Rick Steves' Spain and Portugal 2004
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Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar & Morocco
I spent a few months traveling through Iberia and Morocco around this time last year with my husband. I have received emails from dozens of Rick Steves fans asking for help in planning - and hopefully I have helped! More than happy to assist any other travelers with tips, advice and general info/comments on areas we visited. We used Rick's books for Spain and Portugal with much success. marchisaries@aim.com
Helary <email>
Studio City, Ca USA Fri 06/10/2005
Tangier 'sTour Guide [Charif]
We can't tell how much fun We had in Tangier. It was the best part of our trip. We had a lot of fun touring around the sites, seeing things that most tourists don't get to see. We have had a few different tour guides in the places around the world I have been to, but Charif[starstour@hotmail.com]Was the best one We've come across. we will definitely use His services again, and recommend him to anyone coming to Tangier's/Morocco for a holiday.
I am very happy to include my e-mail.
I have been e-mailing with him over the last week during the planning for our Morocco trip. he has always been very helpful, and clarified many of the issues that are almost impossible to understand from the tour agents and guide books. Information such as entrance fees, reliable costs, what to do, whether The Museum is open in The Kasbah, and so many other things! I just counted - and you've sent me 10 emails! And, the most amazing thing, is not once did he ask for any charge or anything for his advice, or encourage me to do a tour trip with him, or anything. he obviously love his job which I think is essential to being able to do a job well. And he obviously know his stuff - in fact, most of the tour agents were wrong on information and he Was right! So, I would readily encourage people to contact him regarding his tour guide services, or for any advice on those tricky issues that are hard to sort out in planning a trip to Morocco..
Kathy & bill Bagshaw <email>
Studio City, Ca USA Sun 06/05/2005
Tangier
Tangier is really a lovely place to visit especially if you use a guide services,last summer we had the chance to have a very good guide from there:AZIZ BENAMI who has arranged for us everything .He made for us a tour including a deluxe transportation for 1 day for only 34 Euros per prson,a walking tour in the old Medina cost 12 Euros,and he also can make a reservation in a very nice restaurant which include Andalucian music.
He knows a lot about history,culture and speaks very well English...You can reach him here: www.moroccotours.tk or write him directelly to : moroccoguide@hotmail.com tel: +212 68663225 I am sure he can accept your reservation
If you meet him give him our wishes:
Emma and James U.K.
Emma and Tang <email>
London, ENG Mon 05/30/2005
Tangier Morocco
I am currently in Morocco and Everything is fine. I am in Tangier right now and have talked to numerous English and American travelers who have been in Morocco Many Times and have had N0 Problems at All concering their safety.
Some notes: When coming to Tangier DO NOT stay at any of the hotels by the railway station. 4 canadian travelers have been ripped off at these places in the past 10 days- heed the warnings in the Lonely Planet. The best place to stay IS Hotel Mamora. It is located on the (Mokhtar Ahardan Ex Rue des Postes) behind the Grand Mosque. E.Mail: hotel_mamora@theatermail.net Private Double room With Hot shower For 300 Dh (27.5 Euros.)The Hotel is overlooking the Mediterranean sea and only minutes walk from the centre of town.All rooms are provided with private bathroom,There is a restaurant downstairs who offers an excellent full Moroccan lunch and dinner.Hotel Mamora can offer the right combination and informal relaxed atmosphere.they want your stay to be everything you had hoped it would be . and more!! All rooms are provided with private bathroom,There is a restaurant downstairs who offers an excellent full Moroccan lunch and dinner.
The manager's name is Ben hassan and he provides a safe, comfortable atmosphere and will take you or Advise/arrange for you to see anything you would like.
Georgia day <email>
Portland, OR USA Tue 03/29/2005
Segovia, El Escorial & Basque country
We returned to Spain last October and visited a few places in Rick's book (on a previous trip we stayed in more of Rick's recommendations - happily!). In Segovia, we stayed at Hotel Los Linajes. We had a sprawling suite with a separate sitting room and a balcony with a superb view, especially at sunrise. The Roman aquaduct was an incredible site. And the evening paseo was enjoyable, mingling with the locals. Great tapas & friendly service at Restaurante Jose just off the central plaza. El Escorial was crowded and a bit of a disappointment. The library was the most interesting room. Parking was a problem, even tho we got there early. It's a very easy, pleasant drive from Segovia.
We drove on to the Basque area and stayed in Emperatriz Zita Hotel. It was our favorite place to stay on the trip. Nice service there, and good waterfront location. Also an unbelievable value! We had a huge balcony overlooking San Nicolas Island and the bay. Super meals at a super value in the restaurant, and a great place just to stay at your hotel and decompress. The spa in the basement is a real treat. Lekeitio is wonderful & scenic, and pleasant town to stay in. Wish we could have stayed longer. Great fun to watch the waves crashing on the wall.
Next drove to Hondarribia and stayed at the Parador. Wow! First rate setting - it's an incredible place to stay, in Carlos V's old palace. The balcony views can't be beat, overlooking the bay & France. Wow! Hondarribia is a great little town to stroll around in. Other, non-Rick places we visited were the Pyrenees, through Aragon, and finally Siguenza (which makes an easy drive back to Madrid for the flight out). Love Spain! Highly recommend it, and don't be afraid to wander away from Rick's sites as well! The Spanish are friendly people who are accomadating even with a language barrier.
Ann
NC USA Sun 02/06/2005
December Trip to Madrid
Just returned from Madrid, Toledo, and Segovia. All of Rick's suggestions were fantastic! In Madrid, Hotel Europa is, indeed, undergoing renovations, but the remodeled rooms were superb with great views of the Puerta del Sol and double-glazed, soundproof glass, even with all the late night Christmas fesitivites.
Absolutely go to Cafe Artemisa, even if you are not a vegetarian- SUPERB food on every occasion we ate there (3 times!). Be sure to have Churros con Chocolate at Chocolateria San Gines, just down from Puerta del Sol- a very happening place for dessert, and the best chocolate in town- we sampled alot with our two kids!In Toledo, Hotel Sol was a great bargain and friendly Jose was very helpful. Simple but classic rooms at great prices - we had reserved a quad for ourselves and our 2 kids and changed to 2 doubles for more privacy with hardly any price change!
Theneat at Meson de Palacios- Jesus (mentioned in the book) is a lovely man and went out of his way to get us a table, even though the place was booked with a large Christmas party for the evening.We had never heartd of Rick Steves before moving to London, when we met friends from Seattle. Now my kids even worship him- his book was a fantastic guide and jumping off point for all kinds of adventures!
Sue <email>
London, England Mon 12/27/2004
Hotel Europa
Just spent 10 days in Spain -- Barcelona (3), Madrid (5), and Toledo (2). Madrid served as a great home base for day trips to El Escorial and Segovia. Needed no car. Bus and subway (Metro) were very reliable and fast. Hotel Europa in Madrid is under some renovation. Although our room was clean, the rest of the hotel was dusty, noisy during the day, and covered with plastic. Other than that, we enjoyed our stay. If the street noise at places like Puerta del Sol bothers you, use ear plugs. That worked well for us.
Tim <email>
Houston, TX USA Fri 12/03/2004
Madrid Day Trips & Restaurant Recommendation
Three of my friends and I just got back from a six-day vacation in Madrid. Our day trips to Toledo, Segovia, and Toledo were the highlights. We couldn't have done it without your accurate info on 'how to get there'. Rental car was not an option for us. Your recommendation to use the bus rather than the train was right on the money.
Madrid itself had its own charms and interesting sights, but the prevalence of pickpockets made our trip less than pleasant. We were lucky enough not to have been victimized thanks to our New York City streetsmarts and your reminders as to which areas to be extra careful.
We made our arrangements via an internet agency and stayed at a hotel in the Plaza Espana area (though not recommended by you). One night we were just too tired to venture further and went to a neighborhood restaurant for dinner. We had one of our best meals! The place is called 'Restaurante Dudua' on Cuesta San Vicente, 2. It's frequented by locals - no tourist in sight except for us. You may want to check it out.
And you're right again regarding 'Sobrino del Botin' - touristy and pricey. It was packed with fellow Americans!!! We should have known better.
F Yalong <email>
New Brunswick, NJ USA Wed 12/01/2004
Madrid and Barcelona
I just got back from traveling in Spain and had a great time. I stayed almost exclusively at hotels recommended by Rick and liked them all. I have additional recommendations: Since I flew into Madrid and was only staying one day before AVE'ing to Seville, I stayed at the Best Western Hotel Madrid. I got a great deal on their website, and most importantly the shuttle from the airport (and even breakfast) was included! This was very convenient and saved me some cash.
Also, in Barcelona I stayed at Citadines on the Ramblas. They give apartment style comforts, which was much needed towards the end of my trip. Even if you are not staying there, there are good views of the city on their 9th floor rooftop (solarium).
JMSH <email>
Simi Valley, CA USA Wed 12/01/2004
Driving in Spain
We just returned from 11 days in Spain. Madrid (4 days), Toledo (2), Seville (2), Costa del Sol (3). We used Rick's guide and have nothing but good things to say about the accuracy and completeness of the information it provided.
If you are planning to drive beware that road signage is an afterthought in Spain. Be sure to obtain the most current map possible because the Spanish tend to change road names while forgetting to change road signs and maps.Costa del Sol is nice, but next time we will spend the time in Portugal and/or Morocco.
Mark and Marian <email>
Chicago, IL USA Mon 11/29/2004
Madrid & Toledo Hostal Recommendation
My wife & I returned 22 Nov. from 16 days in Spain, part of it with another couple. We had nothing but good experiences with people and public transportation, and have two hearty recommendations for hostal stays.
The first is the HOSTAL ACAPULCO in Madrid; when we go back to Spain, we will definitely stay there again. It's family owned and the staff is wonderful. We went to Toledo for an overnight, and they let the 4 of us store our bags there while we took day bags with clean underwear to Toledo. When we asked for directions to a coin laundry, they offered to (and did) wash our clothes for us. We made reservations for a total of 6 nights the day after we arrived in country, then changed them a few days later with no problems. The staff (Marco) and owner's son (Francisco) were incredibly gracious and accommodating throughout our stay, the rooms are clean and cheerful, and their rates are surprisingly low. The cage-type elevator is safe--it was refurbished early in 2004!
We spent only one night at HOTEL ALMAZARA in Toledo, but what a pleasant night. It's a taxi ride out of town into the quiet countryside. We got lucky and got a view room looking back over olive trees and rosemary bushes to the city of Toledo. The sunset was beautiful. The place looked like something out of a movie set, with a courtyard and long, tree-lined drive coming in from the highway. It was clean and inexpensive and the staff were courteous and professional. Had to laugh, though, when an employee recommended a restaurant to us. I asked if the restaurant served tapas, and he replied, "I don't know, I haven't eaten there." Maybe there was a referral fee involved? We went to the Casco district in search of our tapas, rather than to the
restaurant.
Rick <email>
Bellingham, WA USA Thu 11/25/2004
Spain and Portugal
Just returned from 2 fabulous weeks in southern Spain with our 8 & 5 yr. old boys. Spain was very clean, friendly and organized. It really exceeded our expectations and we felt like we never had enough time to take it all in-loveliness at every turn. Driving was well sign-posted and relaxed (we avoided city driving.) We had gorgeous weather and it rained only on the day we visited British soil in Gibraltar (How funny!)
As mentioned below, many people do not speak English--we treated this as a challenge rather than an impediment and were never stumped. Folks were gracious and patient with us. Rick's phrase book was very helpful. I even managed to explain my son's yeast infection to a pharmacist. (I'm pretty proud of that one! A drawing of a mushroom did the trick.)
Sevilla-Casa de la Juderia is wonderful- we did an evening "explorata" of the hotel and found all sorts of curious subterranean passageways and even ended up following a series of connected rooftops until we descended almost a full block away, still in the hotel. The breakfast has to be eaten to be believed-hugest buffet in Europe. It was great entertainment just to learn what other people ate for breakfast-myriad cultures were represented. Maria Luisa Park is lovely and has fun pedal carts for up to 6 people. The Alcazaba gardens were a pleasant surprise-keep going until you reach the maze at the back. Also highly endorse San Marco restaurant-jovial and tasty.
Ronda: Parador was fabulous as a hotel. We had a duplex suite which had 2 levels and 2 balconies over the gorge. Amazing! The restaurant there is nice, but I think "muy elegante" is stretching it a bit. They were very gracious to our children. The ice cream shop across from the bull ring serves fabulous oversize cones.
The bullring was very cool and the town is lovely. There is a new attraction that let's you go inside the arches of the Ronda bridge. Nothing fancy, but a thrilling sense of being up high over the gorge. Enter from the corner of the bridge closest to the Parador.
Rick's tip to see Pileta Caves is good. The caves are remarkable and a real treat to see. It was easy to imagine ancient people living and working in the cave. The farmer who runs the tour, however, is a bit stubborn. We arrived at 10 am, but sat on a rock (WITH THE GUIDE) for 1.5 hours "waiting for enough people for a tour." He refused to take us in until more people showed up. Considering the tour only lasted 45 min, he could have taken us through TWICE before anyone else arrived. Different attitude, I guess, but very frustrating. Keep this in mind if you go. We ended up having to race to Zahara Castle to reach it before nightfall. Also note that Rick's rec restaurant in the Pileta Caves section, nearby "Casita," is only open F-M in the off season. The Patio restaurant about 50m up the hill was a good alternative.
Castles: We loved them all. Zahara, Sevilla Alcazaba, Salobrena, Almunecar, the Alhambra. Lots of ruins, lots of stairs. Almunecar was closed for archaeological excavation, but my little guy started crying and they let us in if we promised to be very careful and not step in their work. Of course we were. The castles were very adventure-kid friendly and romantic too. Reading Washinton Irving's "Tales of the Alhambra" will enhance your castle experience.
Tarifa/Morocco: Highly recommend Hurricane Hotel, 7 km west of Tarifa. Very friendly, nice breakfast, pool, beach, etc. Out of the bustle of things. We had a family suite for 130E, incl. mini backyard. Took the one day tour of Morocco for a brief taste of Africa. We really appreciated a glimpse of a world so different from our everyday life. We were there the day Chairman Arafat died, but encountered no concerning activity. The hustlers are totally annoying, but we tried to treat it as sport. The ferry is speedy and efficient. The camel ride is literally 15 seconds around the parking lot and terrifying to get off-I was afraid I had crushed my son in front of me. Lunch was quite good and our guide was competent.
Granada: The Alhambra is definitely the highlight. It was FREEZING-literally frosty- the morning we were there. We can vouch for the hot chocolate dispenser in the cafe area. Great for warming up hands. Note: The museums in the Charles V palace are closed for the winter. Granada is a huge oneway mess of streets-we returned our car as soon as possible and went with handy buses and cabs. Not in Rick's book, but we really liked Hotel Palacio de Santa Ines. Great location, very clean duplex room with spiral stairs, and genuine, sincere staff. The Sacromonte gypsy interpretive museum was fascinating. We were the only people there.
Madrid: Hostal Cervantes was clean, safe and friendly, if a bit sparse. Served us perfectly for one night. We enjoyed another successful museum scavenger hunt with our kids in the Prado. We all loved it. There is a wonderful old-fashioned toy shop on Plaza Mayor. The elderly gentleman who runs the shop carefully removes toys from the case one by one for the inspection of wide-eyed children. What a refreshing change from Toys R Us.
I repeat my mantra: take your children, just go, it's not as hard as you think. Soak it up!!
Angela <email>
Sammamish, WA USA Mon 11/22/2004
Alhambra
We visited Alhambra in early June with previous reservation for 2pm entry, and 5 pm entry at Nasrid Palaces. There was no line for ticket purchase or ticket pick-up and, considering the season, there were very few tourists in the Alhambra, as our photos attest. Even the Nasrid Palaces were fairly tame, considering what we had expected. It helps to time your stipulated entry to Nasrid Palaces for a couple hours after you will enter Alhambra through the main turnstile (next to ticket pick-up window), since the Palaces are located a distance from there. (You have 30 minute grace period to enter Palaces from the time you stipulate, e.g., 5 pm entry is good until 5:30 pm, but not at 4:30 pm. This is strictly enforeced.)Also, we noticed gentleman try to pick up his next day ticket at 7 pm; he was turned away at the counter and told to return at 8am following morning.
Jean-Marie
Washington, DC USA Thu 11/11/2004
Alhambra
I was interested to read that Warren Phelps was able to pick up reserved tickets for the Alhambra a day ahead. When I was there in June I was told this wasn't possible. BTW, if you stay at the Hotel America or the parador, your taxi will drive right past the ticket office and on up the hill - it would be worth trying to get it to stop while you pick up your tickets, otherwise you'll have to trek back down - and up again. I stayed at the Hotel America and loved it - they gave me a neat single-with-bath over the front door with a view of the Sierra Nevada, and it was an easy stroll over to the parador for drinks and dinner with a view.
I can't recommend the evening visit to the Alhambra highly enough. NO tour groups, not many people at all, mostly quiet people - it was a magical evening. Get there when it (re)opens and you will still see the reflection in the pool in the Court of the Myrtles, and can watch the lights coming on in the Albaycin. (Take your camera, there's enough lighting.) Next afternoon, with wall-to-wall tour groups, it was a different place. If I go back, I'll do the evening tour, then the Generalife garden in the hopefully cool morning and siesta in the afternoon. Of course, a night train makes the siesta difficult - you could spend the afternoon in the cathedral instead, there's nothing like thick stone walls for keeping things cool. Otherwise, expecially after just visiting Chartres and Toledo, the cathedral is skippable.
Note that even in mid-June southern Spain was miserably hot and AC is really a necessity. After one night at the Hotel Peninsula in Barcelona with 'AC' consisting of a table fan and a window opening on an air shaft I moved half a block closer to the Ramblas to the Espana. I'm afraid I wasn't impressed with the Ramblas - one group of tourists sitting sipping overpriced drinks and watching a second group of tourists parade past.
Kathy <email>
Cary, NC USA Thu 11/11/2004
Archeolgy in Portugal
My husband and I spent the first two weeks of October in Portugal and our focus was historic and archeological sites, of which Portugal abounds. We rented a car from Lisbon and headed north. There are wonderful dolmens, iron age castros and roman bridges to be found. We bought a book entitled "Portugal 1001 Sights--An archeological and historical guide" from Calgary Press. It gives good directions to find these off the beaten path gems. (Beware that since 1994 when this book was published much road construction has occurred, and a few of the directions need to be updated)
Among our favorites was Castro de Sao Lourenco, near the Vila Cha on the coast west of Braga. It is an iron age settlement, smaller than Citania de Briteros, but with a more specatucular view and signs describing what you are looking at in English! We had the whole site to ourselves on a Sunday morning. Another don't miss is Foz Coa. It is about 4 hours north east of Lisbon, and is one of the largest and most important neolithic sites. It has petroglyphs 20,000 years old. You are taken to the remote site in groups of 8 by a guide. You must make reservations, but it only 5 E per person per site. There are 3 tours you can take. We only had time for one, and plan to go back on another trip. If you are into archeology...this is incredible stuff.
I must also make mention of Coinbriga, a well preserved roman site near Coimbra, the University town. It has more beautiful mozaic floors than any site we'd seen, including Pompeii. It also has a 2000 year old functioning fountain that is in the peristyle of a fabulous villa...it must have over 500 sprays of water encircling raised garden beds in a 100x50 ft pool. A bonus is a nice small museum with English translations.
For newer history, our favorite was the World Heritage site at Tomar, the 12th century monestary/castle built by the Knights Templar. We just about had the place to ourselves on a Sunday (when it is free) and there are some nice displays (in English) telling the history, plus countless rooms and gardens to roam in.
A final comment on Lisbon. The Torre de Belem was a dissapointment...no displays or information of any kind. I would snap a picture from the outside and spend your 6 E across the road at the nice archeology museum which can be seen in its entirety in about 2 hours...very nice displays.
Also beware the pickpockets on the trolleys that go out to Belem. A friend had 200E removed from his wallet, and then tossed on the floor by the perpetrator, who then kindly points it out to the gentleman, "did you drop that?" They are smart enough not to take anything but cash, so how could we prove he did it? Otherwise we had a wonderful time in Portugal. It was clean, friendly, great sea food, and truly a cradle of civilization.
Vicki Dempsey <email>
Hannibal, MO USA Sun 11/07/2004
Hotel Tips For Drivers in Spain
Just returned from 2 weeks driving in Spain, staying in 3 of Rick's recommended hotels. While we second the recommendations, they all present a challenge if you are driving.
Hotel Amadeus in Seville - is located in an alley, far too narrow for a car, and the intersecting street is one lane and one way with no place to pull over to unload luggage. You can't get there from anywhere. Best bet is to e-mail hotel for directions to parking garage on Calle Menendez y Pelayo, and from there for walking to Hotel.
Hotel Santa Isabel in Toledo (Best bargain in Spain) When you get on the Ronda de Toledo watch for white arrow hotel direction signs on lamp posts. When you find one for Santa Isabel, follow religiously and you'll be directed to hotel. Suggest you pre-reserve parking. Caution - while we easily made it to the hotel and into parking garage with a van, getting out of town was a different story. Streets so narrow that at one point I "kissed" a wall with the right side of the car while having only 2" clearance on the left.
Hotel Europa in Madrid - located on a pedestrian only street, pull your car onto the mall near King Charles III statue and run into the hotel for help with baggage and parking. Hotel is being extensively renovated, so first look at lobby can be a shock, and its "red carpet charm" is threadbare. But, it's in a great location. Ask for a room in new section (double superior) as they have been beautifully remodeled. Those in old part look pretty grim.
,/p>Tips for Gibraltar - Per Rick's book, stay in left lane as traffic starts to get congested, and turn left at the light at the customs (Aduana) house. Was plenty of street parking. Cable car round trip including admission to nature reserve has gone up in price to 25 Euros. Eat before you go to the top - what Rick calls a "slick restaurant/view terrace" is a grossly overpriced cafeteria serving horrible food. E.g., a 10 Euro "hot dog" was 2 dried out, overcooked sausages in a bun.
Bob Rohde <email>
St. Charles, IL USA Thu 11/04/2004
Sevilla, Gib, Tanger, and Salema
A week ago my wife and I returned from Spain, Gibraltar, Morocco, and Portugal. We used Rick's Spain and Portugal book, which was very useful in every case. In Sevilla we stayed at the Hotel Amadeus, which was a treat, right in the Barrio Santa Cruz. From Santa Justa train station you can take a taxi to a point close to the hotel for about 4 euro. Sevilla is a beautiful city with much interesting architecture and history.
In Gib we stayed in the Queens Hotel, which is OK, but you better not be too bothered by wee-hour street noise. Fortunately, we aren't. While in Morocco we arranged a tour of Tanger with Aziz Begouri. You can't go wrong with Aziz. He took us into the heart and soul of Tanger, and explained things very well. Without Aziz you'd be hard-pressed and possibly ill-advised to venture into the areas he'll take you to. But it's a real trip with him; He's your Man in Tanger. He also offers a week-long trip into the Sahara of Morocco, which we're considering.
If you're Salema-bound, consider staying at John's Pension Amare. It was a fine place for us. If it rains, and you leave your door open like we did, you're likely to have a kitty visitor. Watch out ... it bites!
Lynn A Goss <email>
Asheville, NC USA Fri 10/29/2004
Wellington Society Of Madrid
I just got a look at the 2005 Spain book and see the fee for membership in the Wellington Society of Madrid listed as 25 euros. It is actually 30 euros and has been since the beginning of 2004. Also, a more accurate description of what in included is available on the web site at www.wellsoc.org.
