Spain: popularity and interest?
 

All:<BR><BR>I have discovered this board fairly recently, and appreciate all the good info here. I find one thing curious, however. Spain does not seem to get the attention that its rank as the third most visited country would indicate. It seems like France, Italy, England, Ireland and Germany are more discussed. I know Spain does have a presence, but, except for beach-type things, does not seems to attract the same scale of interest as the other destinations. Is Spain still not well-known to Americans (assuming that this board is largely American)? Are other countries more appealing or just have a greater history of tourism? Do Spain aficcionados hang out elsewhere? This isn't a troll; I'm just curious as to the perception of this country on what is probably the premiere internet travel board around. And yeah, I like Spain myself.

I too wondered this..when I was planning my trips to France and Italy I got a ton of info from this site. Now I'm planning to go to Spain and while a few posters have been very helpful, there doesn't seem to be very many responses.

Very interesting. I was thinking the same thing as I planned my trip to Spain a few weeks ago. Aside from Maribel, there were few responses in comparison to the responses for Italy and France. I was wondering if I'd like Spain as much based on the lack of enthusiasm from this board, but I am going anyway. <BR><BR>Going to Barcelona for a few days, flying to Malaga & staying in Esteponia as a home base for 5 days & then 2 nights at the Parador in Granada. I got most of my info from guide books & websites, not this forum (that's a first!). I promise a full, detailed trip report when I return. Oh, & I picked the following 2 hotels besides the Granada Parador in case anyone has any suggestions or comments: Barcelona Ritz & Las Dunas in Esteponia. Will be taking side trips to Figueres, Ronda, Mijas, Gibralter, Seville. Gave up on Tangiers based on responses from this board.

Spain is GREAT! Near Barcelona is a gorgeous little beach town called Tossa de Mar. Fabulous beach and excellent seafood, mixed with a charming old town make Tossa my favorite place in Spain.

Last I heard, Spain was the most visited country in the world. Which explains why customer service can be a lot better. However, been there two times and loved it. Would go back there again and always recommend it.

Ellen..I'm very interested in your trip! Do you plan on doing all the day trips from Esteponia? Are you passing on Nerja? Why Malaga? When are you going? Hope you don't mind my questions but right now I'm a sponge for any info I can get! I'm not going till next spring so hopefully you'll go before then and report back!

We loved Spain. We honeymooned in Andalucia in Sept. 2000.<BR><BR>I think part of the problem is that Spain seems to divide easily into different regions, each of which almost needs a trip devoted to it exclusively. When people go to Italy, they seem to mostly go to Venice, Florence and Rome -- with a few making stops in Amalfi coast or Cinque Terre. Ditto for France and Europe.<BR><BR>When people travel Spain, they seem to focus on one region, including small villages or beach towns. That calls for WAAAAAAAY more specific questions. I frequently don't respond when people ask Spain questions because they ask about a town I haven't visited or a specific question about the distance between two towns and I don't want to waste their time with my non-information.<BR><BR>Does that make sense?<BR><BR>Anyway, Ellen, your trip sounds great. I hope that I am the one who recommended Las Dunas to you because we LOVED it! We had a beautiful balcony overlooking the Mediterranean. The food and service was great. We didn't care if we ever left the resort.<BR><BR>We also made a day trip to Ronda. Really enjoyed it, but don't know that I'd want to do more than a day trip.<BR><BR>A day trip to Seville is ambitious. There is lots to see and do there.<BR><BR>BTW, Granada was our favorite city. We didn't stay at the parador, but stayed in the city. We loved the energy there and the tapas bars -- be sure to explore all of the tapas bars in the area behind the Plaza Nueva. Enjoy!

"Ditto for France and Europe?" Make that: "Ditto for France and Paris." SIGH.

More than 30 million tourists visit Spain every year!<BR>For an active message board discussing everything about Spain, go to www.madridman.com

I love Spain and am also active on this board. There is a lot of good info in the archives which I have been researching lately for my upcoming trip at the end of April. We will be there for three weeks studying Spanish and Dance in Sevilla; renting an apartment in an old palace in the barrio Santa Cruz and wandering the countryside by car and train. I can't wait!

Lisa - yes, based on your advise and the beautiful photos on the website, I chose Las Dunas over the Marbella Club. Thank you!<BR>Canuck the Sponge - you are too funny! We are flying from NYC to Barcelona on June 28th. We have 4 & 1/2 days there & hope to squeeze in a day trip to Figueres (Dali museum). Then we fly from Barcelona to Malaga, pick up the rental car and drive to Las Dunas in Esteponia, our home base. We will have 5 days. Taking day trips to Ronda, Seville and Gibralter. If we can handle it, we may also go to Jerez for the sherry making tour. Then, we drive to Granada, and yes, we are stopping in Nerja on the way--specifically to visit the caves nearby, to see the view, and have a bite to eat. Two nights in Granada, then drive back to Malaga, dump the car, fly back to Barcelona and back to NYC. The flight from Barcelona/Malaga is only about an hour. Feel free to ask me any question you'd like. I have read no less than 4 travel books on Spain and visited 2 dozen websites. Getting there is half the fun!

Ellen<BR><BR>I see you decided against Tangier.<BR><BR>What days will you be in Barcelona on tail end of your trip? We'll be their 7/14 to 7/16 (returning from cruise). <BR><BR>Thanks for the earplug advice on other post.<BR><BR>Kat

my husband and i are going to sevilla in late september and then not sure what town or city we want to go to in psain after sevilla - i want something along the copast, but was even considering morocco - any input????<BR><BR>oh, we are 30 ish and like to eat, walk, explore, drink a little and dance alot

Hi Ellen..I looked up the Las Dunas Hotel and do my eyes deceive me?? Is it really about $300 a night for sea view? That makes it close to $500 Canadian for me for one night!! That's a little too rich for my blood! any other recommendations in that area?

Hi Kat - yes, done with Tangiers. <BR>Glad I could help with the ear plugs. <BR><BR>I am so delighted. This Europe board is great! I just read some of the slamming, nasty, crap on the USA board and I am so sad for those people! This is fun. Unfortunately, no work getting done today : - ), but us NY'ers deserve a little break on a long awaited beautiful balmy day, right?<BR><BR>Canuck a/k/a The Sponge - Good news! If you are not going until next spring you have time to book the ever popular Paradors. They are less expensive, still have lots of amenities and are very, very nice. Also, they are in historical settings (monastaries, etc.) The one we are staying at in Granada is $180 US per night. It was hard to get the 2 nights, you have to book ASAP. you can go to www.parador.es and look at the photos. Some examples of locations, Granada: Parador San Franciso 958 22 14 40. Parador de Gibralfaro in Malaga 952 22 19 02, and in Ronda the beautiful parador de Ronda 952 87 75 00. Maybe you can stay outside of Esteponia for a few nights of day trips, save the money, and then be able to splurge for a night or two at Las Dunas. Will keep working on hotels in that area though.

Why not just click on "Spain"? then you have an "all-Spain" forum!<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

I've noted the same thing not only on this board, but in the AOL boards. My husband, son and I are leaving for Spain on June 20 for 2 weeks. We'll be going to Sevilla, Madrid(and nearby towns like Toledo and Segovia for day trips) and Galicia( mainly Santiago). My husband and I have been in Spain before. We are doing the trip as incentive for our son who's learning spanish.

I have been all over Spain and I loved it. I hardly ever see specific questions about Spain on this board. When there are queries, they seem to be about specific hotels in a certain city, and little else. I would be more than happy to help with questions about Spain. Just ask.