I'm just starting to plan a trip to the London area and Spain around Christmas 2009. I'll be gone for 2-3 weeks, December 12(ish) to January 2 (ish). I'd like to spend the first 7-10 days in the London area and then head to Spain for 7-10 days. I'll be traveling with my boyfriend, who hasn't really given me any ideas what he's interested in.

I know very little about the various areas of Spain and need a few ideas for where to begin my research. I love history, old Cathedrals and landscapes. I think he wants to hit a beach for a day or two. I'm used to traveling like a whirlwind, but I can learn to slow down.

Is there a logical itinerary that would allow us to see some of the main historical sites and a beach in mid to late December? Also, is there a beach where it's possible to swim without getting hypothermia in late December?

How hard is it to move around the country without either of us driving? We'll be in Spain right around Christmas, how many issues might this cause? I assume pretty much everything will be shut down on Christmas, and likely on Christmas Eve. What about the 26th? I know to look at websites for any place specific, but are there any country-wide standards?

Thanks for any help!

I don't think you'll find beach time in Spain in Dec.
Your best bet is to go to Seville and explore Andalucia .

Europe - even southern Spain - is too cold for beach in Dec. For beach weather you have to go to either the Carib or Asia. That said, weather in southern Spain will be much warmer than London - probably 50's, perhaps s high as 60 - and great for sightseeing, gold, tennis etc.

Thanks for the heads up on the beach, I'll tell my travel companion that the beach is pretty well out for swimming on this trip.

To be honest, 50's sounds like beach weather right now... it was 29 degrees BELOW zero here last week.

From my memory, only December 25 is a public holiday in Spain, and stores should be open on Dec 26.
But there are several local experts here at Fodors from Spain who can verify that.

The major Christmas celebrations in Spain are on the night of Jan 5 because Jan 6 (3 Kings Day) is the day the kids get their presents.
If you are interested in colorful local events, you may want to see one of those Calabatas/ Christmas parades on Jan 5 in one of the major cities.

If you focused on Andalucia (other parts of the country can be really cold that time of year), I think a rental car is the best option, unless you plan to visit only the major cities like Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada, Malaga.
Rental cars are dead cheap that time of year. I paid €70 for a compact car for one week (not per day!), all insurances included.
While driving around or in the cities in not that much fun for most, a car will be the best options to explore the countryside, White Village, Natural Parks, beaches (even if you just want to go for a stroll and can't swim) and so on.
Anyway, Andalucia will keep you busy for 7-10 days at least.

Weatherwise, it will be mostly spring type of weather in the coastal regions of Andalucia and Sevilla. Around Christmas, I experienced anything from one week of sunshine and temps in the mid 20s (Celsius, not Fahrenheit) to mid 10s and some rain. Granada is much higher in elevation and can be cold and snowy. Same for other inland destinations in Andalucia like Ubeda and Baeza.

Apologies for the massive load of typos in my post.. still wish one could edit after posting...

I just spent 10 days in Spain and was there for Christmas. It was magical.

I suggest spending your Spain time in southern Spain. It will be warmer and sunnier. We enjoyed temps in the high 60's in both Granada and Seville.

Beaches aren't really an option at that time of year, unless all you want to do shiver and be miserable!

We did the trip easily with no rental car. We did 3 nights Madrid, 2 nights Granada, 3 nights Seville (including Christmas Eve and Day), 2 nights in Segovia (our daughter studied there and we wanted to meet her host family). Doing those cities was easy to do by pubic transportation. And those cities will definitely fulfill your love of history, old cathedrals and landscapes. Even though Segovia is north of Madrid and was a bit cold there, we LOVED it and would recommend it highly.

The Christmas decorations in all of the cities are stunning! Amazing lights across major roads and in small plazas. Really beautiful.

We were in Seville on Christmas Eve and everything was open until about 2 pm. So we found a grocery store, bought groceries and had a nice relaxing evening at our hotel. Then we went to 11:30 pm mass at the huge cathedral. It was a wonderful experience (we're Lutheran, not Catholic). On Christmas Day we found most restaurants open by noon. Everything will be open on the 26th.

Even though our days were relatively warm, I was glad that I had taken my Cuddle Duds along. All of the hotels we stayed in seemed to keep the rooms quite cool in the evening.

In addition to buying the Fodors guidebook, I highly recommend Rick Steves and Maribel's guides online. Happy planning!

cowboy, to edit a post ( although i often forget how to do it correctly) is done by going BACk with the arrows until you reach the posting box with your meesage.

Now here is the important part it seems.

Before editing, do not click "edit" but rather " preview my post".

Peview the post.

then EDIT.

Edit your post.

Preview again and post. and you shoud NOT get a double post, but a corrected first post.

good luck.

I would buy Batman #347 before I would Rick Steve's. It is equally helpful.

Since you love cathedrals, be sure to visit the cathedral in Toledo.

Here is my 2 cents worth. I live and work in Galicia so I can advise you on this part of Spain.
Some say it is going to be warmer in Spain than London. Don’t count on it as the weather can prove to be unpredictable. Like this year the airport in Madrid ahs been closed due to snow, but this has not happened in London this year.
If you like cathedrals then you should visit the third most important Christian location in the world. The Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, Galicia.
http://www.catedraldesantiago.es/
Also in Galicia you will discover a very different Spain, The countryside is outstanding and is littered with remains (and functioning) monasteries. There are loads of other sights to surprise you too. Like the World Heritage site of Lugo.
http://www.lugoturismo.com/
Others like this:
http://www.museosdegalicia.com/index.jsp
http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/08/26...tml?ref=travel
http://www.serradocourel.es/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vorjales/13462037/sizes/o/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/freecat/3077429468/

Yes the sea in all around Spain will be a bit too chilly to swim, but I will add here in Galicia you will find many thermal baths, some of which are free.
Flying to London can be done quite easily via two of the three airports in Galicia. Both are with low cost airlines and one flys direct to Heathrow!
As for Christmas, normally the case is that everything starts to shut from 14.00 hrs on the 14th December, all day on the 25th and reopen on the 26th. But and this is a very small but some restaurants, which cater for tourists may be open on the 25th. Normally these have to be pre-booked. The Spanish like to spend Christmas day with the family and normally eat the big meal on the night of the 24th.

Good luck with your planning.

Thank you all for your help! This definitely gives me a lot of ideas to look into further.