Bruce Lederer <email>
Newton, MA USA Mon 10/25/2004
Madrid tours
Ww can't say enough good things about Carlos and Jennifer and the tours they provided for us in Madrid. They are extremely informative and know their stuff. We hope to return to Spain and will definitely call on Carlos and Jennifer to arrange our tours
Eileen Harris <email>
Winchester, Va USA Mon 10/25/2004
Granada, Spain
Avoid driving in the city. Many main streets are not marked and/or only for taxi/bus. Very easy to get lost even with a good map. Be able to say "I'm lost" and ask for "directions" in Spanish. People were very friendly & helpful. Would recommend a train to Granada & taxi to the hotel.
Warren Phelps <email>
Chicago, IL USA Sat 10/23/2004
Nerja, Spain
Stayed in the Hotel de Marinas Nerja-just outside Nerja-walking distance to Nerja along the beach. Hotel is on the sea and has a wonderful buffet breakfast & dinner. Two outdoor pools & all rooms have a terrace facing the sea.
Warren Phelps <email>
Chicago, IL USA Sat 10/23/2004
Spain & Portugal Book
Suggest you separate out Spain and Portugal into two separate books. Gets quite heavy to carry around all day (would not tour without your books). Have just completed my 5th trip using your books-great information especially the highlighted sights in each areas and days/times they are open.
Warren Phelps <email>
Chicago, IL USA Sat 10/23/2004
Toledo, Spain
The Madrid to Toledo train stops right before Toledo (no train tracks at the Toledo station) and then they bus you to the Toledo train station. Came as a suprise. The bus runs on the schedule train time for the retrun trip.
Warren Phelps <email>
Chicago, IL USA Sat 10/23/2004
Alhambra, Granada
There is a separate window for advance reservations for the Alhambra and they will give out your ticket the evening before between 7-8pm. Helps avoid waiting in line the next day.
Warren Phelps <email>
Chicago, Il USA Sat 10/23/2004
Toledo
Just back from Toledo. The train ride mentioned is great. The Cathedral is undergoing a great renovation in the choir and main altar. Completely takes away from the glowing description in the book. A consideration to add is the Church of the Jesuits [also known as the Church of San Juan Baptiste (sp)] Beautiful church, allows photos (no other church/site did), and a wonderful climb to the towers for a view over the city. Only 1.50 euro.
Lori Ann Martin <email>
El Puerto de Santa Maria, Spain, USA Sat 10/16/2004
Hotel recommendation in Madrid
My wife and I stayed at a Rick Steves' recommended Hostal Acapulco in Madrid in August while on our honeymoon and had a fantastic experience! Javier was extremely helpful and offered great advice on places to go (and not go) and things to do in the city. They arranged a bus tour for us too.The room was one of the best values we had in Spain. They were even so kind and gracious as to have champagne on ice for us since we were on our honeymoon!
I can't say enough good things about Rick Steves and Hostal Acapulco! From the old-fashioned elevator to the modern room and conveniences, the experience was worth making this effort to recommend it to others.Enjoy,Glen
Glen <email>
Toronto, ON Canada Wed 10/13/2004
Spain and Portugal Accommodation
Just returned from Portugal and Spain. Rick's advice on accommodations really helped. Pension Mare in Salema is the best. Had a super apartment.
Hotel Los Olivos in Arcos was fantastic. It's close to the old town and has it's own parking lot for 5 euros per night. Good breakfast available too. Thanks, Rick.
Dave Thomasson <email>
St. Louis, MO USA Tue 10/12/2004
Venice - hotel and water taxi
Returned to Italy again this August and spent two days in Venice. Stayed at Hotel DaBruno, recommended in your guide book in 2000. Was great then and still is! Have seen critques of it's breakfast, but I found it satisfactory and everyone was SO KIND! It's close to everything and has been remodelled a bit - beds more comfortable and rooms quite attractive.My friends came with boisterous children and economically secured a larger room with more beds. The management was very tolerant of the rather rowdy pre-teens.I'd recommend DaBruno heartily to anyone, as I am a satisfied visitor twice!
Add note: we took a water taxi to try to reach friends on time one early evening. It costs about the same as a gondola and was great fun. I'd recommend it as a one-splurge to get to the Zattere from the center of Venice as you are able to go through the smaller canals and then out amongst the big boats. Very fun!MaryOakland, California
Mary Austern <email>
Oakland, CA USA Sun 10/10/2004
Portugal
Took a few days to explore before a conference in Lisbon in late September. Rented a car and drove north -- Note: There is a gas station on the way into the airport; we missed it and paid through the nose for gas at the rental place.
Obidos was a great quiet place to use as a base, stayed at Casa de S. Thiago do Castelo and was very pleased (except for very hard beds.) Restaurant O Barco is no longer there. Alcaide was not bad, but avoid the cod (highly salted). Check out the tiny game park just outside the wall on the west side, and the face painted on the stones in the northwest corner.The ruins at Conimbriga were worth the drive -- stick to the toll roads, esp. on a Sunday, or go 30mph the whole way. Don't miss Caldos da Rainha's market & shops -- prices 25% of Lisbon's for many of the same crafts. The market was all locals, very friendly and great picnic food and fruit.
In Sintra, try the Residential Sintra, a converted mansion on the bus route to the sights with beautiful grounds and a lovely pool in sight of the Moorish castle. It's on the edge of San Pedro, with lower restaurant prices and fewer tourists than Sintra proper. You can walk down from the castle and you're right across the street from the hotel.
In Lisbon we stayed at Hotel Lisboa Tejo, which has great location, nice staff, but lots of street noise. The Gulbenkian was fabulous ; also the Tile Museum deserved more stars, we thought, but take a cab or the bus, don't try to walk it. Cabs are cheap. We ferried across the Tejo from Belem to Porto Brandao to eat fish stew (cataplanas), but it was 40 euro for two! so we went with the slightly less expensive bean-and-seafood dish (31 euro order for 1-2 feeds 3 easily). Check prices -- the Parafuso in Rick's book was the most expensive. All in all Portugal was very enjoyable -- wish we had had more time!
Susan
Seatlle, WA USA Thu 10/07/2004
trip to Spain
Rick, your guidebooks are the best. We just returned from a trip to Spain and we used your Spain and Portugal book as a guide. We did the walking tour in Madrid and did stop at the convent for dulces. What a fun experience. We did go to Valencia which was a city not included in your guidebook.The tapas were an excellent choice for a meal. Thank you so much. We also used your guide to Germany several years ago. Our travel experiences have been great in Europe thanks to your helpful information.
Julie Kraus <email>
New Ulm, MN USA Wed 10/06/2004
Granada, Malaga, Almeria in Anadulsia
In Granada, we stayed one night at Hotel Anacapri for about 97 euros (not including breakfast). It's a very nice hotel in a fun neighborhood and just half a block from a special bus that zips you to the Alhambra. Slightly small room, but clean, attractive and friendly staff (Cathy is an American who has lived in Granada 18 years).
IMPORTANT: If you are driving, prepare to get lost. The hotel is VERY hard to find (others have said this too). Apparently,the hotel website has a map that helps.
In Malaga, stayed at Hotel Don Paco. It was fine, nothing great. Close to train station.
If anyone is going off the beaten track, we drove east from Malaga towards Almeria for a conference. The highway is good, but very windy over coastal cliffs and the Spaniards drive very fast. What we thought would be a 1 hour drive turned into a nerve-wracking 3 hour drive.
There is very little to see or do heading east from Malaga. The caves at Nerja would have been a worthwhile stop. Almeria is an OK city. Brochures of Parc de Gabo (that's not quite the right name) looked attractive. I decided against going to Mini Hollywood (movie set in a desert/canyon area where spaghetti westerns and a few well-known movies were filmed), but slightly regretted it once we drove through that section of mountains. Very remote, austere, arid... hard to believe you're in Europe. Ask people if the beaches are comfortable for swimming: the coast near our hotel was pebbles, not sand, and it was too painful to swim or even wade without water shoes and Teflon for skin.
Karen <email>
Washington DC and Belgium, USA Wed 10/06/2004
Modernist/Gaudi sights in Barcelona
Just back from a beautiful week in Barcelona. The people were friendly, the weather was perfect, and I found the city to be very easy to navigate. English was spoken in most places, and my limited Spanish was enough to get us wherever we need to go.
The Gaudi sights were amazing. We did learn though that the Modernist-route combo ticket described in the 2004 guide is no longer offered. In 2002, the 150th birthday year of Gaudi, Barcelona held a year-long celebration of his works and offered the combo-ticket as part of the celebration. I learned this, and a lot more, by stopping by the modernist center. It's located on the Block of Discord next to Casa Batllo. So, no more combo tickets but the staff there is really nice and will sell you the guidebook from the 2002 combo-ticket tour for about 12 euros. Use it to create your own tour.
Casa Mila (La Pedrada), Park Guell and Casa Batllo were by far the highlights of my trip. Excellent exhibits and audio guides avaiable. Pack a picnic, head up to the park and enjoy your lunch with an amazing view. The park appears crowded when you first arrive, but once you pass the dragon fountain it opens up into a lot of open space. Spend the 4 euros to tour Gaudi's home for the last 20 or so years of his life. I did notice some wheelchairs in the park- a workout to push them up the paths, but one of the few tourist areas that seemed accessible.
Unless you're a big fan, skip the Picasso museum. Expensive, no guide books or audio tours, hot, and none of the painting titles were in English. None of the major works are there. But, there is a cafe nearby at the textile musuem that serves a good lunch. Sit there, enjoy your coffee, and watch the world go by.
Thanks Rick for the guide to Barconleta. We really enjoyed this area and felt it was the best example we experienced of the local people. I spent the entire time on La Rambla and the Barri Gotic waiting to be mugged, but in Barconleta- even when it was getting dark- I felt very safe. This is a not-to-be-missed area to get a feel for the local culture.
At no time during my trip did I ever feel I was being taken advantage of by a merchant or taxi driver. Great trip- thanks!!
Wendy <email>
Long Beach, CA USA Fri 09/24/2004
Battle of the Crusades Painting-Goya
Hi Rick,I was very interested in your T.V. show on Goya, his paintings and life in Spain. Did Goya ever paint "The Battle of the Crusades"? If so, what happened to it? Why is it never mentioned among his works? Was this a painting done while in exile, possibly under a different name, due to the exile? I believe the painting has been missing since arounds 1909.
Ron Uharriet <email>
Sun City,, Ca. USA Tue 09/21/2004
Coimbra to Salamanca bus
Rick's book was a boon to me when I travelled in Spain and Portugal two years ago. I have the 2004 edition now which still says there is a 5 hr bus available from Coimbra to Salamanca (leaving at 10:15 am, Mon, Fri, Sat), but I saw a post here, dated May, 2004, that said "4.5 hour bus ride from Coimbra to Salamanca was not available, and ours took over 7 hours (not direct)". I would like to know if anyone has any other knowledge of this - is Rick's book correct or not. I would be travelling Coimbra to Salamanca on a Friday, this November.
Chris <email>
Victoria, BC Canada Tue 09/21/2004
Sevilla, Spain
I am currently in Sevilla, Spain and called ahead from Granada to make several hotel reservations using Rick´s book. However, at several of the hostals listed, I was told the price of $45E was not accurate and the price was $55 for a double. Also, we found upon arrival that we were given a lower price. We stayed at the Pension Alcazar which cost $50 per night for a double with private bath which was very convenient, on a quiet street, AND cool in the hot afternoon. As Rick mentions, Sevilla is lovely and lively.
I would say DO NOT MISS a bullfight on Sunday nights at 6:30. Section 1 is the best seat as close as you can or Section 2. The tickets were $28E and worth every penny (we went on novice night). The bullfight was a mix of horror and after several hours, a morbid curiosity. We also loved Granada and found the tapas bars to be a wonderful experience.
CA USA Tue 09/21/2004
beware of the queens
Do not stay at the Queens Hotel inGibralter, it is terrible
Richard Schultz <email>
Absarokee, MT USA Mon 09/20/2004
Spain and Morocco
Just came back from Spain and Portugal; It was awesome and the peopl treated us so wonderfuuly. Here is where we stayed, all in Rick Steves book.
First, make sure you go into Morocco and book Aziz Begouri for his one day Gran tour at 35 Euros. It was a trip of a lifetime. He is amazing and you get to see things you would never see on your own. His Moroccon cell number is 00-212-6163-9332. You are completely safe with him and I cannot say enough how it will amaze you where he takes you. Places like the Kasbah, medinia, palaces, and the most amazing lunch we have ever had.You stay in Tarifa then take the ferry over which is a 35 minute ride. He will meet you on the boat so you are never alone. Take a chance, you will be so glad you did. Tell him Julie and Patrick sent you from Portland, Oregon and you want to eat at his family's restaurant. 9 dishes, and soooo good.
Anywayss, here is where we stayed in Spain and they were all PERFECT!
Madrid, Hotel Europa- Great location, ask for a higher level like # 4 and get a room facing the plaza. Gorgeous room, all marble bathroom. Extremely clean.
Seville, Hotel Amadeus- This is a must to stay. It is a music lovers dream, very clean, elegant, downright beautiful.
Toledo, Hotel Santa Isable- It is a 15th century building that ia amazing. Very clean, all marble bathroom, close to everything, really beautiful interior and it was $50 a night. I promise you will love it.
Tarifa, La Casa Amarilla- They are studios and one bedrooms that are very clean and close to everything. We loved it.
ALL in all, it was a wonderful trip. We were treated very well considering all the politics going on now. But make sure to do Morocco with Aziz. I cannot stress this enough. It gives you a look at the world beyone America. Email me if you have any questions but the RIck Steves book was "right on" and we were very please. Wouldnt leave home without it!!!!
Julie <email>
Oregon City, OR USA Fri 09/17/2004
Madrid
My family and I recently returned from Madrid, and wholeheartedly recommend the Hotel Plaza Mayor. The staff were very friendly and accomodating, and they had a great breakfast (not included in price) that served a variety of foods. they are located near the heart of museums and important sites in Madrid.
Laurie Akers <email>
Marysville, WA USA Tue 08/31/2004
Rick vs. Lonely Planet? Take both
Picking Rick or Lonely Planet is a false choice. Both are very good at what they do, but they do different things. My view: Rick writes for Americans on short trips, happy to take his advice on where to go. LP writes for people of many nationalities, often on long trips, who are going to more or different places.
I'm an Anglo-American currently on a long trip (10 months) and I use both. I've been reading (and recommending) Rick for over 10 years. He is very good on sight-seeing, and is good on accomodation - if you can afford his listings. Unfortunately, he seems to be moving more and more upmarket and out of my price bracket. Fine if you're splurging on a short trip, not so good if you're budgeting to afford a long one. Add in the fact that I need single rooms, and that I'm willing to sleep cheap so I can eat well, and these days few of Rick's hotel listings do me any good. Then, my tastes aren't necessarily his - I prefer arts and crafts to fine arts, I can OD fast on baroque and roccoco and I enjoy the country as much as the big cities.
I use the heavy, glossy guidebooks (think Insight) to decide where to go, LP to figure out how to get there, and Rick to tell me what I'm looking at when I'm there. But I need LP when I arrive too - their maps are much better and they tell me where to find things like embassies (e.g. in Vienna I needed to get a Chinese visa), supermarkets (to restock on basics) and English-language bookshops that deal in used paperbacks (alas, rare in Europe). But I agree LP isn't perfect either. They are still better on Asia than Europe and they don't have Rick's consistency - when I started having trouble with their hotel listings halfway across India, I realized I had moved on to a different author. So, I planned the Eastern Europe leg of this trip with LP, but when Rick's new book came out, I bought it as well, and traveled with pieces of both, despite being fanatical about packing light). YMMV
Kathy <email>
Cary, NC USA Thu 08/26/2004
Kid Food in Seville
Kid Friendly Places:
A few places for finicky kids. No authentic Spanish food, but no yellow arch either. All except Pizzeria San Marco are open 7 days a week and all except Creperi are under five minute walk from Cathedral (Creperi is ten minutes tops). All take credit and debit cards (Visa and MC):
1. Pizzeria San Marco (Meson del Moro, 3 blocks from Cathedral just off Mateos Gago): good pizza and pasta, okay salads; good service even when busy. Avoid the second floor if you can; it's cramped and hot. Sit downstairs instead in what may be the only pizzeria housed in a Moorish bathhouse. Closed Mondays.
2. Flaherty's Bar (opposite Cathedral exit (on Calle Alemanes opposite Cathedral's Puerta del Perdon)): erratic and occasionally awful service but great hamburgers and best salads in Seville.
3. Chinese restaurant on Mateos Gago, one block from Cathedral (just up street from Giralda Bar, same side of street, fish tank in front)): serviceable Chinese food in huge restaurant with good a/c for summer months.
4. La Creperi (not a misspelling)(Just off Plaza Alfalfa, on Calle Perez Galdos, 22 (phone: 954 222 802)): Great crepes as entrees and dessert. Crepes are light, not doughy. Dessert crepes: try the almond crepe, or the Brasilena. We always asked kitchen to go light on whipped cream but the waiter thought this constituted cruelty to children and politely ignored us, with a wink to our 11 year old. The pickiest American kids love this place. Young, very nice French guys run it; their mothers are often there in the early afternoon, perhaps to keep an eye on their very cute sons. Doesn't open until 2 pm and sxs closes b/t 4 and 8 pm.
5. Horno San Buenaventura: Combination full service restaurant/bar and pastry shop located on Avenida Constitucion across street from Cathedral. Other smaller branches throughout city. Second floor opens up after breakfast; kids can eat pre-fab pasta and homemade pastries/ice-cream at large tables with views of Cathedral. Second floor also has numerous outlets for those with laptops.
Jean-Marie
Washington, DC USA Thu 08/19/2004
Cordoba
Having lived, honeymooned, worked -- and just returned from a six month academic sabbatical --in Spain, I highly recommend the Mezquita in Cordoba. It is one of the top architectural sights in Spain (better than Seville's Cathedral (guess where we lived!) and Madrid's Royal Palace); the imposition of a cathedral in its center fails to undermine the beauty and perfect symmetry of Moorish architecture. Like Klutz book advertisements, this is one that appeals to the "nine to 99" crowd: our 11-year-old spent three hours marveling at and photographing the candy cane columns, and my husband and I were in awe pure and simple. It is also a photographer's paradise, despite the poor lighting. (Take a tripod. The $3 hand-held ones suffice.)
The rest of Cordoba is a poor man's version of Seville (hint: when in Seville, don't be chained to the guidebooks ; get lost in the Barrio Santa Cruz for an afternoon and toss back a drink on the open air veranda of the Alcazar), but you can do a return trip Seville-Cordoba-Seville on the train in a half day.
Jean-Marie Simon
Washington, DC USA Wed 08/18/2004
Salema, Portugal and Romantik Villa
Lisa and Jost at the Romantik Villa in Salema, Portugal now serve breakfast (included in the room rate). I stayed there for 4 nights in May 2004. Breakfast included cereal, yogurt, croissant, jam, roll, meat, cheese, juice and very good coffee. Plenty to fill you up! The room was very comfortable with private bath, tv (some English channels), minibar (also facilities to make coffee and tea). Small private patio with chairs and table. Private entrance to room. The grounds are beautiful! Nice pool with comfortable lounge chairs. I felt very comfortable and safe there. Lisa and Jost are very friendly and nice. Lisa will give recommendations of places to visit and good restaurants.
I highly recommend renting a car in southern Portugal. I am a timid driver, but driving in southern Portugal was easy when in a home base such as Salema. Rented from Budget. Picked up the car at the airport in Faro and dropped it in Lagos before taking the bus to Lisbon. Price was reasonable and experience was good. I rented an automatic as I don't drive a manual. The man at the Budget office in Lagos took me to the bus station (no charge). I extended the rental by 1 day for the prorated amount of the weekly rental amount (total rental was over a week). Salema is great. I had dinner each night sitting outside at one of the 3 beach-side restaurants enjoying the ocean view. The beach is pleasant and there are pleasant day trips by car from there. The village is small, picturesque and relaxing. I highly recommend staying at Romatik Villa!
Susan <email>
Canal Winchester, OH USA Fri 08/13/2004
Spain
My friend and I used Rick's book exclusively - it became our travel "bible." It was fun running into other travelers in hotels or tourist attractions,
carrying the book as we simultaneously said "This is why we are here!"
We flew into Madrid, then took a cab to the bus station to go to Toledo. Make sure the cab gets the message as to your destination. We got dropped off at the wrong place and after much confusion with limited Spanish, spent 45 minutes on the subway getting to the bus terminal.
In Toledo we stayed at Hotel Santa Isabel and found our room to be more than acceptable. The night clerk was very friendly. We found the cathedral very interesting and even enjoyed the train, well worth the few euros to get a grand circle tour of the city. A beautiful train station, but right now you catch a bus at the train station to take you to another train stop to catch the train to Madrid.
In Sevilla, what a delight to stay at Hotel Amadeus. Once again, friendly and helpful staff. We had the breakfast one morning (7 euros). Worth it once just for the ambience, but you can get a great breakfast - cereal and yogurt on Sta Maria La Blanca, a couple of blocks from the Hotel. Thanks to someone for recommending the little shop on La Blanca where you can buy clay creches. We thought the Alcazar was worth more the than the one star Rick gave it, if only to see the beautiful wedding couples having their photos taken there.
El Arenal - great flamenco. Beautiful horse carriage ride on a hot summer's evening. (It got up to 43C when we were there). Bus to Arcos. Great staff at El Convento and the food at the restaurant was superb. Cathy went gaga over the sangria here. Well worth every penny. We would have liked to have stayed here longer. Then by bus to Rhonda for several hours, then onto Nerja and Hotel Marissal. As some have said - "location, location, location!" For the price, 50 euros, what a great place. If you are hungry we highly recommend the breakfast buffet at the expensive Hotel Balcon next door. For 9 euros you can fill up on lots of fruit and good bread (most of the bread we ate in Spanish restaurants was rock hard and tasteless). El Chispa had a great platter of different deep fried fish for 8 euros - enough for two. We felt like locals. Frigiliana and the Caves were great side trips.
Next stop Granada - Hotel Los Tilos. Quiet location and very helpful staff, and with a 20% discount with Rick's book it came in at 48 euros. What a deal! Loved this city.
Alhambra - go the earliest you can. Less crowded, better light for photos. Amazing. Found traveler's Nirvana at the Arab bath and massage recommended by Rick. Ice cream and horchata at Los Italianos and tapas Bodega Castaneda also thumbs up to Rick. Overnight train to Barcelona, comfortable when you remember to adjust the air conditioning!
In Barcelona stayed at Hotel Penisular - certainly more sparse and noisier than others. One night some young adults from the UK who had been drinking caused some concern. Enjoyed the ease of Bus Turista - well worth the money. Cathedral closed for renovations. There was a protest the Sunday we were there so no Sardana Dancing. Certainly a city with a visible edge - dirt, poverty etc. Loved the market and we enjoyed the chance to buy our meals and picnic. Do the free tour at Palau Guell. We had a great guide. Get a ticket early in the morning as they only give out a limited number. Cafe Granja Viader is a wonderful place for a bite and their Majorca - style milk is heavenly. Beware of taxis taking you to the train who want to over charge you saying it is an arrangement with the hotel.
