Hello,

I wanted to travel to Egypt but due to the political chaos, I have decided to book a tour to Spain. Do you recommend Spain? I am trying to decide which tour to choose:

- Barcelona, Bilbao, and Madrid.
- Seville, Madrid, and Cordoba
- Barcelona, Madrid, Seville, Granada, Valencia, and Cordoba
- Madrid, Morocco, Lisbon (Portugal), Torremolinos, Granada, and Seville

Which one is the best itinerary? This is my first time visiting Spain. I enjoy scenic views and shopping when I travel. I had spoken to my old boss and he said that I should definitely do a Spain tour that includes Barcelona. Do you agree?

Thanks

I would leave out Morocco and probably Lisbon because of probable time constraints. The same applies to your third choice which covers more territory than the first two. Without knowing the time frame, it would be difficult to be more specific.

How long do you have for the trip in total?
Is there a reason why you need to book a tour versus going on your own?

Yes, I highly recommend Spain as it is a great country with terrific culture, history, food, sights, etc.

Are all the tours you mentioned approximately the same length? I agree with Michael about leaving out Morocco and Lisbon. They're great countries but there's more than enough to see and do in Spain to devote a whole trip to it.

Not based on anything, at first glance I would pick the third option. Was not the biggest fan of Valencia but the other cities are fantastic. On a first trip to Spain, I also wouldn't do a tour that includes Bilbao. With the exception of the Guggenheim, it's not the prettiest of cities and doesn't have much to offer either. The third option does have you packing in a bit though, so if it's the same amount of time between the second and third tour options, I would go with the second option. You'll be more apt to enjoy it as you won't constantly be traveling from one place to the next. All three of those cities on the second tour option are relatively in the same area of the country, no extreme distances being traveled and you can never go wrong with Madrid or Andalusia.

traveltalesfromtheredheadedtraveler.blogspot.com/
(My travel writing blog!)

"I also wouldn't do a tour that includes Bilbao. With the exception of the Guggenheim, it's not the prettiest of cities and doesn't have much to offer either."

I'm wondering when the last time was you visited Bilbao. This doesn't describe the Bilbao I visited in 2008, 2009 & 2010. There's plenty of things to do and there has been a great deal of beautification done other the last 10 years.

I do agree that for a first trip to Spain I'd probably focus on Barcelona, Madrid & Andalucia - which ones depending on the length and time of the year you plan to visit.

I agree with Cathy M regarding Bilbao. I went just for one day/night in 2006 and was very pleasantely surprised! Really nice city with a lot of "character". People are very nice too.

Going back to the OPs question, if for whatever reason these tours are the only options I would pick the 3rd one in the list , provided it's at least 3 weeks.

Spain is an easy country to get around. You may consider independent travel.

"I'm wondering when the last time was you visited Bilbao. This doesn't describe the Bilbao I visited in 2008, 2009 & 2010. There's plenty of things to do and there has been a great deal of beautification done other the last 10 years."

Well, it was back in '01 so apparently my consensus is a bit outdated, with things having apparently greatly changed there. I didn't mean that there weren't many things to do, I was kept "busy" but on a personal level I find San Sebastian to be a much prettier and more appealing city in the Basque country.

traveltalesfromtheredheadedtraveler.blogspot.com/

I'd choose Barcelona, Bilbao-San Sebastian and Madrid

None of them. I would choose Seville, Granada and Madrid.

None of them. I would choose Seville, Granada and Madrid.

None of them. I would choose Seville, Granada and Madrid.

None of them. I would choose Seville, Granada and Madrid.

What are your main interests? If you like the white towns, tiles and moorish influcence, go for Madrid, Seville, Granada (do not miss the Alhambra) and Cordoba. Barcelona and the north have their own set of attractions. You may have to do at least two trips to Spain.

We were lucky to be able to spend the month of Sept last year in Spain. We had a week in Barcelona, flew to Granada for 3 days, rented a car and drove along the southern coast, Nerja, stopped in Gibraltar for the afternoon, stayed Tarifa (day trip to Moracco), headed to the hills Jerez, Arcos, on to Sevilla, Cordoba (left the car) and trained from here to Toledo and on to Madrid for the last week. It was a wonderful trip and I wouldn't want to miss the Alhambra in Granada or Sevilla, or Cordoba. We love Barcelona also. All were great, but those were stand-outs. In short, of your 4 choices I would pick #3.