondering what the weather was like at that time of year (temperature and chances of rainfall). Thank you for any information.

We are starting and ending a 3 week trip by car in Madrid this April .We want to see some of Portugal (not sure how far north to go). We will be in Seville for the Seville Fair and want to concentrate on the Andalucia area.I am a photographer and am looking forward to taking some great photos. Can you recommend a route. Thanks for your help.

My wife and I did some of the cities of Spain this Feb. Outside of the hotel receptionist, we found American (English) not to be widely spoken, even in the restaurants. But, with some hand signs and knowing a few key words of Spanish, we were able to make do. In fact, it added to the adventure and experience. Some times we got food at our meals we didn't realize we had ordered, but that was a delightful surprise. Go for it!!