Final destination Madrid. Stayed at both Hotel Europa and Hostal Acapulco where Javier is the best. Everyone should have him give them the talk about thieves. I met up with friends there and on our first night out one of them had her wallet stolen out of her backpack (Should wear a moneybelt!). Once again Rick's book came in handy with a phone number for the Canadian Embassy and a police station where they spoke English. Next morning at the police station where my friend had to sign papers, we were told to take a number. Her's was 096. The sign indicating the number being served said 005. We figured we'd be there for the whole day! Luckily the numbering system wasn't working. This was just one of the many interesting experiences we had in Spain. We arranged everything except bus travel online before we went.
Thanks to Rick for helping make our
travels the trip of a lifetime. Can't wait
to use one of your books again.
Margo
Victoria, BC Canada Wed 08/11/2004
Rick Steves vs Lonley Planet - Rick wins!
Rick is the best! Just came back 3 wks ago from Spain and France. Spent 1.5 wks at each country beginning with Spain. We used Rick Steves' Spain & Portugal book and the Lonely Planet for France. Our biggest regret on our trip was not buying Rick's book for France! After using Rick's book in Spain and then going to France, we were SO disappointed with the Lonely Planet. It was awful in comparison! Way too general and didn't have the little details and tips that Rick had in his books. For instance, tips on where to go after you arrive at the airport...how many days we should spend in a particular city etc. etc. Lonely Planet was way too objective and not for us. The hotels that were recommended were not accurate in terms of the description. The hotels that Rick recommended was exactly how he described. Rick tells it as it is. What's even better is we got the 10% discounts at some hotels when we showed his book.
Many people in Canada have never heard of Rick's books and now I've been telling them not to waste $ on Lonely Planet. The Lonely Planet book was way too heavy. When we returned home, I went to the bookstore to see if Rick covered stuff in France that we may have missed b/c we were relying on the Lonely Planet and sure enough we did miss some things. Ugh!
I must say, we relied so heavily on Rick's book...it was like he was our own personal tour guide 24 hrs a day. The only thing I'd suggest is a few more words to be added to the spanish/english dictionary. Otherwise, this is the best travel book ever. It makes us want to go to more places in Europe but only to those places that Rick has written a book on.
M & I <email>
Vancouver, BC CAN Mon 08/02/2004
Spain trip summer 2004
We visited Spain in late June/early July with our two kids (ages 14 and almost 11), renting a car in Madrid and putting 4,000 Km on it during the trip. We had a great vacation, and wanted to share some random observations.
Don't drive in Arcos unless you have a very small car. One that (really) fits a family of four is too big, as we found out during a National Lampoon European Vacation episode involving our Mercedes "beast", the parking lot on the main plaza, a bunch of locals laughing at the tourists, and the numerous 90-degree blind corners going down the hill out of town....
Sevilla - parking at garaje Cristobal Colon (off main street) was closer to many of the recommended hotels, cathedral, etc., and felt safer than the bus station. Restaurant La Cueva, on Plaza Dona Elvira (?) in Barrio Santa Cruz, had good basic food (menu del dia) with a bullfighting and tile motif - roast chicken with thyme was great.
Hostal Acapulco on Plaza del Carmen in Madrid was a find. Very friendly staff, basic, but does have everything you need. Funky old-time elevator that the kids thought was a riot. Much better value than other big city hotels, including Hotel Continental in Barcelona. One of our rooms at Continental was literally a closet, but it wasn't a bad place to stay - felt safe. I couldn't quite understand why, but I think they gave us a free bottle of cava for having a closet room with no air-conditioning (some rooms have it now).
Rick should not be so negative on the Paradors. For our family of 4, they were higher priced than some of our other lodging choices, but not totally out of line, and the rooms at a couple of the properties were practically posh. For 2 people, using their 5 night card promotion at 72 euros per night for very nice accommodations can be a great value.
Hotel Don Miguel in Ronda includes a good buffet breakfast as part of the room rate - great location on the gorge and close to everything. The Plaza de Socorro in Ronda was a great dinner location, particularly for people watching ranging from kids playing soccer to old ladies in fancy clothes feeding the pigeons. Restaurante Dona Pepa on the plaza was one of our favorite meals on the trip and included free aperitif and digestifs...
Barcelona - Sagrada Familia is so impressive; should note that the Nativity façade and staircase are closed for security reasons, so get ready to stand in line for the elevator (buy your ticket from the attendant). Taberna Basca Ixati was a fun spot; without kids in tow, could have spent more time there. The Ramblas felt safer than Rick describes, but areas of the Barri Gotic felt seedy even in the middle of the afternoon on a Saturday. Living statues on the Ramblas are very entertaining.
Les Quinxe Nits restaurant in Barcelona was a good recommendation. No menu del dia on a Saturday but 4 persons had a great dinner including appetizers, 0.5 L of house wine and dessert for 45 euros.
We spent an enjoyable night and morning on the beach in Tossa de Mar on the Costa Brava; still touristy, but way more enjoyable than Costa del Sol and not as overrun as other larger towns on Costa Brava, probably because it's further off the main path.
Rick is right, the drive from Barcelona to Madrid is bor-r-ring, but they are building an AVE line so in a few years the trip could be improved.
La Posada de Manolo in Toledo was a nice stay. Manuel is very friendly and loaded up our daughter with candy. However, we found Toledo disappointing. Too many tourists, dirtier than most of the other cities we visited. Catedral was full of scaffolding; Mozarabic chapel and Tesoro are not open due to renovations. Recommended Restaurant Plaza near Zocodover was a greasy spoon. However, the escalator ride up into the old town was fun and Mariano's sword shop was a riot - he is so friendly.
Salamanca - Las Torres Hotel is now part of a chain, but we were able to book a room for Sunday night on Expedia for 75 euros for a double plus bunk beds for the kids, including buffet breakfast - very convenient, right off Plaza Mayor. Recommended restaurant Dulcinea had very attentive staff, was very good for quality and price.
Segovia - we took Rick's advice about not driving in the old city, but after visiting it didn't appear that difficult - be aware that parking near the aqueduct means a long uphill walk to the Alcazar, particularly on a hot summer day. We'd drive into the city and find a place to park near the center - lots of spots.
Rick is right about Cordoba being nothing special, but it's worth a stop to see the Mezquita if you're driving from Sevilla to Toledo or Madrid. Granada was fun and very manageable for a larger city, as was Sevilla. Could have spent more time in the Albayzin, felt pretty safe (but weren't there extremely late at night).
For future trips, Rick should consider a stop in Extremadura, particularly if driving from Spain to Portugal. Merida in particular had very impressive Roman monuments and a pretty main plaza that really came alive on a Saturday evening after a hot afternoon siesta.
Finally, for future books, consider some Barajas boarding tips. Our trip had somewhat of a sour ending due to being bumped by Iberia in the midst of the summer rush. Many in Spain do not adhere to the American custom of "lines" and from observation and conversations with other travelers, Iberia appears to overbook its flights on a consistent basis, particularly during high season. If we had known as such, we would have adjusted our plans accordingly. Tips: (1) get to the airport much earlier than you would otherwise to try to get on your plane. (2) Be aggressive with the ticket agents (but not impolite). Everyone cuts ahead of you in line. Do as the Romans (natives) do and get your tickets in the hand of someone in a red jacket - they can (and do) help you. (3) If you do get bumped, negotiate (if you can) good denied boarding compensation - Iberia seems to accept the situation and you may have to put up with attitude from the ticket office, but they pay up. We got money, food vouchers, and a hotel in Miami for our missed connection.
Robert Scott <email>
Brookfield, WI USA Sun 08/01/2004
Hotel El Triunfo/Granada
A caveat regarding Hotel Triunfo in Granada, recommended by readers below. Hotel is well situated and rooms are spacious, but the street noise -- hotel faces large plaza which feeds into popular Albaicin neighborhood, and seems to get every biker in town b/t 12 and 4 am -- is intolerable, even with ear plugs. In addition, hotel turns off a/c each night to save money and unless you like it hot, it's not fun.
Jean-Marie
Washington, DC USA Fri 07/30/2004
Andalucia
I just returned from a 11 day trip through Andalucia. Started in Barcelona, then to Granada, Nerja and Tarifa. I am a single mom and traveled with 12 & 15 yr olds and the budget accomodations that Rick's book recommended were excellent value. In Barcelona I could not get a room from Rick's list but found Pension Mari-Luz which had the most comfortable bed in all the places we stayed and it was quiet and only 20 euros per person. The Barcelona Bus Turistic tour has great value and 3 routes taking you to all the tourist sites in the city. Another great value too. Hostal Lorca in Nerja was excellent, Rick and Femma were great. Frigiliana is not to be missed. The caves were okay.
In Tarifa we stayed at the Hostal Alborada and it was squeaky clean as Rick states. If you are arriving for the weekend in Tarifa, I suggest you book the room ahead of time. The majority of the hostales were full. The ferry from Tarifa to Morocco had stopped running in July. It is back on August 6th and would be a much shorter trip than via Algeciras. The direct bus route from Algeciras to Jerez was worth finding, takes 1/2 the time compared to departing Tarifa.
Already planning my next trip.
T. White Canada, July 26, 2004.
T. White <email>
Vancouver, BC CAN Mon 07/26/2004
Wonderful Trip to Spain and Portugal
My family (my wife, 15 year old daughter, and I) returned yesterday (July 21) from an 18 day trip to Spain and Portugal. Most of our trip was in Spain, with only four days in Portugal. We used Rick's book extensively both in our planning and as a guide while we were there. We had not been to either country, so this was a new adventure for us, and we were very pleased with the entire experience. We learned quite a bit, and I thought it might be helpful to others if I listed some of the highlights as well as some of what we learned.
We drove a car the entire time, having rented a Hertz car in Madrid, and we found driving to be very easy. In most cases the roads are excellent in Spain -- although in Portugal the quality was less predictable -- and the drivers are courteous. Filling stations all have attendants, and so when you pull up to the pumps you wait for them to fill the tank and then you go in to pay. Credit cards were accepted at all the stations we used. The attendants are efficient and usually in well-maintained uniforms.
Throughout Spain we found service personnel to be professional and efficient. Waiters and waitresses, service station attendants, hotel clerks -- all were impressive. Although not as immediately friendly as many American service people might be, these Spanish folks are very good at what they do and we were consistently impressed with the service we received. (In Portugal, as Rick mentions, people seem warmer than in Spain, although the Spanish were consistently helpful and responded well to smiles and attempts at their language -- "gracias" and "por favor" go a long way.)
We planned our trip so that we drove out of Madrid as soon as we got our car, and then we returned the car at the end of the trip before we spent three days in Madrid. Therefore we did not have to deal with the Madrid traffic.
If you are driving in the larger cities (Lisbon, Seville, etc.), one suggestion from Rick is very important. When searching for hotels in these cities, and if you are not certain how to get to the hotel, hire a taxi to lead you to the hotel. We did not do this in Lisbon and we spent well over an hour searching for our hotel. Hiring a taxi is an excellent idea. The problem is the arrangement of streets in the old sections of these towns. Even locals cannot give good directions because the streets are too confusing. A good map of a city helps, but, even then, some streets are pedestrian and you cannot drive on them. Also, many city center streets are narrow and one-way. Two of our hotels were located on pedestrian streets, so getting to the front door was tricky. It helps to have a local person guide you through all this confusion.
We used the services of Stephen Drake-Jones -- Chairman of the Wellington Society -- as a guide in Madrid, and we were very pleased with our experience with him. Rick recommends Stephen, and with good reason. We took the morning tour of Madrid, and Stephen made the history of the city come alive. He is witty and knowledgable, and he is very helpful about general cultural issues. In fact, Stephen helped us solve a problem that was a low point of our trip. It might be helpful to others to relate this experience.
We ordered tapas in one of the restaurants in the Plaza Mayor in Madrid. When we ordered this we had been on our trip for 15 days so we considered ourselves relatively experienced at ordering food. We asked for some tapas for three people (it was early and we did not want a full dinner), and the waiter suggested a few. This sounded good so we asked him to bring them. We were expecting a selecion of individual tapas on a single plate with a variety of tapas. Instead, we received eight plates of food (raciones), ranging from shrimp to clams to cheese to fried peppers. We felt overwhelmed by all this and had no idea how we could eat it. We tried to eat a little of all of it, thinking we were obligated. At the end we were presented a bill of 109 Euros! We were angry and felt the waiter had taken advantage of us. We complained to him that this was too much food but he brushed us off by saying this is the "Spanish way." We paid the bill but were very unhappy. Later we learned that if we had not touched the food, or had asked him to take some back to the kitchen, we would not have been charged for that amount. At any rate, we continued to fume.
The next morning we had out tour with Stephen Drake-Jones. Stephen said he was very sorry to hear our story and he took us to a restaurant where he consulted a friend about what we should do. First of all, there is an official complaint book that every Spanish establishment must maintain. You complain on a form in writing, and a copy goes to the you, to the restaurant, and to a goverment agency that oversees such things. Unfortunately, we did not know about this. Also, there is a government agency that you can visit and file a complaint. Stephen took us to this place, which is located in the Plaza Mayor, but it was closed for siesta. So we went back the next morning and expressed our unhappiness with what had happened at the restaurant. We followed Stephen's advice to not argue but appeal to their emotions and to encourage them to agree that we had a case. Tell them that this experience spoiled our impression of Madrid, Stephen said. He said to tell them we were embarrassed. (Both true.) Although language was an issue, we were finally placed with an English speaking person and she carefully listened to what we said. Then she asked us to wait while she found someone to help us. This new person walked with us to the restaurant and had a discussion with the manager (all in Spanish, of course). End result: The manager refunded half of our bill, which was very fair, since we had eaten some of the food. We felt we had learned something and we felt there was a bit of justice served. Also, we appreciated the effort on the part of the officials to make things right.
Suggestion: Always pay for food with a credit card, and keep receipts. The restaurant was able to credit our account, because we had evidence we had paid by credit card. Importantly, as Rick suggests, "wave away" any food you do not want. Frequently, the waiters bring bread and olives, and if you eat them you will be charged. Finally, if you are unhappy with something, ask for the complaint book. This will get their attention.
I realize this is a very long entry, so I will end with a couple of highlights:
The paradores are wonderful. One of our best experiences was in the paradore in the town of Plascencia, which is south of Salamanca. It is in an old convent and it is marvelous. Also, the town was very nice and has a wonderful Plaza Mayor with a market day on Tuesday that provides lots of local color.
We enjoyed the Casa Mercedes in Nerja very much. This is a delightful place not far from the beach. It has many British tourists so English is understood. Highly recommended.
Siesta really is observed by many people, and shops -- especially the smaller ones -- are frequently closed from 2:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. If you need to purchase something, plan accordingly.
Segovia is a delight, and the Infanta Isabel hotel is wonderful. It is located right on the Plaza Mayor.
We were very impressed with Lisbon.
Read Washington Irving's "Tales of the Alhambra" before you visit there. It makes the place come alive.
There is so much more I dould write, but suffice it to say that we enjoyed our visit immensely. As I think of other things, I will include them in another entry.
Richard Swindle
Richard Swindle <email>
Atlanta, GA USA Thu 07/22/2004
Algeciras Ferry
Note that the Algeciras ferry can often take long than the 90 minutes to two hours that the ferry lines advertise. We took ferry in March from Algeciras to Tangier and crossing took almost four hours: bottleneck at Tangier dock doubled crossing time. Return to Spain was the same; it took four hours because of delay in boarding tour buses onto ferry, and cross currents in crossing that slowed return.
Jean-Marie
Washington, DC USA Tue 07/20/2004
Tarifa ferry closed
Important updates that the Tarifa ferry/port is closed for three months.Something to with windsrufing. I had bought a ticket and was waiting for the bus at 7 pm when tw Flemish women steered me straight. It's necessary to take the Algecieras ferry. The town itself has a nice Plza, Plaza Also, near the port hotels. Don Quixote tiled benches in Arab style. Pardon the typing...Arabic keyboards are obscure at best.
Nick John
Morroco Tue 07/13/2004
Andalucia: Cordoba & Castles Tours
Just did a short 4 day visit n from London to beautiful Seville, Spain. Our surprise was a day trip CORDOBA...there's a LOT of history + things to see that are not mentioned yet in Rick's book...the castle of King Fernando,Roman ampitheater steps & mosaics, synagouge/Jewish Quarter, walking a Roman bridge & temple, tasty local wine & olive oil + the HIGHLIGHT Mezquita-church. We found all this on a fun & educational private tour with Santiago of MagicalSpain an American owned tour biz listed by Rick.
We also did a new family day tour called Crazy for Castles led by the founder Dan OBeirne.The kid's loved the picnic lunch in the castle and the explanation of medieval life. see www.magicalspain.com for info.
Julian & Robert Reed
London & Whashington, D.C., USA Mon 07/12/2004
Tour of Barcelona
Don't pass up Bus Turistic in Barcelona!
We toured a dozen countries in 21 days and took may city bus tours. However, Bus Turistic in Barcelona is heads above all others.
With one day to spend in Barcelona, we were delighted that it turned out to be a highlight. Upon arrival to Barcelona, we threw our bags in a locker at the train station and caught an awesome tour of Barcelona right outside the door of the train station. The cost of the one day tour is 16 Euros or you can purchase 2 day tour pass for 20 Euros. It includes access to all 3 intersecting tour circuts (red, blue, green routes) with a hop on hop off option at each stop.
The tour includes over 20 stops, including the beach(our 16 yr. old son enjoyed the topless beach), a booklet with a paragraph describing the significance of each of the landmarks, a good size map so you can anticipate when you want to hop off, it also included another booklet of discounts for most all sights (including diving off the diving boards at the Olympic swimming pool) as well as some chain restaurants. We used the tour from 9AM until 8PM when it returned us to the train station to catch our night train.
The guides on each bus give the tour in several languages. We realized our son had lost his discount booklet as we got ready to depart the bus for an admission charged sight. The Bus Turistic guide quickly handed us another discount booklet, no charge. A bus from the same tour company stops at each of the 20 stops every 5-8 minutes. It was a blessing for us to get to see so much of Barcelona in such a short time at such a reasonable fee.
Jan Wishau <email>
Los Alamos, NM USA Tue 06/29/2004
More on "Shopping in Seville" Below
In addition to the other wine and food products described below under "Shopping in Seville," May 30, 2004, take a look at Delicias del Barrio sale wine in the front of the store. The owner stocks some very nice Andalucian red wines, including Hidalgo Rioja and Valdepenas Tabenas, for two to four Euros per bottle. Don't judge it by its price. This wine is good stuff: it is deep discounted because the owner gets bonus cases from distributors and passes the savings on to her customers.
Jean-Marie <email>
Washington D.C., DC USA Mon 06/28/2004
Holy Toledo, indeed
I spent two days in Toledo over Corpus Christi, and highly recommend it. The celebrations last for several days, but the main event is the procession on the 9th Thursday after Easter. The day before, the cathedral was almost empty in the afternoon - I had the wonderful carvings in the choir all to myself.
The procession itself took around 90 minutes to pass me, you'd think all of Toledo was in it, except some are obviously lining the route & siting in reserved seats in Zocodover square. Nowhere else are you likely to see so many women in black lace mantillas, men in robes and prelates in embroidered copes at one time! The highlight of the procession is the monstrance that usually lives in the treasury. It took the men pushing the float it was on two shots to get it up the ramp and back in front of the main altar at the end of the procession. The processional route is covered and decorated, and there is a carnival-type parade along the same route the evening before.
Among the special events, some of the houses let you in to see their patios - it's a wonderful oportunity to see what's behind all those big wooden doors.
I stayed at the Santa Isabel, which was fine. I ate expensively and well at the Cuatro Tiempe, reasonably and well at Bar Cerveceria Gambrinus, and reasonably but badly at Restaurante Meson Palacios - the food was poor and the service so fast as to be almost insulting.
Kathy <email>
Cary, NC USA Sun 06/27/2004
Andulsia Spain and Southern Portugal
We did a 2 week tour using an Eurail Rail and Drive pass (I think 3 rail days and 5 car rental days) across Southern Spain and Southern Portugal. The reason for the combo rail-n-drive ticket is because the Spanish rail system didn't go to all the places that we wanted to go to.
We started in Madrid, railed to Granada, picked up a rental car in Granada, drove to Malaga (on the coast), Ronda (beautiful town on the gourge), Arcos de la Frontera (famous Pueblo Blancos in the wine country), Sevilla, dropped our car in Sevilla, took bus to Lagos in the Portugal coastal resort area, picked up our rental car in Lagos, drove to Salema, returned to Lagos, railed to Lisbon, railed from Lisbon to Madrid.
While in Spain, we stayed at the famous Spanish Paradores, which is a government-runned top-notch chain of hotels (see www.parador.es). Most hotels are old historic buildings converted into nice hotels. Most of these hotels are priced around $100 - $250 USD per night, but are well worth the treat.
Especially the Parador de Granada, an old monestary built around 1400s, which is located on the grounds of the Alhambra. The Alhambra is a "must see" - beautiful garden grounds that hosts several historical Christian and Moorish palaces and fortresses. Give yourself a full day to enjoy the Alhambra.
The Parador in Malaga is located next to a castle fortress with a pamoramic view of the sea and coastline.
Parador de Ronda, a newer facility, was also one of our favorites located right on the gorge. Be sure to request a room on one of the top floors overlooking the gorge (it costs a little more but well worth it!). Our room looked straight into the gorge and had a beautiful view at sunset of the cliff and town nestled up on top of of the cliff. Ronda is known for having one of the oldest bull fighting arenas and is also where Madonna filmed her video years ago.
The Parador in Arcos de la Frontera is located in one of many Pueblos Blancos (white villages) high on the top of a cliff. Driving is a nightmare (pull your mirrors in), but when you arrive at the hotel, you will be glad to made the trip. This Parador is the best priced Parador that we stayed in. Also with an incredible photographic view of the plains and village on top the cliff.
Parador de Carmona is located just outside Sevilla and has a fantastic view as well as a huge pool. From Sevilla, we took the bus to Lagos, Portugal (the bus runs twice a day, which you can do a search on the web to find the schedule somewhere) which left early in the morning and arrived in Lagos in the afternoon. We stayed the night in Lagos and picked up our rental the next morning. When you arrive, be prepared to be attacked by hotel advocates solicitating various hotels and B&Bs.
We drove to Salema where we stayed 2 nights. Salema is a small quiet fishing village off the beaten path. We stayed at a B&B called the Romantik Villa (www.romantikvilla.com). This B&B is a little paradise located up the hill overlooking the ocean. We paid about $70 per night for the largest suite room which has a kitchen, sitting area, patio, and the view overlooking sea and the pool. The B&B is runned by an married couple - Jost (an Austrian) and Lisa (a Brazilian). Lisa, while studying interior decorating, lived in New York where she learned to speak English. Jost, a very friendly gent, speaks German and very little English. Lisa has put her talents to use in decorating the rooms and Jost has done a great job with the gardens to make it like a little paradise. Lisa and Jost will take good care of you. Warning: the Atlantic ocean is very cold.
From Lagos, we took the train to Lisbon and spent 2 days/1 night in Lisbon then back to Madrid. Lisbon was just another big city, but about a 30 minute train ride outside of Lisbon is the town of Sintra which has several palaces and castles nestled on the rolling hilltops. Most remarkable is the Pena Palace, where the royalty of Portugal onced lived, and the Moorish Castle built around the 8th century and has a fantastic view of the Protugese country side and the Pena Palace. If you are Sintra, be sure to try the honey pasty sold at most tourist kiosks. This vacation was definately a dream vacation!!!
