lb17

I am trying to come up with an Spain itinerary and am completely lost. We cannot decide between north or south and know we cannot do both.

We are planning a 10 day trip towards the end of September, first of October. He is an architect and I am an anthropologist -- we would be interested in local flavor, architecture (duh), and natural beauty. We are not really wanting to spend much time in big cities or museums (maybe just to hit the highlights). My Spanish is rusty but should not have problems understanding/communicating on a basic level.
My husband has not been to Europe and I have been almost everywhere but Spain. We are in our mid thirties so the party nightlife isn't really the scene for us.

The only sure thing we know is Barcelona should be part of the itinerary. We have an interest in seeing Al Ahambra and the white cities or alternatively Bilbao and the surrounding areas -- possibly a jaunt into France? We do not want to do too much.

Help!

Thanks in advance for any and all suggestions.

Michael

If Barcelona is a must, I would stick to northern Spain. You can drive across at the base of the Pyrenees in a couple of days and see some of the sights between Barcelona and Bilbao (San Juan de la Peña comes to mind).

OReilly

Your architect husband will think he has died and gone to heaven in Barcelona Make sure you allocate enough time there; I'd say a minimum of four days, but you could easily spend the entire 10 days exploring this delightful city. (I have an old trip report that I can send you if you drop me a note to [email protected]. I studied Architecture for a couple of years, so Barcelona was an architectural "pilgrimage" for me). I suggest you buy "BarcelonaWalks" - the very best guide book I have every found for any city, and let your husband plan the walking tours. (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...ce&s=books )

The best source of information on Spain is "Maribel" and she is the first source I consult when planning a trip to Spain. She has published her reports on the following website and you will find no better resource anywhere. Please check out this website and then make your choice about where to go:

http://www.maribelsguides.com/

The problem is, you are spoilt for choice! I have done the following trips:
- Catalonia drive: From Barcelona up through the Pyrenees and then to the Coast (Costa Brava). Wonderful diverse scenery, lovely small towns, my favorite being Girona, just north of Barcelona. This would be easy trip for you from Barcelona and would mean less time traveling (I have an old trip report on this one that I could also send you)

- Seville and Andalusia: I adored Seville and the drive around the white hill towns. Check out Spanair for flights from Barcelona (http://www.spanair.com/en/)

- Extremadura: The land of the Conquistadors. I visited this region in March (Have a trip report that I can send you). It is one of the least "touristy" areas in Spain and, for me, the highlight was Merida and its wonderful Roman remains and museum. You could fly to Madrid and drive (Caceres is a good base from which to explore) or there may be direct flights to Barajoz (sp.?), the main city in the region.

- Cantabria and the Basque region (actually TWO regions): Just back from the trip this week and still pining for its extraordinary natural beauty. I went as far west as the border between Asturias and Cantabria, in the Picos de Europa, and then worked my way back to the French Basque region. I am preparing a trip report. As an anthropologist, you MUST be interested in the Basque people (read "The Basque history of the World" (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...s&n=507846 ) . You would have to decide on either Cantabria or Basque. You would not be disappointed by either. There are lots of airports you could fly to along the coast. I posted on-line during the early part of the trip (Search on Ger and you should be able to find it).

Hope this helps.

Regards Ger

lincasanova

if your transatlantic tickets have not been purchased yet you might look inot an openjaw trip arriving at one airport but leaving from another. since there are no drop off fees fro cars within spain usually, you might be able to do quite a lot in 10 days this way.

barcelona..
then on to valencia. divided highway tollway. calatrava science/opera center.
very large historic district.

then on to south.. granada..free divided highway on interior road.(5 hours from valencia)

then southern towns..fewer divided highways. and up to madrid (free divided highway) or fly out of malaga area in south back to homeland.

enjoy.
all the previous posts are excellent suggestions.

lb17

Thanks for the responses. I am still a bit torn between the Basque country and Andalusia as I have heard great things about both. Ger, I would be very interested in your trip reports. I will look for them.

OReilly

Ib17 - can you send me a note to [email protected] and I will forward the reports.

regards Ger

sandy_b

I'm going to jump in here and hijack this post, as I "think" this is my daughter/S-I-L's trip to Spain and they have now invited me to go with them (am I lucky or what)!

We've about decided to rent a car and drive immediately from Madrid to the Seville area and base around there, as we want to visit Granada, Ronda, Jerez before dropping off the car in Malaga and flying to Barcelona for a few days.

We're looking for an apartment, preferably something under $150/night . . . anyone have any recommendations or suggestions?

We've also narrowed our dates down to mid-October . . . we're searching daily for affordable airfare, nothing yet under $800 that has a good schedule, we don't want to make numerous stops and long layovers, that would eat into our time . . . we only have 10 days (they are flying from SFO, I from DFW).

Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions.

Sandy (in Denton, TX)

lb17

Hi Sandy (mom), this indeed was my original post. Layne