Travel in Spain
 

Spain is a worthy visited country in the world and I have just come back from a travel to Spain. Once you are in Spain, you can't miss costal del sol ( www.costadelsolspain.org ) and barcelona ( www.gobarcelona.biz ). In costal del sol you can enjoy the comfortable sunbath and while in barcelona you can taste the really beautiful sandy beach. I love them all. While in summer, you can go to tenerife ( www.tenerifeguide.org ), it is a really summer resort.
Have a good time in Spain!

Yes, Spain is really a beautiful country in the world to visit. Barcelona and Madrid are both great cities. I feel very lucky to have spent a lot of time in Spain. Some other cities to visit: Salamanca, near Portugual, has beautiful architecture. The Basque country, too. San Sebastian is possibly the most beautiful city in the region, but Bilbao is worth visiting for the Guggenheim museum and old town, and the little seaside village of Hondarabbia. Outside Madrid are towns like Segovia, Toledo, and Avila, Toledo is probably the most famous. And Andalucia in the south, Grenada for the Alhambra, and Cordoba is very charming. Seville is very touristic but the old quarter is fantastic and you have to visit the bull ring for a tour!
The Lonely Planet guide books are always an excellent source of info and they tend to be honest, too—some guidebooks manage to find charm everywhere, but LP tells it like it is, so you don't waste time or money. As for taking the train, I found buses to actually be better. They are quite cheap and reasonably comfortable. A friend and I took the bus from Madrid to Grenada, and then travelled by bus all over Andalucia, and it was fine.
Missed the Picasso museum in Barcelona! I spent too much time in the old town...
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www.bilbaoguide.net
www.laketahoe-travel.com

My husband and I are considering a trip to Barcelona in April. I realize that it will be cooler at that time. My question is how far is Madrid from Barcelona? Could we get there by overnight train? If we are only spending a week in Spain should we concentrate on the Barcelona area this time? Help!

A few days in each city would give you a nice sampling of the larger cities. The train trip is about 4 1/2 hours.

get a cheap flight from barcelona-madrid on vueling.com (comparable to jetblue in the states). very good deals, i found 20Euro rtn (all incl!!)
Barcelona is meant to be beach weather in April (unfortunately this year-not so much).
Have a look at the area guide for BCN http://www.way2stay.com/area-info-Barcelona-en-52.htm. (also vacation apartments)
I would spend more time in Barcelona than Madrid, recommend Madrid at the wknd (i posted a little report) and Barcelona for the remaining days.

Okay, if Madrid is only about 4 1/2 hours from Barcelona; how feasible is Seville? Are there any bullfights in April? When I look up Barcelona weather for average highs in April it said that the highs average 62. Is that really beach weather?

Hi

Seville is very feasible from Madrid. Using the AVE - www.renfe.es - it takes 2.5 hours.

Please do not support the bullfight - it's barbaric :(

Bullfighting is a spectacle that uniquely Spanish. At times it can be graceful and it can be exciting.

Yes the bull dies in the end Spain as opposed to Portugal or Mexico, but that is part of the of the drama.

And unless you are a veggie person your argument about barbarism starts at the farm and ends at the slughter house. And I hope you ae not wearing a leather belt or shoes.

There are bullfights in Sevilla in April during the annual feria, the largest in Spain.

To correct a slight misstatement, bullfighting is quite popular in the south of France, which has produced some outstanding matadors of late. The bull dies in all bullfights, not just in Spain.

Okay! The bullfights are not that important. What does Valencia have to offer? Should I add it to my itinery? So far, Our itinery is Barcelona, Madrid.... Considering Valencia. Thoughts?

Yes I have thoughts and a question why do you want to go to Valencia?

A week Madrid and Barcelona will be more than enough. If you think you are not seeing enough of Spain, there are wonderful day trips from each city.

We did Barcelona >Valencia> Seville > Madrid in 10 days. All trains except for a short plane ride from Valencia to Seville. Valencia claims to have the holy grail, the chalice Jesus drank from during the last supper, which we thought was pretty cool. Also Valencia hosts Americas Cup and has the largest Aquaurium (L'Oceanografic) in Europe. L'Oceanografic was absolutely awesome even though they the whale belugas were off limits because of "sensitivity".

Excellent and quiet beaches can be found near Malaga, Huelva and Almer in the south as well as near the coasts of La Manga, Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria and Euskadi. If you do enjoy extremely developed resort towns, there are plenty of crowded beaches on the Costa de la Luz and the Costa del Sol. Interesting is the harbour of Almerimar with cosy bars, just south of El Ejido (Almeria).

Very unique architecture can be found in Cordoba, Salamanca, Granada, Toledo, Madrid... The visionary architecture of Antoni Gaud?and the Picasso museum are in Barcelona while Madrid is home to Spain top three art museums.

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www.aboutcordoba.com
www.costaalmeria.biz