Tammy <email>
Dallas, tx USA Tue 06/22/2004
Spain Vacation
I visited Madrid and Barcelona last week and I am so thankful for the tips provided in Rick Steve's Book. Hotel Jardi in Barcelona is a nice hotel for a great price, and so is Hostal Acapulco in Madrid. Javier and Marco as just the nicest people. Vary accomodating and helpful. Hostal Acapulco is a very nice hotel in a nice location with a wonderful price. It's also quiet and has a quaint charm of its own. I will definitely come back. I also noticed that there are a lot of Rick Steve's book in the lobby left by the customers.
We also went to the restaurant you recommended, the Puerto Rico Restaurant, located right behind the hotel. We cant believe our great fortune since it offers great food for such low prices!! We instantly regretted that lunch at KFCs considering that the price we paid for a combo meal is just about the price we paid at the Peurto Rico restaurant. The manager, we called him "senor" is a warm, nice guy who provides very efficent service.
I want to thank your book for providing such priceless information that gives your readers great leverage when they visit a foreign country. We all want to enjoy great food and great service at a good price. For that I am so thankful!!
Yolanda Lopez
Fremont, CA USA Tue 06/08/2004
Spain
I just got back from Spain. I saw Rick filming in Seville! (poor guy tried to do three takes by the cathedral and people kept coming up).
Anyway, I found his book accurate and helpful.
a couple of tips:
a. BUY A PHRASE BOOK! (i found the little DK one handy) unlike most of europe, no one here speaks English outside the hotels.
b. Read Washington Irving's Tales of Alhambra before you visit! it will bring the place alive. - its a short book of short stories, so it makes easy plane & train reading. There is also a book "literay spain" - burns which really paints a nice overall image of spain
c. another reader said the Seville-Granada train ride was dull - I found it quite scenic, as I did the Madrid-Segovia one.
d. Hostal Cervantes- Madrid was recommended in Rick's book and a second the nomination - also staying by the Prado gives one easy access to the lively nightlive a ten minute walk away but is much quiter.
e. Rick Recommends using the tourist office- I found most helpful, but more helpful was getting the info before hand from the spain tourist office (which also has a GREAT website).
Theodore Hollsworth
NYC, NY USA Fri 06/04/2004
PORTUGUESE RESTAURANTS HEADS UP
LISBON
Just a little comment for people visiting PORTUGAL.
We are experienced European travellers, but bumped into a new concept (at least to us) in Portuguese restaurants. They have a cover charge, which one would assume would cover the little "goodies" like bread, etc. that are on the table (kinda like Italy?) WRONG.
The nice little cheese round (queso on the menu), plus the bread,and the olives, are almost always an extra charge that will show up,usually in addition to the cover. In one particularly agregious situation, we were presented with a small plate of shrimp, along with olives, cheese and bread, we ate 2 of the shrimp, and were presented with a bill for 16 Euros for the shrimp, plus more for the cheese and olives.
According to the locals, the correct procedure is to not eat anything (refuse it or push it away untouched ) other than the bread, perhaps unless you are willing to pay for them.They will usually show somewhere on the menu, some where near the explanation of the cover charge, but hard to find (if there at all!!!)
Be warned !!!
Alan
Los Angeles, CA USA Tue 06/01/2004
Hotels and corrections
We just returned from 2.5 weeks in Portugal and Spain, following Rick's advice almost exclusively. A few ticket prices, times, etc. were different in the 2004 guidebook than what we found in reality, but I know Rick was traveling in Iberia last month, so he has probably corrected the inaccurate information already. For example, in Toledo's cathedral we tried for the free entry during the hours Rick mentions, but had to pay a few euros apiece -- and half the church was closed for repairs. A 4.5 hour bus ride from Coimbra to Salamanca was not available, and ours took over 7 hours (not direct). We also had his language guide but found it lacking in some areas, particularly in Portuguese food items.
Highlights were our daytrip to Sintra with an awesome tour of Pena Palace and its grounds...we're young and athletic so we walked up the entire way from the town to the palace -- it's a wonderful, quiet winding road in the woods. If you have all day and can skip the bus, I'd do it. (My boyfriend and I also got engaged at the queen's perch overlooking Pena Palace, so that made it even better). Coimbra's university graduation festivities were enthralling, Salamanca's main square was jam-packed at all hours, and even though I'm a professional writer I can't find words to describe the early evening views in Ronda. Take the great deal of 10 euros apiece for Concepcion Delgado's walking tour in Sevilla.
As far as accomodations, Rick steered us right. We tried to stick to a 100 euro a day budget, and averaged just 34 euros a night for two people, with our most expensive nights at $45 for an awesome Madrid experience on Gran Via, and $50 for a right-on-the-main-square-with-an-ocean-view-balcony in Nerja. LISBON: Pensao Imperial was cheap, clean and very central. Front-facing rooms can be loud if you're sleeping the same night Porto wins a soccer match. And you thought New Yorkers honked their horns a lot.
COIMBRA: Pensao Santa Cruz a little dingy and dated, but great location and very nice staff.
SALAMANCA: Followed Rick's advice and took a room at Hostal Los Angeles right on the Plaza Mayor...our room was tiny with no windows and vaguely smelled of smoke -- not our best choice, but we spend every waking hour out in the city anyway, and fell in love with Salamanca.
MADRID: Rick's recommended Hostales at Gran Via 44 were booked, but one directed us to Casa/hotel/? Romera at Gran Via 64, and it was our best stay of the trip (though not in Rick's book). Just 45 euros in a huge city put us in a lovely room with bath, high ceilings with crown molding, and the coolest old elevator you've ever ridden. Friendly Chara (sp?) spoke only Spanish but if you can converse, she was a pure delight.
GRANADA: Hotel Residencia Lisboa brought conversation and smoke from a neighboring room, and the security system is a little sketchy (you walk off the street, tell them a room number and they hand you the key) but it worked fine. A walk up to the Sacromonte on a nice morning makes a pleasant semi-rural walk before your Alhambra ticket time.
NERJA: Nothing prepared us for the gorgous bus ride through the Sierra Nevadas from Granada to Nerja....and the next day's trip from Marbella north through the mountains to Ronda was even more stunning--not for those afraid of heights or mountain roads. In Nerja we had a fine room at Hostal Marissal facing the Balcony of Europe. Don't come to Nerja expecting to hear much other than English and German, but it makes a very nice little beach break on the trip.
RONDA: Stayed at uber-cheap Hostal Biarritz, which was off the beaten path and merely adequate, but we only paid 17 euro so no complaints at all. We had the most breathtaking views at dusk from the old Roman wall below the city. Would give Ronda more time if doing again.
SEVILLA: Our top 3 choices were booked when we called almost a week ahead, so we settled on Hostal La Gloria, with a terrific location off the main shopping area. Only the bathrooms left something to be desired, as they weren't as spic-and-span as I would hope.
TAVIRA, Portugal: Really scored with Rick's recommended Rosa's Quartos. For 25 or 30 euros in May, we were the only guests on our floor, (amidst marble-paved hallways, tile work, and the best shower we had) in a delightfully quiet fishing town. Rosa was sweet (no English, but she can do Spanish), and the ferry out to the beach island is a must, no matter waht the weather. We even plunged into the ocean.
Thanks Rick for making our second European trip using your books an absolute success.
Christie S.
Portland, OR USA Mon 05/31/2004
Shopping in Seville
Shopping in Seville: If you want something different from the usual tourist items sold near the Cathedral and on Calle Sierpes, check out the following stores, all of which are located within a short walk from each other and the Cathedral:
(a)Coco Sevilla: Ximenez de Enciso, 28. Nice tiles for $15 (cellist, violinist, prostitute (!)). Beautiful non-traditional silk shawls. Very nice owners. They also do free gift wrap. Hours vary with season.
(b) Tradiciones (Calle San Jose, 18, half a block from Plaza Sta. Maria la Blanca near Hotel Fernando III ) (phone 954 211 050) . The only centrally located, year-round creche store in Seville, which is famous for clay crčche scenes. Store sells Spanish-made Nativity scenes, but for the non-religious, and particularly those with kids, they also sell enchanting village miniatures: gardens, figures, and even tiny clay fruits, vegetables, tools, and plates at very reasonable prices. Owners Pilar and Carlos are lovely, and Carlos speaks English. Kids love this store. They also sell candles and candle holders and seasonal gift items. Spanish businessmen shop here for gifts to take home to family. Hours vary with season (summer hours are 10-9 pm; winter hours vary; closed in mid-afternoon).
c) Las Delicias del Barrio, Mateos Gago, 15 (phone 954 210 629); open seven days a week from 10:30 am to 9 pm. Wine, manzanilla, olive oil and treats store. The owner, Isabel, is very knowledgeable about the products. Check out the great chocolate called "El Monje" made in Carmona by ex-monk (under $3.50 for six ounces of 60% chocolate, dark and milk). You won't find it anywhere else. Delicias is the place to go on a Sunday evening when everything else is closed and you want wine to take back to your hotel. Store also sells attractive wood items.
Prices at all these stores are very reasonable.
Jean-Marie
Washington D.C., DC USA Sun 05/30/2004
Southern Spain
We visited Southern Spain in very early May 2004, and here are our thoughts and recommendations. All hotel and sites are in Ricks book except where noted. See our posting in the Savory Spain and Portugal graffiti wall for food recommendations.
We flew into MALAGA, the easiest starting point for our vacation. We only had a very short time there, but would not recommend Malaga beyond what is necessary. If you need a hotel - Hotel Las Vegas, is instantly forgettable, completely charmless, but is clean, safe and reasonably priced. We booked off www.andalusia.com our rate including breakfast, a good value. We did see a Hotel Ibis located near the airport (Euro59/night), which would have been a much better in-transit bet had we known about it.
In Malaga, we rented a car through Zenith Car Rental www.zenithsl.com, zenith@chipsur.com, for Euro 152/week all inclusive of insurance etc. Zenith was very helpful and picked us up at our hotel - we would not recommend driving in Malaga. Our hosts in Gaucin (see below) helped arrange the rental and logistics, so it may be wise to contact them about car rental if you are staying with them. Zenith is only located in Malaga and will meet you at the airport for pickup and drop off.
We drove about 1.5 hours from Malaga to GAUCIN, a hill town. Gaucin, near Ronda, is not mentioned in Rick's books but is shown on one of his maps. We highly recommend Gaucin and staying at Molino del Carmen in particular. Gaucin is very well located to use as a home base to tour the area - it's about 45 minutes to Gibraltar, 40 minutes to Ronda and Grazalema and Zahara are close as well. We also drove 2.5 hours to Jerez with a stop in Arcos. Granada was 2.5 hours as well.
We highly, highly recommend El Molino del Carmen (www.molinodelcarmen.com) in Gaucin. Owned by Darryl (ex Canadian and Marjukka (ex Finn), there are five "apartments" with kitchenettes, terrace, and pool. This is the perfect location for enjoying the sun and touring the countryside. The accommodations (generally bedroom, bathroom, sitting area, kitchenette) are simply but very tastefully done, and are maintained to a very high standard. We paid Euros 595 for a week in the terrace apartment. Darryl and Marjukka are fabulous hosts who have lived in the area for many years, and were happy to chat about the good, the bad and the ugly of the region, as well as help with touring arrangements. Note: a new house is being built right next to Molino del Carmen and there is a fair bit of noise at the moment, although the house is supposed to be finished by June. The rooms are rented for a minimum of a week at a time.
We liked Gaucin, which while not terribly picturesque in the way that Grazalema or Zahara are, was a perfect hill town and location. There are about two hotels, several restaurants, two banks and a number of Mom and Pop grocery stores. It appeared to be a "working" village. We mainly saw locals who spoke no English.
Rick is correct that you should limit your time to RONDA, ARCOS, GRAZALEMA and ZAHARA. Ronda was very nice, and we particularly liked the bullring (Euros 5.00), which had a tasteful souvenir shop. The road from Gaucin to Ronda is windy, but not difficult - about 40 minutes. Get off the main tourist street in Ronda and you will immediately be in the local's part of town, minus the tourists.
ARCOS was delightful - follow Rick's driving instructions and drive carefully. We did Arcos on our way back from Jerez. In JEREZ, we went to the Equestrian horse show, which was worth the effort. It was not too difficult finding the Equestrian school from the signs posted once you entered Jerez.
You only need a few hours in Arcos. The biggest problem we had in Arcos was actually getting out of the town. A tip we discovered (which may not work in all cases!!), is to follow the signs/directions to the highway even if they are leading you in the wrong direction - invariably there will be signs once you approach the highway directing you in the direction you want. At worst, you can get on to the highway going in the wrong direction, but can then just exit, turn around, and get going in the correct direction.
GIBRALTAR was mediocre. Take Rick's advice and park in La Linea. Gibraltar was touristy, but our impressions may have been better if we had been able to go up the rock - the cable cars were closed due to wind. At most give it a half-day. If you have been to Bermuda, you have seen similar and much better.
GRAZALEMA and ZAHARA were an easy drive from Ronda and were great. You will not need more than half a day to visit both together. Rick's suggested road between the two was memorable. It is a very narrow, winding road on the side of a mountain and we would not want to drive it in bad weather or at night. Fortunately, there was very little traffic when we did it very slowly. Generally, driving in Spain was excellent. We took the toll roads whenever possible.
Unfortunately our time at the Alhambra was in rain, but it was still worthwhile. GRANADA was bigger than we expected - driving was not easy. We may have not come in on the correct street, but got quite lost in the city. Signs were poor, even those directing to the Alhambra. We saw a number of tourists driving around in bewilderment. We found Rick's recommended parking garage, Parking Real, mostly by luck, and it was a good location.
SEVILLE was magnificent. We spent 2 and a half days - just right. We stayed at Hotel Alcantara. This is a new place, comfortable and clean but with no charm at all. The staff was very helpful. We did all the sights in Seville and highly recommend the city. We were not sure the Euro 7 cathedral admission charge was worth it, but you can't go up the Giraldi tower unless you pay the fee. The old Jewish quarter can be touristy, but there are still areas in the quarter which the locals frequent. The "downtown" of the city, starting just past the cathedral and tower, where the locals congregate was fabulous.
We took the two hour walking tour with Concepcion Delgado (See Rick's book) and found it very worthwhile. The tour had just the right mix of history, culture and information and Concepcion was a lovely guide. Concepcion had finished filming with Rick for 5 days just prior to our arrival, so look for her dancing at the Feria in the new TV series.
We saw Flamenco at Los Gallos and the more intimate performance at the Casa de la Memoria de Al-Andalus. Both were very good in their own way. If you can only afford to see one show, the Los Gallos show just beats the Casa Memoria, since you will see more variety at Los Gallos. The Casa Memoria is located in the same building as Hotel Alcantara.
In MADRID we stayed at Hotel Europa, which was clean, safe, very well located and with very helpful staff. The metro was very efficient and easy to use (we used it to the Airport with no problem; about 45 minutes with a few line changes). We would schedule no more than a day in Madrid to see all the sites.
We visited TOLEDO and found it very enjoyable. The town is very touristy - souvenir stores galore, but still worthwhile. It was only a 50-minute bus ride from the Madrid bus station. In fact, if you just must see Madrid, we think a much more pleasurable option is to day trip from Toledo to Madrid. We enjoyed the Sinagoga Transito. The Sinagogo Santa Maria la Blanca was not worth the Euro 1.50 entrance fee. The cathedral was closed for most of the day we were there. We did take Rick's recommended 50 minute cheesy little train ride, which we can also recommend. There is English and Spanish commentary and excellent views of Toledo.
Brett and Margaret
Vancouver, BC, Bc Sun 05/23/2004
spain
Overall, we found Rick to be quite accurate. We have just returned from a 17 day tour of Spain. IN Barcelona, we stayed at the Hotel Nouvel which we found to be quite good. It is located on a quiet street, yet it is only one block from all the action on the Ramblas. We had a room with a balcony. We enjoyed Barcelona, and our only suggestion which deviates from the book would be to save the money by not entering the Sagrada Familia church. The interior is one large construction zone, and adds nothing to the appreciation of the church's exterior.
In Madrid, we too found the old Royal Palace disappointing compared with Versailles. We toured with Stephen Drake-Jones, went to the bullfights (wothwhile once), and enjoyed the side trip to El Escorial very much.
Toledo- wouldn't waste the money on the Sta. Maria Blanca church/synagogue. The Transit synagogue was much better. We thought that the Victorio Macho site was very nice as Rick advised.
In Granada, we were fortunate to stay in the Parador inside the Alhambra. This is a very worthwhile splurge. We had the 8:30 time for our Palace visit and found this ideal in that it was uncrowded and we were able to take some excellent photos.
We enjoyed Gibraltar, taking a tour since the cable car was closed due to wind. We did the one day tour of Tangier, buying tickets from the ferry operator in Tarifa. It was interesting, altho somewhat commercial.
We stayed in Ronda in the hill country and loved it. We were based at the El Juncal hotel, extremely modern decor which was nice for a change of pace. The price fixed dinner there was one of the best we have ever eaten, in a great setting.
We then visited the Sandeman sherry factory in Jerez. The tasting is very nice. We ended our stay in Sevilla, enjoying the city . We liked the tour of the bullring and museum there. We used a Hertz rental car for part of the trip. It seemed to be cheaper to rent and we had no problems.
stephen munz
anaheim, ca USA Wed 05/12/2004
Spain & Portugal Rail Time Table
In 2003, we visited Italy and followed Rick's tip to purchase the all Italy rail time table (orario ferroviaro). Is there an all Spain and/or Portugal rail (or even bus) time table?
Tim <email>
Baton Rouge, LA USA Tue 05/11/2004
Iberia Airlines/ Air France
Heads up: Unless you travel business class on Iberia, you will pay for everything you eat or drink on virtually all their flights. We recently traveled from our home in Spain to London and Paris. We used Iberia and Air France. On Iberia 2.5 hour flight from Seville to London, we paid nine Euros for a sandwich with one slice of bad ham. On 40 minute puddle jumper from London to Paris, Air France provided better sandwich and drinks, for free.
Jean-Marie Simon <email>
Seville, SP Sun 05/09/2004
Rick gets you around Europe!
I just got back less than a week ago from studying over in Madrid, Spain. I took Rick Steve's book "Spain and Portugal" with me and it helped a lot...I used it all throughout El Escorial, Segovia, Granada, Seville, San Sebastian, Barcelona and of course Madrid.
While traveling through Spain, my friends and I did find a cute little beach town called Calpe that I thought was awesome! It was close to Alicante (45 minutes away) that I think people should visit. We did a major hike (roughly 900 or so feet) up to the top of the penon, which is a huge rock that over looks the meditaranean ocean, gorgeous!! Renting a car and driving from Calpe down the east coast towards the South through Benidorm, Alicante, etc. is a good option. I absolutely fell in love with Spain's language and culture. I have found Rick Steve's books to be extremely helpful...even with my past travels throughout Europe!
Jess
USA Thu 05/06/2004
Spain and Portugal
My girlfriend and I just got back from a 2-week trip to Spain and Portugal and we had a great time. In Madrid we stayed at the Hostal Acapulco, which was in a great location for a great price, not to mention a friendly staff and clean rooms.
From Madrid we took the train to Granada and stayed at Hotel Triunfo. This was the only place we stayed not listed in Rick's book, but it was a wonderful place. We got excellent service at the front counter and would definitely stay there again if we make it back to Granada. It is right near the busline to get to the Alhambra and also right on the edge of the Albayzin.
After Granada we took a bus to Nerja which was one of our favorite stops on the trip. It is a nice small town, which was so relaxing. In Nerja we staid at the Hostal Marrisal which was in the best location I think. It was right on the Balcony of Europe and the rooms were only about $40 euros/night. They even have a great restaurant that we ejoyed as well. In Nerja the caves were amazing, and the beaches were quite nice as well. It is a great place to stop and take a breath before you continue on a whirlwind tour of the sights in the bigger cities in Spain, we were very glad we got to spent some time here.
We then spent a day in Seville and took the midnight bus out of Seville to Lisbon and got there about 4am. In Lisbon we stayed at the Hotel Lisboa Tejo, and they staff there was extremely nice, they even let us check in early at around 5am without having to pay extra. This was yet another hotel in a wonderful spot in the city. It was a relatively easy walk from the hotel to the Sao Jorge Castle, and to the other main Praca's around Lisbon. The only thing about Lisbon for us was the continuous drug pushing. It felt like every block there would be some guy coming up to me trying to sell me hashish and they would follow you a while no matter what you told them or if you just ignored them they'd even whistle to try and get your attention. We also avoided some pickpockets on the tram to Belem thanks to some people on the tram who pointed them out to us as soon as we got on. Sure enough the people that were pointed out to us came over and pretended to bump into us and drop a coin at our feet, which my girlfriend just kicked away. After that they got off on the next stop. However, all that aside Lisbon was a incredibly fun and exciting city to visit and was a great way to end our trip. I can't wait to go back.
Phil
Portland, ME USA 04/21/04
Paris, Lisbon and Seville
Fatima at the front desk at the Hotel Lisboa Tejo was incredibly helpful and speaks perfect English. The hotel is clean, hip and well located. Also, the only place we stayed that included breakfast. Well worth 110 Euros for a double. In Paris I highly recommend the Hotel Castex in the Marais. Their remodel is complete and it is beautiful and pas tres cher. In Seville, all of the Rick hotels were full, so we stayed at the Hotel Reyes Catolicas (not in the book) which is very convenient, nice and a good value at 80 Euros for an air-conditioned double. We actually found the people in Paris to be freindlier than in Spain or Portugal, especially in the shops. In Spain and Portugal, the sales pople can hardly be othered to get your size of shoes or let you try on clothes. (and we were speaking their language, not english) They need sales training badly. Not so in Paris. The sales people in the shops are very anxious to help and look for sixes and color matches, etc., and many wanted to know details about where we live, our trip and our experieinces. We always started speaking French and those who know English were anxious to speak English to us. The important thing in Paris is not to be loud or demanding in public settings. Also, you need to accept that the French all smoke because they are not going to change their habits for the benefit of health-conscious Americans. We encountered a very ugly American in a jazz club. The patrons were too polite to correct him when he whistled rather than applauded (not done there) and shouted comments at the band, but we were embarrassed.
T Davis
Denver, CO USA 04/20/04
Barcelona
We visited Barcelona in early March and absolutely loved our two days there. We stayed at Catalonia Albinoni and found it to be very centrally located, the rooms clean and the staff professional. A few tips:
1. Do not miss the Palau Guell, one of Gaudi's first buildings, just of Las Ramblas, BUT stop by early in the day, esp. on a weekend, and get a ticket for a later tour. They only let 20 people in at a time and often all the tours are full by 2pm. With a ticket, you just show up ten minutes before and pay then.
2. If you want to eat at QuatroGats then it pays to make a reservation. We didn't (on a Saturday night) and waited an hour before they could seat us, plus they were so busy we couldn't get a drink for 40 minutes. Having said that, the food and ambiance of the restaurant were great, and once we got a table, the service was excellent. Just make that reservation!
3. The aerobus in from the airport makes change and is a fast and inexpensive way to get into town. Our hotel was five minutes away from the Placa Cantalunya and even our early flight was no problem, the buses start running about 5:30 am.
4 Finally, try to memorize a few phrases in Catalan as well as Spanish. The locals really appreciate it when you show them that you know the difference because they are very proud of being CATALAN, not Spanish. Of course, Spanish is used as well. Rick's Spain and Portugal guidebook has some popular phrases in Catalan, but I couldn't find any in his phrase book.
Buen viaje!
Lori Heathorn <email>
Palo Alto, Ca USA 04/19/04
Madrid and surrounding area.
Just returned from a 13-day visit to Madrid, Segovia, Avila, Salamanca, Caceres and Toledo. Stayed at the Hotel Europa in Madrid. Very convenient location and nice rooms but can noisy at night if you have a room facing Puerto del Sol. The AeroCity shuttle bus worked very well. Reserved times to and from airport on line. Only 17 Euros for two each way.
I think tapas are hard to do without some rudimentary Spanish. Tapas bars are usually crowded so it is not easy to belly up to the bar and simply point. Sitting a table requires you know what you want since there isn't usually a menu to point to. Works better if you are near a chalkboard on which are written the tapas and racions that are available.
Took a day trip to El Escorial. Easy to do my taking Metro to Moncloa and a bus to San Lorenzo. Well worth while. Segovia was wonderful. Highly recommende the Hotel Infanta Isabel. Pay extra for a room facing the Plaza Mayor. Not noisy at night and great view. The roast suckling pig at the Meson de Candido was good by we thought the food at Jose Maria was better. Definitely walk or drive down below the Alcazar for some pictures with the setting sun.
We took a day trip from Segovia to see some of the castles of Castille - Coca, Cuellar, Penafiel, Pedraza and Turegano. Saw Avila on the way to Salamanca. Worth a couple of hours enroute althought the cathedral is closed until May. Stayed at the Hotel Salamanca Plaza Mercado in Salamanca - just around the corner from the Plaza Mayor. Recommend eating at Restaurant Isidro - friendly staff and good food. Saw several Easter parades which were great. Drove down to Caceres and stayed at the Parador. Parador very nice but Caceres may be a little overrated. In retrospect, I would have saved myself a day by skipping Caceres and going straight to Toledo (or spend extra day or two further north in Burgos). The town of Trujillo was a nice stop in between Caceres and Toledo. Stayed at the Hostel del Cardenal in Toledo. Very nice hotel with a pay parking area just next door. Very nice patio areas and a good restaurant. The weather was still too cool to be served sangria in these patios - would be nicer a little later in the year. Although the restaurant at the hotel was good (and stuffy like Rick describes) be sure to eat at Restaurante-Meson Palacios. Probably the best meal we had on the trip. Were waited on by Jesus who was very friendly. Our only regret of the trip was that the restaurant was closed when we went back to eat the night before we left Spain. Rick kind of poo hoos driving south to the town of Consuegra to see the windmills and castle. I disagree unless the weather is infernally hot. It was very pleastant to walk in the castle and take pictures. We went to Arenjuez on the way back - not worth the time in my opion.
Peter
Salem, OR USA 04/18/04
Rick's guide thru Spain and Portugal
Great time driving thru Andalusia and Southern Portugal. Spain is just a beautiful country, with loads of bright sunshine.
PLACES TO STAY: Staying at Paradors is a real treat; do it sometime within your trip if you can; it makes a nice, comfortable respite. Other hotels we loved: El Convento, Arcos (what views - even without a balcony!!), Alavera de los Banos, Ronda (great place, staff, and meals!), Pension A Mare in Salema, Portugal...there aren't enough great words to describe the wonderful location and proprietors here. LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT! Hostal Acapulco in Madrid was surprisingly nice, convenient, and quiet w/ friendly staff.
ALHAMBRA was interesting, tho got crowded, esp in parts of Generalife. Definitely get tickets ahead online.
TOLEDO is a neat town, and the Parador is great, even if just for a cup of cafe con leche on the patio. Gotta see the cathedral; what a site!
EVORA not nearly as intesting as we thot it'd be. Not sure the drive out to the megaliths is worth it.
EASTER WEEK was intersting time to be there, with fascinating parades and music. Crowds in small towns were manageable on the busiest days (tho be warned of driving issues in these towns on holidays - like Arcos, where the streets are closed off).
Thanks for the help again, Rick. Third trip by one of Rick's books and still having a great time.
Ann & Mark
NC USA 04/17/04
Tarifa and driving into La Linnea
Hotel La Mirada in Tarifa was definitely NOT what we'd call "modern," as the book suggests. It's tired and worn, with a scary breakfast (pieces of charred something in expensive scrambled eggs). Kind of sits in a slum, too. But staff was nice.
Visit ViaMichelin.com or some other mapping website if you plan to drive into La Linnea to visit Gibraltar. Rick's directions were quite confusing; took us over an hour to finally find the parking lot before walking across the border.
USA 04/17/04
the Hotel Plaza Mayor in Madrid
The Hotel Plaza Mayor was a nice hotel, with tiny rooms, friendly staff, inexpensive rates, and amazing location. I was stay there again but stay in a double instead of a single.
Ken Holsclaw
san francisco, ca USA 04/11/04
Right now I am lost without it...
Help! I lost my ETBD Spain & Portugal Guidebook at the very beginning of my 5 week trip...
Does anyone know a place in Spain where I can pick up another copy?? So far I have tried 2 El Corte Ingles stores in Madrid and a smaller store in Sevilla with no luck...I can´t imagine finishing the trip without all that incredible information.... Near Madrid would be great, but anywhere in Spain is OK, as I was expecting to cover most areas on this trip.
Holly Neilson
Sacramento, CA USA 04/09/04
Fathers Day in Spain "La Puente de San Jose"
Just a note to alert other travelers of an additional holiday weekend in Spain that was not mentioned in the 2004 Spain and Portugal book.
We were in Spain from March 17-24, 2004 and were unaware that the dates of March 19-21, 2004 are a major travel holiday in that part of Spain called "La Puente de San José", which apparently is the equivalent of Father's Day.
We went to the Atocha train station in Madrid on Wednesday, March 17 only to find that all the trains and buses to Sevilla and Barcelona were sold out for the entire weekend. We managed to find a rental car from Madrid to Sevilla on Friday, March 19 with the condition that the car be returned in Sevilla before 5pm that same day as there were no cars available for Saturday. We ended up paying double what 2 second class AVE tickets would have cost us.
All of the hotels in the Spain/Portugal book were also booked. However, we went to the TI at the Santa Lucia train station in Sevilla and were able to find a nice hotel in the tourist district for a reasonable price.
So in all everything worked out. We just thought it would be good to mention this to other travelers who may be traveling to this area next March.
Jerry Ross
San Diego, CA USA 04/08/04
Trains in Spain
Both the map and text in the guide book suggest there is no train service along the north coast of Spain. While it's true that RENFE doesn't cover that route, and the bus may be faster, you can travel from San Sebastian to Bilbao with Eusko (www.euskotren.es) and from Bilbao to Oviedo via Santander with FEVE (www.feve.es -- neat maps). In Oviedo you can continue with FEVE or switch to RENFE for what looks like a seriously scenic ride up to Leon and on to Santiago de Compostela. I'll be doing this route next month, with plenty of time in Leon to admire the 1200 square meters of stained glass in the gothic cathedral. (I'll report on my website, www.wilhelmswords.com)
Kathy <email>
Cary, NC USA 04/06/04
Spain
A group of seven of us just spent two weeks in Spain visiting Madrid, Sevilla, the Costa Del Dol and Barcelona. Rick's guide book was of course our first reference for lodgings and sightseeing. In Madrid we stayed at the Hotel Plaza Mayor which is reasonable, clean and in a perfect location near a Metro stop and within walking distance of several important sights. In Seville we stayed at the Hostal Sierpes and while this place exudes with local charm and is presided over by three generations of family it could use a little investment particularly in the bed department. The location is perfect even though it is difficult to find. The best deal during our entire trip was the Hostal Marissal in Nerja! $40.00 per night for a double room in what is the best located hotel in the entire city is a bargain to end all. The rooms are immaculate and the bathrooms unusually large for european standards. The staff is knowledgeable and very accomodating.
In Barcelona we stayed at the Hotel Toledano only because we could not get bookings in other recommended hotels. The location is unbeatable but the rooms leave a lot to be desired. Due to our inability to get train reservations from Sevilla to Barcelona when we wanted we had to arrive in Barcelona a day earlier than planned so we had to stay at the Hotel Nouvel (around the corner from the Hotel Toledano). This is a superior three star hotel particularly for weekend stays as they reduce the rates drastically. The rack rates are steep for budget minded travelers. As mentioned we took the night train from Sevilla to Barcelona and would recommend this mode of travel for anyone who has not had the expereince although make the reservations stateside as the weekend sleepers fill up early. Thanks again Rick for a great vacation.
Tony Ambrose
USA 04/04/04
Madrid & Sevilla, Feb 2004
Rick's book, was as always, the best planning guide. We stayed in Hostal Acapulco in Madrid and it was great. The location was wonderful, the staff were very nice, and it was quiet. In Sevilla we stayed at the Pension Alcazar and wow! My mom, sister, and I were on the 3rd floor with a little terrace where we could see the cathedral - again great location, but hard to find. The taxi driver couldn't find it. The flamenco show at the Center for Moorish Arts was wonderful.
Thanks Rick!
Kristi Herbst <email>
Houston, TX USA 03/01/04
Portugal, prices, and Eurocup 2004
When I found out that a horde of soccer fans would invade Portugal for the Eurocup right when I had planned to be there, I figured all
I needed to do was book well ahead and leave a few days before the tournament.
Not so simple. Last week I sent a room inquiry to a Lisbon pension
(from Eurocheapo, not Rick's book) for early June and discovered that the asking price for a 38 euro single was now 108 euros! Then a Lisbon residencial from Rick's book asked 50 E for a room he listed as 40 E.
Deciding to skip Lisbon this trip aside from a stroll and a meal between trains, and to spend more time in the north, I sent an inquiry through http://www.specialplacestostay.co.uk/
to a great-looking place in Porto for late May. They replied that while they would honor the web site
price -- 43 E -- their current (Eurocup) price was 75 E. On the other hand, the small, mostly NSE place half way up the Douro valley
I reserved by phone just quoted the price I was expecting.
While I suppose it's possible that if enough people refuse to pay these prices they will soften nearer the dates, I wouldn't count on it. It's a pity that the Eurocup is going to affect eight good locations.
Kathy <email>
Cary, NC USA 02/29/04
Cordoba
In Cordoba only see the Mezquita then get back to the train. The Mezquita is definiteley worth seeing. You can skip the Calle Panuelo if your visiting Seville. Seville'streets are just as narow or even more so. This is my view as an eleven year old.
Renee Anderson <email>
Washington D.C., USA 02/26/04
Spain
We just arrived back from a one week trip to Spain. The weather was cooperative for February and we only had one half day of rain in Granada.
Madrid - We stayed at the Hostal Acapulco. It was great for the price and Fransisco was very helpful. Rick is right, all the big hotel amenities. Just ask fr a rom in the back. Spaniards stay up late.
MADRID was a bit gritty for us and the people were not overly friendly, in fact I tried to get a few to smile back at me and it wasn't going to happen. We enjoyed thr Royal Palace, but if you've been to Versailles, this doesn't measure up.The Prado was neat, make sure you have current Mona Winks info, we took our 2000 book and were disoriented for the firat half an hour as they moved all the modern art to another building.We were able to locate several paintings though and enjoyed ,as we always do Ricks descriptions. Toledo - We took the bus to Toledo. This was very easy. We enjoy this too, but have enjoyed Italy's hill towns more.
SEVILLA - We took the high speed train. It was great. We arrived at 9:30 am and had the entire day. We took a tour with Conception. She was wonderful. I wish I had known she does combination tuors of the Cathedral and or the Palace for a bit more. We would have definitely partaken. She has a brochure in the TI officenear the enntrance to the Palace. By the way theTI office has free internet access complete with video taken of the senders and pictures of Sevilla. We sent one each day we were there. We found Sevilla to be very friendly and beautiful. We ate at the school of cooking suggested in Rick's book and by Conception, wonderful wonderful wonderful. Get there at 1:00 and you wil be seated right away. It's just before the locals eat luuch. There was a line half an hour after we sat down. There was enough to do there for several days and I wished we had spent more time there and less in Madrid and Toledo. Maybe we will fly right there next time. Our Hostal (San Benito) was nice enough. Owners were very friendly and the daughters spoke a little english. Our room at night however was scarey. There was a hole (some kind of venting) in the ceiling and we could actually hear everything our neighbor, who came home at about 1 am was doing. And I mean everything. Either bring earplugs or make sure there is no "hole" in your room.There was no heat but we stayed perfectly warm. The bath in the courtyard was a bit more private than the one in our room.
GRANADA - We took the train to Granada. Not as scenic as I thought it might be. Go ahead and take a nap. Went to the Alhambra. I had made reservations from home and paid ahead. It was very easy to get from town to the entrance. There are little buses that run every 15 minutes and take you right there. I was a little worried aobut making the half hour window. but It worked out fine. We got a 2:30 time and had plenty of time to make our way toward the palace and see Charles V before hand. And see the rest after. Wandering in the evening did not feel as safe as it did in Sevilla. Although there were other families out too.Again it felt a bit grittier than Sevilla, more like Madrid. Not as relaxing. We tok the train back to Madrid. This was very relaxing and BEAUTIFUL. We looked out the windows for 2 hours as the train weaved through hills at ~30mph. Then slept and watched a movie for the rest of the ride. Driving would have been another option. But with our shrot time, letting someone else do the driving and parking was great. Eating. WE never had a problem with finding a place to eat. We just went to small grocery stores for breakfast food the night before. Ate a bit before touring, found a reastuarant at 1 or 1:30 just before the rush. Had lunch toured again and had supper at about 7:00 just before the rush again and we were satisfied. We never got into Tapas. We tried them, but it food was so expensive than we prefered to pay one price for one meal. There was too much of an emphasis on fried food as well with Tapas. We really enjoyed the olives and olive il with bread. It's so much better than we can get here.
Wishes - I wish Rick had lists in each of his book for people who enjoy different types of experiences. For example. Best family routes, best for those who enjoy the outdoors and active travel, Rick is a bit heavy on the historic sites and cathedrals and palaces, which are enjoyable, but we enjoy a mix and it would have been nice to have a better feel for what we were getting into and had more choices according to our interests, even brief suggestions would have helped. We trust him so completely that we are a bit afraid to venture off his suggested intineraries for fear of making a 'mistake'. We travel for a month through europe 3 years ago and did not have one bad day, thanks to Rick's books
Marie Frank <email>
Esko, MN USA 02/24/04
Off-Season Barcelona
We've just returned from a delightful visit to Barcelona, enjoyed off-season airfare and hotel rates. Barcelona did have plenty of tourists even though it was winter. I can imagine how crowded the city and tourist sites must be in the warmer months.
We did use the hop-on hop-off Bus Turistic but found that at least on Tuesday and Wednesday the bus was extremely crowded,with the bus only coming every 20 - 30 minutes and sometimes we had to wait for two buses as we couldn't get on due to the crowding. Later in the week we noted much emptier buses going around the city so perhaps we just picked the wrong two days to use the bus. My advice to Barcelona visitors is that if you see long lines at the pick-up spot at Placa Catalunya (in front of El Corte Ingles), either come back another day for the Bus Turistic or go to the Tourist Information booth across the street and get a city bus guide (Planol Bus), go into the metro station nearby and buy a T-10 ten ride bus/metro pass or an unlimited daily pass and take public transportation to the sites you want to see. The city bus/metro system is clean, quick, frequent and efficient just like anywhere else in Europe.
Please also note if you want to visit the Dali Museum in Figueres, it is closed on Mondays Jan-March. We went to an excellent, free, Dali exhibit in Barcelona at the Caixa Forum near Placa Espanya which runs from Feb 6 - May 23 2004 in honor of Dali's 100th birthday. The Caixa Forum exhibit actually was more comprehensive and put his work in better perspective than the Figueres museum.
Linda M
Oswego, NY USA 02/22/04
Sardana in Barcelona
Highly recommend going to the cathedral on a Sunday morning to watch the locals dance the Sardana dance, a group dance with coorinated steps, in some ways like a square dance, though uniquely Catalan. Saw on a travel show and thought it looked great.
In real life it was so much fun to watch. The dancers are in a circle in groups of up to 20 or so.They place their coats and so on in a big pile in the middle. An orchestra plays the music in front of the cathedral.
This made me feel like I was a local, soaking up some very special culture and really appreciating it. On top of that it's free and outdoors. Don't miss the Sardana if you are there on a Sunday. Short walk from Ramblas. Barcelona is also a fantastic city with very friendly locals. Have fun.
Bill
Canada 02/13/04
Villa Dame de Salema, Portugal
In a lifetime of traveling, I've never stayed with nicer people than Frido, Xenia and Peter at the Villa Dame de Salema.
Salema is the authentically beautiful village-by-the-sea experience that's harder and harder to find now in Mediterranean Iberia and you should see it while you can.
It's been six months since my wife and I were there (thanks for the tip, Rick) and we're still talking about it -- and yes, talking about going back, too.
Bill Altice <email>
Richmond, VA USA 02/10/04
Madrid great hostal
For the 5th time, I stayed at the TIJCAL Hostal, near Plaza Mayor. They have safes in every room. They were recommended in Rick´s older Spain & Portugal Guidebook. They now have room service. Very nice rooms and personnel. 37 per night single with no bath.
I´ll stay there every time!
www.tijcalhostal.com
Sut
USA 01/29/04
Tangier Customs
Day in Tangier;
Assiz the guide was excellant, well worth the 18 Euro per person fee.
Please be informed that the Tarifa, Spain to Tangier hydrofoil ferry is great (35 minutes), but the entry was problematic if not for Assiz. The Tangier Customs Agent (police) was aboard the ferry as an a "receptionist" to do his stamping duty of our passports and ferry tickets.
We were not aware to this procedure aboard the ferry because our Spain/Portugal Book is of 2003 vintage. Hopefully you have updated your 2004 book to give the details of the Tarifa to Tangier Ferry Visitation.
Cliff & Karen <email>
Trimont, Mn USA 01/23/04
salamanca and barcelona hotels
The Don Juan hotel in Salamanca, where we stayed thanks to Rick's book, was a big disappointment. The carpet was grungy, the beds saggy, the staff not friendly. The parking arrangements involved a man getting in our car and guiding us to his lot, which was quite a bit farther than the block or two the hotel had indicated.
In Barcelona we stayed at a non-Rick hotel called the Lleo, a block or two from the Ramblas. It is a modern hotel, very spacious rooms, and large breakfast buffet. We would stay there again.
Dale and Sue
Seattle, WA USA 01/13/04
Hostal Vienna, Granada
We stayed at Hostal Vienna in Granada, recommended by Rick Steves. The young guys at the front desk were incredibly sweet and helpful, and the hostal itself was fine - just as expected, until Saturday night. A club is located right next door, called "El Taller," I think, and unfortunately our room shared the same wall. I was so tired I fell right asleep, but my sister was up all night, kept awake by J.Lo and Justin Timberlake wailing, and in the morning our room smelled heavily of cigarette smoke. (We stayed in room 210.) We had stayed in the room right next door (room 211) the night before and had no problems, so I'm guessing the club is open only on Saturdays?
In any case, keep this in mind. I hate to say anything bad about such a friendly place, but I wanted to add a warning. The club might not even be open every weekend, or maybe "El Taller" is not quite a club but something else of that nature? The location of the hostal is perfect - right on the plaza, so if you'll be there during the week, definitely consider them. As for Saturday night, ask about El Taller, and possibly book a room on the other side of the hostal, or go to Hostal Austria, owned by the same people, just as nice, and a ten second walk away.
Kristina <email>
San Francisco Area, CA USA 01/12/04
Spain & Portugal
Our family of five just got back from an eleven day trip of seven cities
starting in Madrid and ending in Lisboa. Plus a day trip to Tangiers.
We used your book and the trip turned out great. However, the best lodging
and restaurant, were places that we found on our own, which is part of
the fun of traveling. We stayed in the "lower priced" accomodations recommended
in your book and averaged about $100 euros per night. Some of the rooms
were nicer than others, but they were all centrally located and we were
pleased with the choices. Usually, we had to get two rooms.
The place that was not in your book was the Cinco in Sintra. It was by far the best place we stayed in on the trip. It is a bed & breakfast run by a very friendly British couple. They make you feel right at home. For $90 euro, we got a full kitchen, including a clothes washing machine, a bedroom and a living room complete with entertainment and games.
Another place I want to share
is the Jaipur Indian restaurant in Lisboa. It is located on Rua da Gloria.
Just go one block up on the street with the Funicular Elevator da Gloria
and take a right. We get a little tired of eating the same food every
day, even at home and wanted to try something different. This turned out
to be our best meal.
Calvin <email>
Seattle, WA USA 01/07/04
Spain Trip
We just got back from Spain, Madrid, Toledo, Segovia, Granada and Sevilla, november is a great time to travel..no crowds, just efficent people taking care of our needs with out the stress of summer heat and crowds. Your book was excellent, followed many of your easy directions and suggestions. I suggest taking the Areo City Shuttle ($17.00 for two people), its worth the time and money...traffic is bad.
We stayed at the Hotel Europa in Madrid..located in the heart of the city and easy access to all the sights. The wonderful pasteries you suggested across the street from McD..is a must..the only problems is it did not open until 10:00am. The wonderful suckling pig in Segovia is everything you said, including the great Spanish wine. I ordered a 1/2 bottle and they came out with a full one...we drank the 1/2 and was just charged for 1/2..great idea...!! Our most intriguing place was in Granada...Abz neighborhood.
Our last suggestion is to take the taxi or bus
to the central plaza when arriving in Toledo...the walk up hill is a bit
tough plus it took us 35 minutes of valuable time...there was no signs
directing us to the cathedral. This was our third trip to Europe using
Rick's book..again very helpful. Looking forward to his Asian tour book
or maybe Costa Rica?
Jerald Lee <email>
Sacramento, CA USA 12/12/03
[Editor's note: Rick has no plans to write about anything other than Europe. For other parts of the world, we suggest the Lonely Planet series.]
Granada - Anacapri
The Anacapri was the worst hotel we had during the trip. It was a bit run
down and the staff not too helpful. It's not a terrible place, but there
surely must be better. The location was very good, however.
Ray <email>
Morgantown, WV USA 11/30/03
Madrid, Granada, Sevilla, Ronda, Toledo and Cordoba!
Thanks ETBD and ETBD readers for all your advice! We're just back from our
interesting Spain vacation encompassing Madrid, Granada, Sevilla, Ronda,
Toledo and Cordoba. We had a great time!
We recommend the Hotel Europa in Madrid. Our room was large, clean,and in an ideal neighborhood for walking and catching the metro. The staff was helpful and the adjoining restaurant was open most hours. The El Gaucho restaurant just around the corner serves a wonderful filet mignon!
The Prado museum just opened a Manet exhibit and was very busy--but it was well worth it! The Reina Sophia was not as busy and if you find yourself there after 2:00 on Saturday (if I remember right) admission is free.
While we were in Madrid we made side trips to El Escorial and to Toledo. Both were easy to get to by bus and were well worth the trip. The Palace was a nice change from all the Moorish influenced sights we visited. We aren't shoppers, generally, but did enjoy walking around Toledo and the cathedral there was very different. Don't forget to check out that ceiling! We loved all the sculptured figures seeming to hang down and the cardinal hats.
From Madrid we took the train to Granada. It's a long ride but gives you a good perspective on how vast the olive industry in Spain really is. Plus, it's fun to see the changes in the environment.
We stayed at the Hotel Anacapri, close to the Alhambra, Albayzin and the cathedral. It's a great city both day and night and unbelievably clean for a city that size. The staff at our hotel was as helpful as they were able to be and the room was spacious. However, this is not the place to stay if you like a quiet room. The hotel itself is not carpeted and every door even when closed quietly sounds like it's being slammed. The streets in the neighborhood are narrow with alot of tapas bars and a lot of street noise.
Although we had advance tickets to the Alhambra, I don't think we would have had to. There really weren't many people there the morning we went. It's easy to see how it would be different in the summer, though! It's such an impressive place and we feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to see it. A little research before you go is not a bad idea. We spent about five hours there; work was being done in the Generalife or I'm sure we would have been there longer. I think Rick mentions that the best way to see the Albayzin is to get lost in it. We couldn't agree more. What a wonderful place with very kind people!
Our day trip from Granada was to Ronda where we visited the bullring and the bridge. We took a walk around the old town, had a quick lunch and headed back to Granada. It was a nice, relaxing day.
From Granada, we took the train to Sevilla where we stayed at the Hotel Amadeus. What an absolutely beautiful place to stay. However, if you want to take a nap after a day of sightseeing and before you go out to dinner at 9:00 p.m., forget it. This hotel is for classical music lovers and that is who should stay there. Recorded music is played in the lobby from morning until night unless there is a concert in the lobby (twice in our five day visit) or unless someone is playing one of the pianos. The problem is that this is an old house from the 1700's and the lobby appears to be the former courtyard. All the rooms with their antique doors surround the courtyard. It's not really as sound proof as advertised. But, the location is good, and the staff is pleasant. I like beautiful music, just not when I want to sleep!
The Santa Cruz neighborhood is also a fun place to get lost in with it's very close buildings. The cathedral is impressive and the tower seems even taller when you're trudging to the top. There are little coves along the way with information and antiquities which helps quite a bit! The view is great and we recommend it.
If you visit Sevilla, you must see a show at Los Gallos. What a great experience. The Alcazar was interesting but less so because of our trip to the Alhambra, we think. Still, it's not that large and we thought it was worth the time.
We have a digital camera and were able to download our memory cards at the El Corte Ingles department store. The electronics department of this huge store is actually across the street from the main store. Each CD cost us less than five Euros and took less than two hours to process. It was our big savvy purchase on this trip!
We also bought two bottles of inexpensive wine there. The store wanted 107 Euros--that's right, 107--to ship it home for us. So, if you want to buy something there to ship home, take it to the post office yourself. You can buy a box there. Someone from our hotel told us the post office would only accept packages in the morning but we could find no evidence of that while we were there.
Our day trip from Sevilla was to Cordoba. The Mezquita is awesome! If you have a chance, make sure you go there. If you go by the AVE train, it's a really quick trip and you'll have plenty of time for a nice little walk and lunch.
It seems all of Spain is under construction or renovation. Rick mentions in his book that language is an issue and he's right. Even armed with a Spanish dictionary and phrase book, it's frustrating...we've been to a number of countries now, and this was a hard trip for us.
We also weren't prepared for the differences in dining. While we were aware that most people did not eat before 9:00 at night, we didn't realize that many times, eating before that time would not be an option because restaurants were simply not open. While we expected to find a lot of seafood on the menu, we were surprised at the amount of ham and pork. In a country known for it's bullfighting, it's not as easy to find a steak dinner as you would expect! The olives and the pastries were wonderful.
Thanks again everyone, for your wonderful advice while we planned and
experienced this memorable trip!
Dawn
St Paul, MN USA 11/29/03
Alhambra entry times
We booked ahead for the Alhambra per Rick's advice. Our entry time was 0930.
We tried to pick up the tickets the night before around 1730, but were refused.
Also, our end time was 1400 hours and that meant that we had to leave the
grounds entirely except for the Generalife. So getting there early does
not mean you have all the time in the world. Get a morning time and focus
on the buildings you want to see so you can see it before you are forced
to leave.
Elise Fulsang <email>
Grants Pass, OR USA 11/29/03
Hotels in Barcelona
Hotel Jardi is booked, booked, booked. So recommendations from Rick are
a both a blessing and a curse. We splurged and stayed at the Hotel Catalonia
Albinoni. For the price the rooms were really quite basic, but clean. Take
your earplugs if you get a room on the street. Terrific location within
walking distance of darn near everything but Gaudi. Staff is young but very
friendly and helpful with good English. But overall too expensive for what
you get.
Elise Fulsang <email>
Grants Pass, OR USA 11/29/03
Seville; El Buzo restaurant
the El Buzo restaurant/Tapas bar 1001 Sevilla which is mainly fish and not
far from the Cathedral has a sharp practice recommending the 'speciality'
This is described as being for 2 and costs twice the price of other items.
What you don't realise that this is per person so you end up paying twice
what you expected. When challenged the waiter showed a menu with this noted.
I cannot say for sure this was a different edition of the menu but I have
travelled extensively and don''t usually get caught with such tricks. So
watch out. You'll also see restaurants of this name being quoted for scams
on other travel sites.
John Harris <email>
london, UK 11/09/03
Tangier Side Trip
1) Tangier: the description in the guide book is perfect (some may not want
to go) but unique and definitely worth the Tijuana-type experience.
2) U.S. citizens can go straight from Tarifa now, which is great. It save you an hour and a half, and the drive.
3) Definitely plan enough ahead of time to hire the recommended guide. The guides at the dock are assertive, and after one "has you", you will not be able to choose another.
4) You will have to show your passport to the ferry company. They will give you a boarding pass (that is stamped by them) to re-board after your day in Morocco. You also will show your passport to the Moroccan border patrol line as you leave the dock. After that, put it in your money belt and do not bring it out again, no matter what anyone says, especially the nice men with the official tourist badges! All you need to walk through the port and to re-board the ferry is the stamped boarding pass (ticket) the ferry company gave you.
5) If you want to shop, tell your guide that you will pay him more than the set tour price, to take you to the stores of your choice. Otherwise, he will only take you to the expensive stores, where he has a pre-arranged "cut" of the action.
6) We bought a rug for $40 that started out at $1,200 ... so barter ! We did not take advantage of their promise to send it. Just rolled it tightly, and carried it out.
7) We walked Rick's tour and loved it. Took lots of photos - especially of the people, as they were quite accommodating.
8) Back in Tarifa there is a wonderful Moroccan restaurant that has two sites: one within walking distance of the main square, and one out by the beach; both are named "Souk". Ask at your hotel for directions.
9) For the one day of speaking Arabic, try writing a few touristy phrases
on your hand. My pronunciation evoked more conversation, all in English
- but quite rewarding to break the ice.
Martha Hughes <email>
Soquel, CA USA 11/05/03
Coimbra music festival
We were in Coimbra from Oct 25-27. On Sunday the 26th, we were staying at
the Astoria, downtown, riverside, a wonderful hotel. The desk person did
mention music, but I did not inquire further. It turns out the University
has a music festival site across the river,and the music begins at 11 PM
and goes until 6 am the following morning! It is not rock, but it is definitely
amplified and kept us awake, periodically, throughout the night. This festival
runs the last week of October,and the first week in May, for about 5 days.
My recommedation would be to avoid booking downtown Coimbra hotel rooms
during this event as it apparently is a very established ancient, cultural
ritual.
tom gray <email>
issaquah, wa USA 11/05/03
Madrid & Andalusa
We just returned from two weeks in Madrid and Andalusa. The Alhambra near
Granada is absolutely awesome. Be sure to allow one whole, well rested day.
Remember, they didn't have power equipment. The rest of Granada deserves
about a half day.
Toledo is great from the Parador. If you can get in and can afford it, get a room with a view, open a bottle of wine, and relax. The old city is very touristy, with many shops selling the same junk. Monday is a no no for sure. Half of the attractions are closed, including the #1 restaurant.
Seville was the best city on the trip for us. Hotel Inglaterra is great. Reasonable rate, great location, wonderful and helpful staff. If you considering the Tabenera de al Albadera for dinner, save your money. They will put you in a separate room with every other "foreign" guest for that evening, with overrated and under valued food. Be sure to do as Rick suggests and just get lost in the old Santa Cruz section. It isn't that big. We had a wonderful lunch in a great little place down a four foot wide street.
The countryside, including La Mancha, was much more than I expected.
More hills and rolling areas, with olive trees as far as the eye can see
in some spots. Get off of the highways and venture into some of the smaller
towns and villages.
Tom Tapscott <email>
Durham, NC USA 11/03/03
Coimbra
Contrary to previous comments regarding Coimbra, my wife & I have an excellent
opinion of the city after our 2 days visit 2 years ago. It is an old city
for the most part but full of charm. We had an excellent meal & listened
to the best Fado in Portugal at a restaurant across from the cathedral in
the way up to the University.
Norberto Cardenas <email>
Miami, Fl USA 11/03/03
Tour guide Concepcion
Just heard from Concepcion Delgado Of Sevilla that she is getting married
and would like to pass the great news to everyone! With our best wishes
for a wonderful wedding and happiness forever!
lisa Hsu <email>
columbia, sc USA 11/01/03
Hostal Acapulco
Stayed for 3 nights at Hostal Acapulco in Madrid 2 weeks ago. Thanks Rick,
for the tip. Excellent place, courteous personnel, close to the major sights
in the city. A copy of Rick's book is in the lobby.
Norberto Cardenas <email>
Miami, Fl USA 10/29/03
Hotel Lisboa Tejo in Lisbon
My wife and I recently spent 3 nights at the Hotel Lisboa Tejo in Lisbon.
The hotel's location is superb and the accommodations very clean. I do suggest
you ask for a room that doesn't face an adjoining street. Two other tips:
insist taxi drivers turn on their meter and avoid the #28 tram where pickpockets
abound. A train trip to Sintra, the Coches Museo and the Tile Museo were
highlights to us.
Gene Mattocks <email>
Sacramento, CA USA 10/22/03
Villa Dame de Salema - Beautiful B&B in Sunny Salema!
My boyfriend and I traveled through Portugal this past August. Although
the entire trip was delightful, our stay in Salema (Algarve region) was
particularly enjoyable. We both highly recommend Villa Dame de Salema -
run by an Austrian couple, Frido & Xenia, and their son Peter. The B&B overlooks
the town and ocean and has a beautiful pool and full kitchen facilities.
The included breakfast was a welcome change from simple rolls! Contact info
- email: rop8304@mail.telepac.pt / phone: 351-283-695682. The family is
as hospitable as they come. Frido was not only a gracious host, but an awesome
tour guide! A wonderful place to stay during your time in sunny Salema.
Shelley Oswald <email>
New York, NY USA 10/20/03
Hostal Van Gogh, Seville
Just back from 3 weeks in Spain & Portugal, and Rick's guide was, as usual,
indispensable, with one BIG exception. In Seville, DO NOT STAY AT HOSTAL
VAN GOGH! Their price in the 2003 book is 53 Eur for a double with bath,
less 10% with the guide. By email they told us it was 65 less the 10% for
cash, and that a 7% tax was additional. That's 62.60 Eu per night. I said
OK, and got confirmation by email. We got there and were put in a tiny room
with 2 single beds with a tiny table between them. No closet or armoire,
half the light bulbs burned out, no hangers, no luggage rack, NOTHING else
but a small metal folding chair and a swarm of ants on the floor. The shower
needed repair and leaked badly.
And when it came time to pay, there was no discount. The charge was 65 Eu plus 7%, or 69.55 per night (11.3% more than expected) for the worst DUMP we stayed in on the whole trip. Since they wouldn't give the promised discount, I tried to pay with VISA. Surprise, the credit card scanner wasn't working that day. So I had to pay cash anyway.
I see that Rick warns in the guide to "confirm your bill" at the Hostal
Picasso, which runs the Hostal Van Gogh. Apparently the petty crooks who
run these places consider it good business to make money by screwing their
clients. So my advice is STAY AWAY FROM BOTH OF THEM. And Rick should
delete them from the next edition.
Bill Schwarz <email>
Louisville, CO USA 10/13/03
Spain/Morocco
Just got back from Spain and Morocco on 10/11 - it was wonderful!
Stayed at the Hotel Imperio in Toledo (very noisy club across the street - definitely an earplug night), 2 nights in Seville @ Hostal Good Sleep (very good location if you are into the nightlife) and 1 night in Tarifa @ Hostal Alborada.
The speed ferry from Tarifa to Tangier is now available to non-EU residents as of September, 2003 so that was a big time saver. We then spent 2 days in Fes (Fes Sheraton - a bit of a splurge in Moroccan terms, but it made us feel safer and allowed us to be out of the room after dark). Then we spent 2 days in Chefchouan (Hotel Rif) - the hotel owner is very helpful and spoke very good English. I would highly recommend an excursion to Chefchouan - it is a small town in the mountains with a small medina and good little hikes and not as intimidating as Fes.
We then headed to Granada for 2 days (via high-speed ferry from Ceuta), - (Note: I was expecting the churros in Spain to be like the Mexican ones - oops! - there's a reason why you're supposed to get the hot chocolate to dunk them in - no sugar on them).
Took the night-train to Barcelona (wished we had spent the extra money on a bed and had booked earlier - we ended up staying there a day longer than we wanted) and then spent 3 days in Barcelona (Hostal Benidorm) with a day-trip to Figueres. I wish we had extra time in Barcelona as I love all the interesting art and architecture, but that just means I'll have to go back!
Rick's book was invaluable - his book saved us on a number of occasions
(we used mass transit exclusively and his books are the only ones that
are even the least bit helpful on how to get to and from the stations)
but was also glad to have Lonely Planet book as a 2nd resource.
Cindy <email>
Seattle, WA USA 10/13/03
Just back from Spain
Just spent a relaxing 15 days in Spain, traveling by train. Here’s
the rundown on our trip—highlights and a few “downers.”
Spent 5 nights at the Hotel Infanta Isabel in Segovia—great hotel right on the main plaza; large room with dressing area, safe, AC, and double windows to keep out the noise! Ate roast suckling pig twice (at Meson Tipico “ La Oficina” on Conrista Lecea just off Plaza Mayor and Casa Chapete)—both to die for! The Plaza Bar, Cronista Lecea 11, also off Plaza Mayor, is a small neighborhood place with good tapas as is Café BBB on the plaza. Enjoyed the Alcazar. Walked to the Knights Templar Vera Cruz Church—very different from your usual church. The cathedral was having a huge religious exhibit which overpowered (and bored) me. But the Roman aqueduct knocked our socks off! The evening paseo is very entertaining and made us feel part of the community. Five days were really too long to stay in town (3 would have been plenty), so we made local bus trips to visit La Granja and Avila on the last 2 days—forget the yemas from the nuns in Avila; it is an acquired taste!
Took the AVE train from Madrid to Seville—very comfortable. Spent 4 nights at the Hotel Simon (3 nights in Seville would have sufficed). We enjoyed the hotel (it is like being in someone’s house) until we checked out. Rather than charge my VISA in Euros, they converted it at their rate and charged me in dollars. I lost about $20. I didn’t know then, but have since learned that I could have refused to sign the charge and demand that they charge me in Euros. Be aware of this scam whenever you charge (same thing happened in Paris at the Moulin Rouge)! Ask the desk if they charge you in Euros or dollars!
Enjoyed the Alcazar. Climbed the beautiful Giralda tower—it has a sloping floor rather than steps, but still up about 30 flights! Saw a good flamenco show at Los Gallos. If you go to a bullfight, do it in Seville—the pageantry and excitement is much better than in Madrid (although the bulls were more ferocious in Madrid), but be prepared for the torment of the condemned animals. The Horno de San Buenaventura is a good place to take a break and is convenient to the sights. The staff at El Buzo pushed us into ordering a more expensive dinner, claiming they didn’t have any of the appetizers we wanted.
For you horse lovers, go see the Real Escuela Andaluza del Arte Ecusestre in Jerez. The show is great. But the carriage museum is fantastic! There is a computer screen at each carriage that displays data in various languages and also shows the film of the carriage being pulled by horses with the different harnessing configurations possible. A real treat—none of the carriage museums I have visited either in Europe or the US is this high tech and well presented. They also let you walk through the stables and see the horses!
We then spent 2 nights at the Hotel America in Granada. It is great to stay within the walls of the Alhambra. The little red minibuses save your feet and lungs and give a wonderful thrill ride through the Albayzin! We thought we had had our dose of Moorish architecture in Morocco in ’98, but the Alhambra is not to be missed! It was also great to visit the tomb of Isabella, et al. (Interesting sidelight—Hurricane Isabel hit us on the East Coast while we followed the Queen’s footsteps.) Ate wonderful grilled fish at El Ladrillo II.
Ended up for 4 nights in Madrid at Hotel Plaza Mayor, beautifully situated
1 block off the plaza. Fedra was extremely friendly and helpful. Missed
the Royal Palace on our last day there because it was closed for an official
function, so we spent that Monday (a real dead day in Madrid) riding the
hop-on—hop-off bus. Ate wonderful filet mignon (must have been El
Toro!) twice at El Schotis. If you eat there, tell Pepe hello for us!
Brenda Kibler <email>
Monkton, MD USA 10/04/03
Coimbra
Visited Coimbra in Feb, 2003. After reading the raves in the guidebook,
I was disappointed. I don't have much good to say about it, except for the
octopus and rice I had at the college cafeteria. Coimbra had nothing going
on, and the hotels were dumps. You're on a dead end for train and bus service.
Coimbra should best be visited with a car, so you can leave. When I finally
escaped, I went to Salamanca. Now, that's a great place.
Greg <email>
Niantic, CT USA 09/28/03
Spain and Portugal
The guidebook was wonderful. We followed it almost completely, from the
hotels and restaurants to the walking tours and special places to visit.
The prices were great with one exception. The Alhambra book noted in your
travelguide was $15 everywhere, not $7. However, we were able to get in
after a 2 hour wait and see the Alhambra at our leisure. I recommed the
audio tour as opposed to an actual tour guide. Just as good and you can
to at your own pace. Lisbon was WONDERFUL....thanks for all of your tips.
One new hotel that should be added for Salema, is Romantik Villa. Up on
a hill, it is a bed and breakfast without the breakfast. It's only a 5 minute
walk down to town, and 15 minutes back up. Not for the elderly. Beautiful
grounds and home, with a wonderful pool. The owner is great.
Toni Visconti <email>
Estacada, OR USA 09/17/03
Wonderful!
The guidebook is wonderful! I arrived late to Granada and the TI´s were
all closed and was able to use the book as a guide throughout the city.
One correction: in Sevilla for flamenco, Los Gallos only gave a 2€
discount not 3€, but still very much worth it, all the performers
seemed to be having a great time.
Vida Ahyong <email>
Seattle, WA USA 09/14/03
Madrid: churros y chocolate
I just got back from a wonderful summer trip to Spain. My friend had a Rick
Steves book, and I only wish I had used one all summer! Just one correction
on Bar Majaderitos: the written out directions are correct, but according
to the map it is a different place. Follow the written directions and not
the spot on the map and you'll get some excellent churros con chocolate
and eat with the locals, not other tourists! Thanks for the help--I may
study in Iceland next semester and will use that guidebook and your tips
on solo travel.
Lori <email>
Newton, IA USA 09/10/03
We just got back from a week in Portugal--with a day and a half in
Seville. We loved the Romantikvilla in Salema (it has been recommended on
this page). 90 Euros for a beautiful quiet suite with a kitchen, a swimming
pool, a view of the ocean and the most beautiful grounds imaginable! Lisa
speaks English and is a delight. We loved Salema. We spent a night at the
Hostal Cordoba in Seville. Perfect location right in the Santa Cruz area,
run by very nice and helpful people. Seville is amazing! We were at a business
hotel in Lisbon, and while my husband was in meetings I had 2 1/2 days to
tour Lisbon. I took the on-and-off bus as a way to get to Belem and the
museums. The Lisbon pass was great--I got into 4 museums and the monastery
for 12 Euro. The cable cars and the elevator are fun to take. It's a beautiful
city! The Rick Steves books helped a lot.
julie
Provo, UT USA 09/08/03
Portugal
Thank you Rick for all your research. The hostals owners did tell me about
your visits to their accommodations to check on them when you are updating
your books. Read and research before and during your travel. I also did
not carry the whole book all the time. To lighten my load, I tore the pages
of the information I needed and arranged the pages back when I am done and
put a big rubber band to hold the pages together.
TRAVEL LIGHT: You will save lots of money using ONE rolling backpack or hand carry size rolling luggage plus a small daypack. Carry a lightweight bag or backpack and strap it luggage belts in your rolling cart. This will come in handy as your daytrip pack and you won't have you unload your traveling day backpack. Carry 2-4 combination locks to secure the many pockets of your luggage or backpack. I lock my things when I left my hotels. When traveling via subway from and to airports, the coach stations, and the train stations traveling light saves you many and energy. Remember to buy the carnet subway tickets (10 trips at a great discount). Remember not all subway access has escalators and most are stairs and hallways.
PHONE CARD: Buy it at Corte Ingles. This is a reputable store and guaranteed that you card will work. Use your phone cards between 8:00 PM and 8:00 AM. You will get lots and lots of time between these times to call within and outside of Spain and I use it for most of my calls to the USA. Was able to have lots of time chatting to family and friends.
TAXI SAVINGS: As Rick Steve says, if you access your taxi a block away from the RENFE stations, coach stations, Plaza Colon airport bus garage, etc, you will not have to pay the extra fee.
AVE AND TALGO TRAINS: Check out their website for low peak times and roundtrip discounts. It is quite a savings to travel at 1 PM from Madrid to Seville or to Malaga. Check out the RENFE reservation office at Calle Alcala, walking distance from Puerta del Sol, instead of the Atochia Station.
COACH AND BUSES IN SPAIN: It was very reasonable to ride the coaches and buses. It also gave me the opportunity to enjoy the ride through the countryside and villages and being with the locals. The ride was enjoyable with cushy seats, TV/VCR for long distance travels of English movies, and tape music most of the time of English music or local radio. There was also 10-20 minutes stops at stations or cafes every two hours. Awesome sights along the Andalucian country sides with miles and miles of sunflowers in bloom, gorgeous rolling hills, and scenic medieval villages on hill tops!
MADRID: Hostal Acapulco (Hostal_Acapulco@yahoo.es ) is a wonderful hotel at the heart and safe place at Plaza Carmen, fourth floor with elevator, air conditioning, small refrigerator, and 3 minutes walk from the main tourist sites of Puerta del Sol and Sol subway. English spoken and Javier is wonderful person and very efficient in sending email inquiries and information. The Barajas airport, the coach stations, and the train stations are easy access via the subway and make sure you buy the carnet subway tickets (10 trips at a great discount). Travel light and you will save lots of money riding the subway to get to your destinations. Remember not all subway access have escalators and most are stairs and hallways. A great homebase in Madrid to adventure to other medieval villages: Subway Gran Via is just around the corner, main shopping is 2 minutes walk, Corte Ingles department store (basement for picnic items)
DAYTRIPS FROM MADRID: Making daytrips from Madrid to go to Segovia, Avila, Toledo (alternate Hotel Imperio www.terra.es/himperio, email: himperio@teleline.es ) with elevator and air conditioning, and El Escorial by coach is a savings if you do not stay overnight , ONE EURO more to go back to Madrid. If you start at 7-8AM you will get there before the attractions opens and then check for early evening departures. Saves you from lagging you luggage and then when you arrive in Madrid you will be ready for the nightlife of your choice.
SEVILLE: Found Hotel Plaza Seville, (future beside in being planned) 954 217 149 or 954 221 004 on the Seville homepage. It is just across the expensive Hotel Colon. It is a wonderful hotel, found it very accessible to tourist sites, and the price was better than some listed in Rick Steve's book. This hotel is often use by US group tours. English is spoken, (Pepe is very nice and helpful) elevator and air-conditioning, continental breakfast is included, 10 minutes walk to coach station to Algarve and Lisbon, 10 minutes walk to cathedral, and 3 minutes walk to main shopping areas and quiet place.
COSTA DEL SOL, NERJA: Very tropical scenery! Hostal Marissal (marissal@terra.es) was quite a find! It was very clean, with elevator and air conditioning, has marble floors and with full marble bathrooms. It is at the heart of Balcon de Europa pormenade, beside the expensive hotel Balcon the Europa for a very inexpensive price! Outside your doorstep is the promenade, the church, street entertainments, and to sit and relax. There are many beaches within walking distance from 5 minutes to 10 minutes walk. The bus to main highway for the bus to Malaga is 10 minutes walk from 6:00 AM to 11:00 PM. You can even daytrip to Rock of Gibraltar. The bus trip from Nerja with a bus change in Malaga to Arcos de la Fonterra was one of the most scenic bus routes I have taken along the Andalucian rolling hills and medieval cities at the tops of hills. There is also bus service to Granada and it only takes 2 hours! But make sure you stay overnight in Granada otherwise you will see very little of this beautiful fortified castles. My routing was from Granada to Nerja and then to Arcos).
HOSTALS AND HOTELS IN SPAIN: They are very good and very reasonable compared to the other European countries. This was quite an upgrade for me being a frugal traveler who likes accommodations having my own room. Most of my hostals (two star hotels) had very clean and full bathrooms! At times I traveled paying SINGLE rate and with the dollar low, it was still a great p rice for me.
LISBON & SUBURBS: A beautiful city! It reminded me of San Francisco for its setting and Paris for its parks, plazas, and promenades. SINTRA village is easy access from the city but this is a great place to homebase for a few days. It is only 50 minutes by train from Station Russo. What a beautiful National Park with two castles and the Moorish Fortress. Great easy hiking and gorgeous settings. The Sintra Village is located at the edge of the national park and gorgeous scenery. You can also daytrip to the beach from here!
BELEM is another beautiful place by trolley #15 ride from Baixa. Check Rick Steve's books for all details. This is the best location to know more about the early world explorers. Beautiful parks to picnic and rest. The church with its Manueline Architecture is gorgeous! The church cloister is one of the most beautiful in Europe. Vasco de Gamas tomb is also at this church.
CATHOLIC TRAVELERS TO FATIMA: When traveling to Fatima in the Spring and Summer, the 13th of the months is a very special time to go for pilgrimage. There are also many places to stay there. It is a very sacred and holy place. Great village and surrounding village to explore.
CATHOLIC TRAVELERS TO AVILA: This medieval village, the birthplace of
St. Teresa is a beautiful village. Great walking tours for the many wonderful
sights. I was told the religious exhibit in Segovia in 2003 will be in
Avila in 2004. This was a wonderful exhibit in Segovia this year! They
showed many and different artforms of Jeus from his early manhood, through
crucifixion, and resurrection. They also displayed the many church treasures
owned by the surrounding cathedrals.
Grace <email>
Buckley, WA USA 08/30/03
i'm a portuguese guy from porto and in my website you can find travel
tips for visiting porto and portugal. it's a little guide with contents
you won't find in books. it has been done with my day to day experience
of living in porto. http://pwp.netcabo.pt/ricardo-duarte/Pages/main.htm
ricardo correia duarte <email>
Porto, Portugal 08/16/03
Spain and Portugal with Rick's Guide
The guide book was great. we visited Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada, Ronda, Tarifa,
Lagos and Lisbon. We also went against the guidebook on someone else's recommendation
and went to Cadiz, which was ok, but disappointing compared to the rest
of our trip. Some of the prices were higher for hotels, show etc. but nothing
too bad. One thing I would recommend is avoid the SeaSafari Dolphin trip
in Lagos, seemed a bit sketchy to me, especially since it cost me 30 euros
and I didn't see one dolphin not that I expected to at the speed they were
traveling. Sevilla is a must on any trip to Spain, I could get lost there
forever and the walking tour was so amazing. Granada had great food and
the Alhambra is embedded in my memory. Ronda was quiet and lovely and the
Pilates Caves were a cool (as in temperature) treat in July. After driving
down the coast and seeing tons of tacky tourist traps on the highway, we
were so glad we followed the book and stayed in Tarifa, it had a great relaxed,
beachy feeling. We caught the horse show in Jerez and even my non-horse
lover companions were impressed and amazed. Lagos was the party place and
lots of fun in the evening, kinda wish we went on Rick's advice to Salema
for the day though. Caught all the 3 star attractions in Lisbon and followed
Rick's walking tours and it made a big city seem small and cozy! We got
lost a few times, like trying to find the Saint Nicholas Viewpoint in Granada
but all in all the directions were great both walking and driving. Will
definitely not plan my next trip without one of Rick's guidebooks, I'm thinking
Italy. Top Ten Experiences 10. Paella in Sevilla 9. being asked for directions
in Lisbon 8. leaping horses of Jerez 7. Louis the walking tour guide in
Sevilla and his adorable dogs 6. icecream everywhere, banana split flavor
in Sevilla the best 5. Booking a hostel in Ronda using my French! 4. La
Carbonaria bar in Sevilla 3. Alhambra 2. Monastary in Lisbon 1. Balem Pastries
Rhonda <email>
Calgary, AB Can 08/15/03
My husband and I were in Lisbon June 20th of this year when the temperature
was 106 degrees. We faithfully carried your Spain/Lisbon guide but I have
one comment to make. When the weather is that warm it is not the directions
you gave to get to the Monastery Jeronimos to the Belem Tower cannot be
done by Senior citizens. It is a long, long walk, over a major highway and
no shade. The local buses leave one off at a little distance from the Belem
Tower. We ended up taking a taxi and asking the taxi to wait while we had
a quick tour. It cost 10 Euros and no heatstroke. The Belem pastries were
delicious! I would also double check the Lisbon Tourist pass. It is quite
expensive.
Louise Fang <email>
Yorktown Heights, ny USA 08/10/03
Pensao Geres
The link to Pensao Geres is broken (and it's been broken 3x in the past
week--every time I've tried.) http://www.pensaogeres.web.pt/
Samuel Kaufman <email>
Ann Arbor, MI USA 08/09/03
Recommend this guidebook highly
Traveling with this guidebook is the best! Helped us plan the perfect Southern
Spain itinerary, supplemented with Andalucia Cadogan guide & Mona Winks
for Madrid museums. No recommendations disappoint. Rick Steves' Spanish
phrasebook was indispensable. Thank you! Tips for next revision: (guidebook)
emphasize need to get hotels with AC in the summer; (phrasebook) dealing
with airlines losing luggage. Rate updates: Hotel Simon in Sevilla (66E+7%tax),
Alavera de los Banos in Ronda(70E), Hostal Acapulco in Madrid(49E), discount
at Los Gallos in Sevilla only 2 Euros. Granada is somewhat under-appreciated;
loved the city. Beyond Pzas Nueva & touristy Bib-Rambla, it's got the charm
of a university town & somehow marries old & new Spain seamlessly. The meandering
streets of the Albaicin were more steeped in history & culture than snazzy
(& chic-ish) Barrio Sta Cruz in Sevilla. The pedestrian shopping streets
south of Granada's Catedral were more characteristic than Sevilla's cosmopolitan
C/Sierpes, Tetuan area (after seeing The Body Shop there, wouldn't be surprised
if Gap and Banana Republic follow). For biggest effect, a visit to Alcazar
should be after the Alhambra--a tantalizing "what if" in history.
Gee <email>
Irvine, CA USA 08/09/03
Madrid Royal Armory
I spent time in Spain last year using Rick's Spain and Portugal guide, this
year went to Sweden with Rick's Scandinavia. Found two flaws. First, if
he thinks that the armory in Stockholm's Royal Palace is best in Europe,
he's never seen the armory at Madrid's Royal Palace. It was the highlight
of my trip to Spain, and it wasn't mentioned in the guide. I found it by
accident. Walk out the main entrance of Palace, it's at the far right corner
of courtyard. El Cid's armor, horrific dragon and wolf head helmets, weapons
of destruction too ghastly to describe, ornate horse armor with spikes all
over, a definite must see. Second, Rick mentions his 'favorite' telephone
booth in Stockholm. It's been turned into a pissoir.
Joel Ecob <email>
Mercer Island, Wa USA 08/09/03
We followed the "Spain and Portugal" book all the was in our 10 day
trip. It's an excellent book to have with you on your trip. I will highly
recommend it to anyone. One BIG caveat with the train passes though. We
ended up losing 100s of dollars for no fault of ours. We wanted to go to
Barcelona, Madrid and Lisbon. And since flying in Barcelona and flying out
of Lisbon was getting a little expensive we decided to fly in and out of
Madrid and take trains to go to Barcelona and Lisbon. So we had 4 reservations.
Madrid to Barcelona, Barcelona to Lisbon via Madrid and finally Lisbon to
Madrid. We had pretty bad luck with everything. Our flight out of Philadelphia
was delayed and hence we missed out flight out of Paris to Madrid and hence
the Train from Madrid to Barcelona! Fortunately, we found out about it 3
days before our flight. And Air France was nice enough to change our plane
from Paris-Madrid to Paris-Barcelona at no charge. But we missed the first
connection. 3 days later we took our train from Barcelona to Madrid where
we had the connection to Lisbon. Half an hour before the train arrived in
Madrid, we realized that the train was delayed by half an hour. So we are
going to miss our connection to Lisbon. We tried to talk to train officials.
They were nice enough to contact the station and tell them that the train
was being delayed and tried to stop the next train for like 5 minutes more.
They also told us the platform we were supposed to be on. As soon as we
reached Madrid, we were on that platform in like 40 seconds. But the train
was gone. So we missed our connection to Lisbon and of course train back
from Lisbon to Madrid. And hotel reservations in Lisbon. We missed 3 of
our 4 reservations for no fault of ours. Our tickets said that 50% of the
money was refundable in case we do not use the ticket. We had paid $850
for 4 reservations all together and $80 for the hotel reservation in Lisbon.
DER refused to refund us any money back since we had the rail passes. So
be extremely careful with rail passes and DER. It was an expensive lesson
for us. Hopefully, other people learn from my experience.
Atul
Denver, CO USA 08/01/03
They are charging for entrance into the Prado on all day Saturday 3
Euros per person. And the entrance fee for a guided English-language tour
of Palacio Real is 8 Euros.
Rita S <email>
USA 07/27/03
Spain
My wife and I enjoyed a wonderful ten days in Spain this May, 2003. The
experience far exceeded my expectations. We followed Rick's guide closely
as has become our custom. Highlights in Madrid were the Prado (Mona Wink's
a must),the bullfight, and the walking tour with the Chairman Stephen Drake-Jones.
The Chairman simplifies Spain's complicated history with a perspective unobtainable
from books. I'm anxious to return for some of his specialized tours such
as Bloody Madrid. We also visited several White Hill towns including Ronda
and Arcos. Driving was not difficult and we found the Spanish roads excellent,
well marked and the Spanish motorists friendly. Seville is gorgeous and
we were happy we included Flamenco at Los Gallos (Rick gives it 3 stars,
so we couldn't miss it). We caught the super fast, super smooth AVE (the
high speed train) back to Madrid. We recommend the experience.
D Davis <email>
Hamlin, TX USA 07/25/03
Two Weeks in Spain in Madrid region: Madrid: HIGHLIGHTS - palace(excellent), cathedral al almunda, cathedral of san francisco, temple of debob, museo de america(bias but interesting), thyssen, prado(for spainish masters), sofia(modern art), arquelogico, amazing city parks, efficient metro, great doners at pita inn (calle toledo by plaza mayor), no humididty at all, the plazas CONS: too much chain smoking europeans lodging : hostal residencia cruz sol (info@hostalcruz-sol.com)- no english but great showers and a/c. perfect location in between plaza mayor and puerta del sol. Only 38 EURO a night for a single. hostal aguilar: do not stay here. Very stuffy rooms with pathetic a/c. noisey street traffic. more expensive then cruz-sol for no reason.
Daytrips: El Escorial - outstanding; Toledo - amazing cathedral and town - easy connections with madrid and an easy uphill walk from bus station (or use the buses - about 10 minutes intervals) Segovia - DO NOT TAKE THE BUS. THE BUS STATION IS LAZY AND UNRELIABLE. Clown just takes a break for no reason with a line for an hour; la sepulvedana no help. Train is easy and reliable - just taxi to town. Cathedral is closed on monday with most of town but exhibit excellent on christ; alcazar is great; aqueduct is amazing.
Pamplona - Hotel Albret (www.hotelalbret.net) pricey during san fermines but very nice - it is a walk from old town. wonderful city. Ran with the bulls and it was amazing. Easy bus connections but a madhouse during festival.
Merida: The best Roman ruins I have seen and nothing is crowded or roped
off. Ampitheater, theather, villas, hippodome, all are great - buy the
bono card for all of them. Roman Museum is incredible but all in spanish.
Just need a day or so here lodging: Hostal-Residencia Senero - killer
a/c and perfect location for only 28 EURO a night (with bath). Senor Nieto
is the nicest guy. Go to this town. CON - siesta closes town for around
3 - 4 hours every day. Difficult finding good food. Daytrip - Trujillo
- spend the day but watch the bus connections back to merida (madrid no
problem). Another amazing hill town without crowds and incredible sights
all over like the home of local hero and genocial killer Pizarro It is
very difficult to get to Evora, Portugal from here unless you have a few
days. A nine hour trip back once/twice a day only. Easier from Lisbon
or on the way to Lisbon not as a loop.
Marc <email>
greenwich, CT USA 07/21/03
Our next stop was Cordoba for 1 night at Macia Alfaros Hotel in a superior
double for 59 Euros (travelnow.com). The Alfaros has a modern eclectic but
Moorish style and appears to cater to Spaniards with English spoken only
at reception. We had a lovely room with terrace balcony and gorgeous views
over Cordoba's rooftops with the minaret of the Mesquite towering above.
Great location within a ten minute walk of the Mezquita and beautiful swimming
pool. The Mezquita was very impressive! We really liked Cordoba which has
a charm of it's own and wished we had been able to stay longer.
Cathy Routhier <email>
Rehoboth, MA USA 07/19/03
Seville
Our next stop was Seville for 3 nights where we stayed at Tryp Macarena - 50 Euros/night at solmelia.com. This 4 star hotel with roof top pool is
the style and quality of a Hilton. The public bus that stops in front of
the hotel takes you to the historic center in 10 minutes. It was an excellent
value. A horse drawn carriage ride around the city for 30 Euros was well
worth the expense. It provided views of Maria Louisa park and historic sites
we would not have gotten by walking, considering it was 100 degrees at the
time. Due to the heat, the river boat cruise was inviting, but there's not
a whole lot to see from the vantage point of the river, so it is not worthwhile.
Seville was more modern overall than we expected, with sites spread out,
making walking in the heat more difficult. Compared with the Albacin and
historic quarter of Granada and the White hill towns, Seville's historic
quarter seemed less impressive for wandering, although the major sites,
including the cathedral and Alcazar were extremely impressive and a must
for any visit to Spain. The major sites though can be seen in a day, so
we just didn't find Seville to be the place we wanted to linger, at least
during a summer visit.
Cathy Routhier <email>
Rehoboth, MA USA 07/19/03
Arcos de la Frontera
Our next stop was Arcos de la Frontera for 2 nights - We stayed at El Convento
- a double room with terrace/balcony for 78 Euros, including tax not breakfast
(elconvento.com). A regular double, without balcony was 65 Euros. El Convento
is just as described and more. Our room, #6, may be where Rick Steves stays,
as his plaque is outside the door. Dramatic views from the balcony over
the valley where we enjoyed breakfast each morning. Fantastic service! Arcos
is a wonderful town, very friendly, warm and welcoming people. We enjoyed
everything about it. El Convento's restaurant is a must, we had the best
meal of our trip here in lovely surroundings. We'd also recommend horseback
riding through the valley. The 1-hour trip offered breathtaking scenery
on a very easy ride that would be fine for even non-riders. Arranged through
the tourist office within an hour of request for 18 Euros. You can take
a taxi to the horse farm for 7 Euros. Also great to watch riding at the
stables and lessons given by the owner.
Cathy Routhier <email>
Rehoboth, MA USA 07/19/03
Vejer de la Frontera
Enroute to Arcos, we spent the night in Vejer de la Frontera. Vejer is a
beautiful white hill town with a strong Moorish/Arab feel close to the sea
with the lovely, but quiet Plaza Espana. We were fortunate to be here on
the eve of a holiday, Candela de San Juan. The evening began with children
parading paper mache figures of presidents in front of the church with the
high school band playing on. Of course it included El President Juan Bush!
The parade was followed by a concert in the main square with wonderful singers
and the entire town danced around the fountain in the plaza. Midnight brought
the running of the bulls - Someone wearing a bull costume with fireworks
shooting off the back, running round and round the plaza, until at last
it died and was carried off. Great fun! Followed by more music until 2 a.m.
Our hotel in Vejer, Casa de Calife, was very atmospheric with authentic
Moroccan décor, but lacked service and professionalism. A double suite/Jacuzzi
for 95 Euros including breakfast (vejer.com). Regular doubles start at 65
Euros. Lovely outdoor patio enclosed by the walls of the hotel, but unfortunately
were unable to make literally half the things on the limited menu. Undoubtely
the best place to stay in Vejer, but be prepared for minor inconveniences.
We booked tickets for "Those amazing Dancing Adalusian Horses" in Jerez
at http://www.realescuela.org/ (you must send fax with credit card info).Preference
seating (first 10 rows) is 21 Euros/ticket. Not as dramatic as the Lipizaners,
but well worth the effort.
Cathy Routhier <email>
Rehoboth, MA USA 07/19/03
GRANADA
Granada 3 nights Hotel Triunfo for 68 Euros/night (hotelclub.net), including
tax and breakfast, this was a real find. We wanted to be away from the tourist
hubub on Plaza Nuevo and close to the Albaicin to enjoy their quaint and
authentic restaurants. It is just a few blocks from the cathedral and convenient
to buses that go up to Alhambra. After seeing Plaza Nuevo, we are very glad
we did not stay there. The plaza was filled with druggies and gypsies each
time we walked through in addition to graffiti and smashed windows on some
store fronts. Hotel Triunfo had beautiful modern but classic rooms, spotless
hotel with professional but not always helpful staff. We booked tickets
for the Alhambra at www.alhambratickets.com. When in Granada the Alhambra
cannot be missed, but after touring the forts in India last year, it was
not as impressive as we had anticipated. What was impressive were the General
Life gardens. Allow extra time for these. We really enjoyed Plaza Bib Rambla
and surrounding shops. The Plaza has a good mix of local and tourists, with
local children putting on Flamenco shows in the center café at night. The
Albaicin deserves more emphasis in the guide books. It is very safe, with
historic charm and wonderful views from the many miradors. We spent a day
wandering the streets, eating lunch in Plaza Miguel Bajo, one of our best
experiences!
Cathy Routhier <email>
Rehoboth, MA USA 07/19/03
MADRID
Madrid 2 nights - Hotel Carlos V - for 100Euros/night (bestwestern.com),
including taxes and breakfast, we opted for this hotel over Europa because
for the same price it appeared a bit classier and had the added benefit
of a door-to door shuttle from the airport which was very convenient after
a long flight. This hotel offers a lot of charm, like staying in an old
mansion, excellent service, small but functional bathrooms. Twin doubles
are larger than double bed doubles. Highly recommended. We arranged the
pub tour with Stehen Drake-Jones of the Wellington Society at wellsoc.org.
Our membership of 25 Euros each was paid on arrival. Stephen is a real character.
We found him charming and just what we were looking for in a pub tour guide.
His enlivened dramatized historical accounts were really engaging. He let
us know in advance that after the first round of tapas and drinks that he
paid for, we would all be splitting the rest of the costs which came to
13 Euros each at the end of the night, a 4 ˝ hour tour with lots of food
and drink. Overall we loved Madrid which we had previously underestimated.
Puerto Sol is the place to be. Very lively and in walking distance of so
much. Our favorite spot was Plaza Mayor, low key, charming and something
always going on. The Royal Palace was very nice but not a must if you've
toured other palaces throughout Europe. Getting a 1 hour overview of on
Madrid Vision's open top tour bus was very helpful in getting our bearings
and deciding where we wanted to go.
Cathy Routhier <email>
Rehoboth, MA USA 07/19/03
SPAIN ITINERARY - TRIP REPORT
Spent the last 2 weeks of June 2003 in Spain. Felt our itinerary was nearly
perfect, except for wanting another day in Cordoba. Hotels and highlights
are listed below, for more info on cities/villages, search for trip reports
by individual city names (i.e. "Madrid trip report"). Madrid - 2 nights
Hotel Carlos V - 100 Euros @ bestwestern.com - great location & service
Pub tour with Stephen Drake Jones @ wellsoc.org - Fantastic! Royal Palace
- Very nice Madrid Vision bus tour - good way to get an overview of the
city Plaza Mayor - Favorite hangout, a must! Granada - 3 nights Hotel Triunfo
- 68 Euros @ hotelclub.net - loved the location, very nice place Overall
fell that Granada may be under appreciated, we really loved this city! Alhambra
- very worthwhile! Allow apple time for General Life gardens, booked tickets
at www.alhambratickets.com Albaicin - spent a whole day exploring, a wonderful
must see! Plaza Bib Rambla - lots of activity with a wonderful mix of locals
and tourists. Vejer de la Frontera - 1 night Casa de Calife - 95 Euros @
vejer.com - very atmospheric! Most beautiful white hill town. Jerez - Dancing
Andalusian Horses - show very worthwhile Arcos de la Frontera - 2 nights
El Convento - 78 Euros @ elconvento.com - excellent views, best service
Charming white hill village with very friendly residents! Horseback riding
through valley very worthwhile (18 Euros) arranged through tourist office
near the parador. Seville - 3 nights Tryp Macarena - 50 Euros @ solmelia.com
- not in historic center, but beautiful hotel and convenient with bus Really
liked Seville, but more spread out than other cities, not as overwhelmed
with it as others seem to be. Cathedral - most impressive! Alcazar - very
impressive! Horse drawn carriage from cathedral was wonderful, saw much
of Maria Louisa Park - stunning! River boat trip - skip it! Codoba - 1 night
Macia Alfaros - 59 Euros @ travelnow.com- very atmospheric, great location
and views, wonderful place but lacks service Really liked Cordoba and would
have loved another day there. Mezquita was awesome! Madrid - 1 night So
this was supposed to be a "budget" trip, but I broke down a few times, upgrading
hotels/rooms before leaving home, but it still worked out to be relatively
inexpensive, about $1200 each including air, hotel and car for 14 nights.
Thanks to the tips/advice on this and other websites, as well as in Rick
Steve's book and the Footprint guide, we managed to plan ahead and use our
time effectively to get the most out of our trip. Although my Rick Steve's
guide book was a few years old, as I purchased it for a previous trip to
Portugal, I found that many of his recommended hotels had dramatically increased
their prices and didn't appear to be the value they may have been when it
was written. I felt I got the best deals by comparing hotel booking engines.
Cathy Routhier <email>
Rehoboth, MA USA 07/19/03
Madrid and Barcelona
Just returned from 8 days in Spain and wanted to add some comments. IN Barcelona
we LOVED the Hotel Gran Via. Fabulous location, closer to Placa de Catalunya
than the maps in Rick's book look. They are doing some construction and
renovation...hammering and sawing during the day, but quiet at night. Beautiful
sun terrace with a Coke machine and two computers for internet access at
1 Euro an hour. In Barcelona, we also loved the "Bus Touristic". Friendly,
English speaking guides, and it goes to several spots which are hard to
get to using the Metro (Park Guell and Montjuic). We are glad we got those
tickets early, because there were coupons with them to almost all of the
attractions that we visited. If you are traveling with children, be warned
that the beaches near Barcelona are "tops optional". We were at the beach
just at the Olympic port and about half of the women were topless. I was
told that the farther out you go , the less clothing you will find. On our
return to Barcelona we stayed at the Meson Castilla and liked it very well
also. In Madrid we were first at the Hostel Acapulco. Liked it and the staff
(Javier) were very helpful, even called to book tickets for us for the Zarzuella.
Unfortunately the airconditioning was not working in our room. They had
no other open rooms. After one very hot night, they helped us relocate to
Hostel Triana on the first floor of the same building. I would recommend
both of these places. They are basic, but have everything we needed. A/C,
private bath, clean, good location, TV, elevator, and all for about 45 Euros
per night! The room in the Acapulco was actually smaller but had a refrigerator
that Triana did not have. Train tavel: We purchased round trip tickets to
Madrid from the travel agency in El Corte Ingles (very easy). If you do
this, be sure you keep the tickets together. On our return several days
later, we hade to produce the both tickets, which luckily we found buried
deep in our luggage. Day trips from Madrid: We took the bus to Segovia and
found it to be very comfortable and easy. Be aware that your ticket has
a seat assignment on it. Even if you buy a two-way ticket, you have to present
the first ticket at the bus station in Segovia when you are ready to leave
and they will give you another ticket with a bus number and seat assignment
for the return. The Cathedral was open but has an art exhibit on the Passion
and Crucifixion of Christ, so the Cathedral interior was kind of masked
by that. The exhibit was fascinating, however. Toledo: We tried to get train
tickets to Toledo and honestly found it very confusing, so decided to take
the bus. Great decision. They would not let you buy two-way tickets, you
have to buy your return ticket in Toledo. Also be aware that the bus returning
to Madrid returned us to a different bus station from where we left. It
was right at a Metro station, so it was no problem, but I did begin to panic
when I saw what part of Madrid we were in and wondered if we were going
to be let off in Madrid! ALso we were prepared for the strict dress code
at the Toledo catherdral, only to see them allow tank tops, tops with thin
straps, and shorts into the cathedral with not a word said. All in all it
was a wonderful trip..we even went to a bullfight!
Debby <email>
Dalton, GA USA 07/18/03
We spent 18 days of June in Spain, making our reservations on the web
about two weeks before leaving the US. The Paradors, Spain's national hotels
many which are in spectacular locations, had a 70 Euro per night promotion
called the 5 nights card which we used. It's space available, meaning the
price wasn't available at all hotels or on all nights, but we were able
to book a night in Cordoba, and three nights in Arcos at the rate and used
the fifth night in Jaen for which we received a credit toward the full price
room. The balcony room supplement in Arcos was 20 Euros. The Parador meals
were superb but expensive. The value was always better than expected and
the staff great. The dial-up internet connections were the fastest in Spain
and the phone charges nominal. If your budget allows it, we highly recommend
these properties. Go to www.parador.es/intro.html and select "English".
Wayne Kingsley <email>
Portland, OR USA 07/16/03
Madrid Hotel
Hotel Plaza Mayor was incredible. For only 70 euros a night, we had air
conditioning, a terrific location, clean comfortable beds, tv, and a nice
bathroom. I highly recommend it. Visit them at http://www.h-plazamayor.com/
Ann <email>
Austin, TX USA 07/16/03
Estremoz
Estremoz, near Evora, Portugal has the most incredible Saturday market.
It is much smaller than the highly touted Thursday Barcelos market but it
has no touristy feel or junky tourist stuff. The people look like the old
Portugal, with some teeth missing and the older men, all with the same body
type and height, wore the characteristic caps even on a hot day. There were
tiny old women in black and the market had an amazing array of food (salt
cod, stinky cheese, sausage, produce,etc ) and live animals to take home
and consume, I guess. There is a beautiful pousada and they were nice about
letting us just walk around and admire it.
cc <email>
CA USA 07/13/03
Important transportation info and hotel comments
We spent the last 2 weeks of June in Spain and Portugal. The transportation
information I would like to alert people to is regarding the AVE train
from Madrid to Seville. MAKE ADVANCE RESERVATIONS!!!! Even in June we
found the train booked even a week and a half in advance. We arrived at
the train station on a Thursday afternoon to purchase tickets for Friday
travel. All second-class AND first class tickets were sold out for all
Friday departures. To our fortune or misfortune we had to book 'Club'
class which was certainly nice, but a few times more Euros then we planned
to spend on the journey. In addition, on that same day we purchased our
return tickets for a Sunday evening a week and a half later. All second-class
tickets were sold out for that day as well and, thus, we had to purchase
first class tickets for our return trip. We also met another couple that
had tried to buy a ticket on Friday for same day departure. They ended
up spending another night in Madrid and traveling by bus the next day
to Seville.
On a positive transportation note - when traveling from Seville to Lisbon on a Monday by bus we were prepared to spend the 9 - 10 hours on the 9:00 a.m. departure as described in Rick's book. To our pleasant surprise (and relief!) there was a 9:30 a.m. direct bus on Damas SA bus lines that was a 6-hour trip with a stop in Huevla, Spain only (28,25 euros).
Hotel accommodations - In general we liked the Hotel Europa in Madrid. However, our room was quite small and the bed was awful (two twin beds pushed together that hurt my back). Again - overall we liked it and for 65 euros per night it was a great deal. In Seville we stayed at the Hotel Simon. The only double available booked 2 months in advance was a double with a "salon" for 97 euros plus tax per night (breakfast additional). Although not one of our favorite hotels for the money, the location couldn't be beat. We walked everywhere! In Lisbon we stayed at the Hotel Lisboa Tejo. It certainly was an "oasis" as described by Rick. We splurged on the suite. With the discount provided with Rick's book it was 110 euros with tax and breakfast included. In Salema, we stayed at the Romantik Villa (www.romantikvilla.com). This was by far our favorite accommodation during our trip. We "splurged" on the suite at 70 euros per night. It was even nicer than it looks on the web site! There was a market maybe a 5-minute walk down the hill which allowed us to stock up on breakfast and other items. The market also had great deals on wine and Port (much less expensive than Lisbon).
During our day trip to Sagres we had lunch at the Pousada. It was outstanding! Possibly the nicest meal we had during our 2 weeks in Spain and Portugal. The bill came to approximately 45 euros including one glass of wine, one café, a large bowl of soup and two wonderful entrees. Other memorable meals during our trip included tapas at the Taberna Tempranillo in Madrid (including pate with raspberry coulis and foie gras with baked apples!) and tapas at Bar Patanchon in Seville (fried camembert with raspberry sauce!). We also liked Horno San Buenaventura in Seville for breakfast. And to our surprise we had the best Calamari of our lives in the Madrid train station (Atocha) between the escalators. We are still laughing/talking about it and comparing it to all the Calamari we eat stateside (could have been a fluke - who knows).
One final FYI - the USIT Student Travel office on Avenida de la Constitucion
in Seville appears to have gone out of business. There was a phone number
posted to call - 902 252 575. The other office at Mateos Gago 2 seemed
to be open for business, but not on weekends (when we were there).
K. Davies and D. Huber <email>
Northborough, MA USA 07/13/03
Veggie eating in Madrid
Artemisia Restaurante at Plaza Carmen is outstanding and as good as any
veggie place in Southern California. I had 3 meals there and they where
all great, well worth the 9pm openning time. A must for all vegetarians.
Stayed at Hostel Alcapulco across the plaza from it and that was great too!
Great people O.K. bed and beutiful bathroom!!!!
Jeff <email>
Lakewood, CA USA 07/11/03
Segovia Cathedral
We were sad to reach the Cathedral in Segovia on a Monday to find it closed.
Perhaps it's a temporary development, but beware if that's a target destination.
Kevin Bleicher <email>
Northbrook, IL USA 07/10/03
Morocco tour and Tarifa hotel
Loved Tarifa but disappointed in the Morocco tour. Started out great with
a taxi picking us up at the hotel, guiding us to the tour office in Algeciras
and a quick and comfortable ferry to Ceuta. From there it was an easy bus
ride to Tetuan where we toured the market. That was very interesting, the
people, colors, food, tiny shops, etc. But then we were herded into a carpet
shop, divided up and given the major pitch to buy a carpet. I was strong
but my husband got snagged in on a guilt trip and bought 2 carpets we didn't
want or need. Our 2 children had to sit through the hour plus ordeal and
felt that they were missing out on the street action. Lunch was next and
although very tasty rushed into 10 minutes for us because of the rug transaction.
Others in our group felt they were there too long because they walked out
on the salesmen (at least 3 of our group got sucked in to buying). Back
on the bus for a two hour drive on twisty roads to Tangiers. We were off
the bus for less than an hour there and were only allowed to shop in one
big store, where again I'm sure our guide was gathering commissions. It
was a big disappointment not to see the market action in Tangiers. We then
were rushed back on the bus for the long ride back to Ceuta. What a waste,
we spent more time on the bus than anywhere else. We left our hotel at 8:00am
and returned about 10pm. The morning in the Tetuan market was fascinating
but the rest of the trip was terrible. Morocco is very cool and I highly
recommend getting there, just take a different tour and ask questions beforehand.
We used Marruecotur Tours from Tarifa. I'd try to find one that goes directly
to Tangiers and I'd even stay in Algeciras if I had to. I think the key
is to have time to wander and talk in the markets not a store. We were encouraged
to move quickly through the market and the only people we talked with were
the hustlers following us with their bags of trinkets. Tarifa is charming
but we were disappointed with Hotel La Mirada. Nice rooms and staff but
very hot because there is no way for air to circulate. We slept with the
door wedged open. Both nights were very noisy between 1am and 5. The rest
of our trip in Spain and Portugal was perfect and we're still glad we went
to Morocco. We'll do it differently next time and would love to hear about
other experiences.
MB Tynan <email>
Santa Barbara, ca USA 07/09/03
Selema
my dad said one year in 1999 "were going to portugal on vacation" none of
the family knew much about this place but we had been before. he said we
were off to a small village named Selema and as soon as me and my sister
heard small we wern't to sure about going but he talked us into it. We arrived
there around 4pm and went straight for a look around. Our first impression
was small but we decided it was pretty too. The days went on and we still
wern't sure about this place but then one eventful evening changed th whole
holiday. We met up with many local people who spoke superd english and they
showed us the way to make the small village exciting. I think me and my
sister agreed it was the best holiday ever. So small but relaxing, beutiful
and it has the kindest people ever known. The rest of the family enjoyed
it to so we went again in 2000 and 2001 and 2003 were planning next year
already. I really suggest this beutiful place.
emma <email>
nottingham, united kingdem 07/09/03
Spain in June
I just returned from a 12 day trip to Spain including Madrid, Seville, Ronda,
Nerja, Granada and Toledo. Regarding hotels, we very much enjoyed the San
Gabriel in Ronda, the Hostal del Cardenal in Toledo and the Paradors in
Nerja and Granada. We had two bad hotel experiences. In Madrid, we had a
guaranteed and confirmed hotel reservation at the Hotel Lope de Vega. Upon
arrival we were informed by the hotel manager that our room had been given
away to an unexpected guest who arrived with a larger group. Although we
expressed our extreme disappointment with this action, the manager informed
us that since she had made us alternative arrangements at the Hotel El Prado
she felt that we had no reason to be unhappy. I found the actions of this
hotel and the attitude of the manager to be very unprofessional. The Best
Western Hotel Avion, near the airport, is a complete dump. Avoid the Hotel
Avion at all costs. Other then these two hotels, our trip was wonderful.
The sights are highly enjoyable and memorable and the people are friendly
and accommodating. We loved Nerja and thought the Alhambra was spectacular.
Donna
Anywhere, USA 07/07/03
Selema
I just returned from a 2wk Spain/Portugal trip. I took the direct bus from
Seville to Lagos at around 7:30am. In Selema I stayed at the Romantik Villa
up on the hill. It was a great place, as others have said. Very nice rooms
with bath. The rooms included a fridge, toaster, coffee machine, and some
dishes, if you wanted make some snacks. There was also a pool. The owners
spoke English, and are very nice people. Neil/Canada
Neil Lynch <email>
m.j., sk Canada 07/03/03
Lisbon, Sintra, Evora
Just a few corrections/tips from a great trip to Portugal. Corpus Christi
(19 June this year) is a national holiday as well as a religious feast day
in Portugal, not just Spain, and everything is closed. We found very little
to do on this day except the Sao George castle. The Aero Bus is indeed free
with your TAP boarding pass, but only one way into town, not round trip.
Also, it stops running at 8:45pm. To skip the line at the airport taxi stand,
buy a taxi voucher at the Lisboa Card kiosk and you'll be escorted to the
front of the line. The Pena Palace in Sintra is not exactly free with the
Lisboa card. You must pay a new mandatory city-imposed fee of 3 euros to
pass through the boring gardens. The Lisboa card gets you out of the 2 euro
charge for the palace itself. Evora. The Jardim du Paco restaurant, located
on the far side of the Roman Temple was a great find. We were there on a
Sat. and had a very nice buffet lunch. All you can eat local dishes and
local wine for 17 euros. Delicious. Lisbon. Hotel Lisboa Tejo was great
and a convenient location. They honored your 10% discount and gave us quiet
rooms at the back (worth asking for). The Port Wine Institute was a disappointment.
Make sure you have a lot of time. We had to wait 30 minutes to have our
order taken and another 20 to get our glasses. Lots of folks were sitting
around with empty glasses. If you don't have time to spare, order several
choices at one time. 2 good handicraft stores in Lisbon are both on Rua
Castilho one block west of Pombal Circle, nos 67-B and 61. Contrary to advice
from the TI, the Se (cathedral) only has one mass on Sunday and doesn't
open until 10am.
K&K Edenborough, A&A Boll <email>
San Antonio, TX USA 07/01/03
Spain and Portugal 2003
Traveling is so much easier and more enjoyable with your books ... especiallly
in selecting hotels! On our recent trip to Spain (May 2003) we discovered
two items which need revision in your books: Mona Winks -- The Prado: Page
445, Velazques' Crucifixion, has the incorrect photo. The photo in the text
shows another of Velazques' works but sans Phillip IV as described in the
information. Spain and Portugal: Page 148. Avila has opened additional sections
of its wall on the side by Plaza Fuente del Sol and Avenida de Matrid; this
section also has an exit at the end of the circuit so it isn't necessary
to return to entrance by the cathedral. In addition, the price of a ticket
includes a well prepared and informative 20 page brochure which makes the
experience more meaningful. Hope these updates are helpful in keeping your
books current and useful. Regards, Lucretia and David Robinson
Lucretia and David Robinson <email>
Seattle, WA USA 06/16/03
Madrid and Andulusia
Last week I returned from a visit to Madrid and Andulusia. I had a great
time. Rick Steves's tips were helpful. The Hotel Gonzalo had small rooms,
but they were clean, safe, and in an excellent location near the Prado.
One change needed to the guidebook: The bus stop for bus #89 from the airport
to downtown Madrid has a new location. To get to it you must turn right
immediately outside the terminal 1 doors and walk to the end of the sidewalk.
I used a tour package for Andulusia. It was excellent, but didn't allow
for enough time in Ronda. Ronda is in a picturesque location and has about
a dozen sites that interest me. The Mondragon Palace is very nice. The bandit
museum is also worth a look. The Parador near the bridge appears to be an
excellent value for a luxury hotel.
LLEINAWEAV <email>
Alexandria, VA USA 06/11/03
"The Chairman" in Madrid
Thanks for recommending Stephen Drake-Jones' services in Madrid. We started
out with a historical tour that degenerated into a pub crawl with some tapas
thrown in. And we couldn't have had a better evening! The Chairman was "on
form." He also came through for us with Sunday bullfight tickets so we had
another great evening with Connie and him. Glad I have photos because it's
all a bit foggy. Call him up as soon as you hit town and line up an outing.
He's been in Madrid for 28 years and he's a hoot! His cell phone is best
way to reach him: 609 14 32 03.
Ambassador of Good Will <email>
Dallas, TX USA 06/09/03
Hotel Europa in Madrid is Great
Hotel Europa in Madrid is my home away from home! The past 4 times I have
been to Madrid I have stayed there. Please remember to ask for a quiet,
non-smoking room (back courtyard.) They speak English, are courteous, and
the floors are clean enough to eat off of! I will never stay at a 5 star
fancy place like I used to while in Madrid: the Puerta del Sol/Gran Via
pedestrian area is a world unto itself. (And you can buy freshly-squeezed
OJ at El Corte Ingles supermarket in the basement for pennies). Remember
to reserve in advance: it books up quickly. I have recommended this no-frills
hotel to over a dozen families, and no one has been disappointed.
pc <email>
Fair Oaks, CA USA 06/06/03
New great accommodation
Madrid´s Hostal Acapulco, new in Rick Steve´s Spain book is a wonderful
hostal. I am staying here right now for 6 days. It is very centrally located
with great amenities for a three star hostal. Very quiet and safe area by
Plaza Carmen. The email reservation communication with Javier, son´s owner
and software engineer who helps his parents manage the place is very helpful
and a welcoming host. The rooms are so clean with matching wooden furnitures
and beddings, marble floors and bathrooms. This is a wonderful hostal and
will be back on my way home for more days! What a fine hostal. Thanks, Rick.
Grace <email>
Buckley, WA USA 06/05/03
This hotel in Nerja was our favorite
We just got back from our grand 13 days in Spain (21 May thru 2 June) and
I wanted to tell you about our find - Hostal Casa Mercedes in Nerja. We
had a double room with extra bed (#2), a large bathroom and a large patio
with a beautiful view of the Mediterrian. It is about a 10 minute walk (up
Bajamar Andalucia) from the best beach (Playa de Burrrianna). The 64.20
Euros per night included breakfast for three (prices go up June-Oct). Look
at the www.casa-mercedes.com website. The address is Maria de Waard 18b,
29780 Nerja (Malaga). They have a pool and there is easy free parking on
the street. Delia was wonderful answering my email and even nicer in person.
Casa Mercedes was a great value and a wonderful place to stay. Tel./Fax:
+34 952 523 164 Cell: +34 661536188 Email cmercedes@telefonica.net
Bambi Murphy <email>
Tulsa, OK USA 06/05/03
Portugal
Recently we had occasion to use your 2003 Spain/Portugal guide on a trip
to Portugal. Although our trip combined business and holidays, we found
the guides always helpful as to transportation options, museum info, and
restaurants. In Lisbon, we stayed at Residencial America, on the airport
bus line, and next to the Picoas subway stop. A block away, in the modern
shopping center Picoas Plaza, we found a restaurant called 'Orizon' (info@restaurante.orizon.com).
We were told it is one of three in Lisbon of the same name and owner. We
highly recommend their fruit/salad bar, which could be a meal in itself
for 5 euros. For our first day of sightseeing we took the bus to Evora,
where we stayed at Residencial Policarpo. We loved the rooms with their
colorful painted furniture. Next we took a direct bus to Coimbra where we
stayed at Residencia Aeminium. Here was the only error we found in your
book. By calling the number in the guide, we inadvertantly made our reservations
at the Hotel Oslo (next door) for twice the price. On arrival, after some
discussion, they did give us the less expensive rooms in the Residencia.
The telephone for Residencia is 239 829 426, not the same as that of the
Hotel Oslo as in your guide. In Coimbra we very much enjoyed dinner at the
Restaurante Jardin du Manga, for its convenience, friendly service, and
tasty variety of entrees. We were less impressed with the Adega Paco do
Condo where the grilled meat was unevenly cooked. We also note that the
recommended Pastelaria Briosa, on the main square in Coimbra was closed
(apparently for good) at the time of our visit in April 2003. All in all
we had a delightful visit (despite the April rain) and would love to return
for a more leisurely holiday.
Carol Maclennan <email>
NJ USA 06/03/03
Barcelona Travel Information
The TI in the Barcelona Sants Railroad Station closes at 2PM on weekends,
so you'll have to try the ones elsewhere that should be open.
Shane Cook <email>
Austin, TX USA 05/30/03
Spain, Nerja and Madrid hotels
We spent two weeks in Spain in May 2003, using many of the tips from Rick's
book. Our four days in Nerja were some of our favorites and Hostal Mena
was great! We had a room on the second floor - to the back. The balcony
looked over the garden to the Mediteranean. Great location. It was spacious,
clean and quiet. What a wonderful, restful place, at only 47E. The rooms
to the front would be pretty noisy I think, becuase it is right on the street,
but the ones in the back are great. We found the same to be true at the
Hotel Europa in Madrid. We really liked the hotel and the staff was great
but our room the first night looked out on to the street and was very noisy.
They graciously moved us to a quieter romm for our last three nights there.
Great food, great trip, and the Spanish people were wonderful and helpful.
We have been to Europe 5 other times, and always follow Ricks suggestions
as much as possible - only way to go!!
Sara <email>
Redwood Falls , MN USA 05/23/03
Selema/Romantik Villa - Women traveling by car
Just back from Spain/Portugal/Morocco/Gibralta Your book was great - have
used them the last four major European trip in four years. Like how you
are adding more about car travel - into and out of cities, parking, etc.
We are four women (30's-50's)who like the independence of car travel and
at this point wouldn't do it any other way. We find it inexpensive even
with two traveling and love avoiding train station areas. Found at great
place to stay in Selema, Portugal in April when John was full. Romantik
Villa up on the hill, great view, recently updated, all the amenities, spotless,
pool, just gorgeous and perfect for us. Owners spoke English and were delightful.
We stayed two nights and wished we had more time to liger. About 60 Euros
a night per room, sleeps two - great bargain! No meals but plenty of places
in Selema to eat or buy fix'ins! I guess the only draw back is that there
are only four rooms - but if you are lucky enough to get one...a little
piece of heaven!! Loved our travels in Italy, France, Greece, Ireland, Germany,
Slovenia, Hungary, Austria, Slovakia all by car - just women - and having
a great time! Need any mature women to travel for you? We're ready!!!
Pat O'Connell <email>
Alexandria, VA, VA USA 05/28/03
Ondablu laundromat, Madrid
Another laundromat for Madrid: Lavendaria Ondablu Calle León, 3, Madrid.
(near intersection with C/ Cervantes) Metro: Antón Martin (And a reasonable
stroll from Puerto del Sol) http://www.ondablu.com/ tel 91 369 50 71 Open
every day from 9h to 22:30h. Wash 8 kg: €3.50. 16 kg: €5.00
Dry 8 kg: €3.50. 16 kg: €5.00 It´s within 50m of the lavendaria
mentioned in Rick´s book. Pluses: open later, has a helpful attendant, and
internet access while you wash!
Jim DeLaHunt <email>
San Jose, CA USA 05/24/03
Hotel Continental, Barcelona: A Review!!
We stayed at Hotel Continental for 4 nights recently. Rick highly recommends
it, but we wanted peopleto beware of a few PROBLEMS we encountered. Firstly,
I made reservations 5 months in advance and got the last available room.
We did NOT want a Rambla view room bcause the steeet and nearby traffic
noise are a problem. (You'll get enough view of the Ramblas during the day,
Believe me). Next most of the double queen rooms are very small, barely
able to get around the bed. But, we were ok with that. Number 3: It does
have a great location for picking up the Aerobus to the airport or using
the Tourist BUs for sight seeing. Number 4: The expanded continental breakfast
is a nice way to start your day (currently there is no charge for breakfast)
Number 5: AND most importantly! We did have a MAJOR problem with the fact
that the hotel seemed to cater to booking large groups of young European
soccer(football) groups. These kids ran up and down the halls all night
long yelling. After contacting the night manager repeatedly, who did little
to stop this, the melee would end around 3 A.M. Needless to say we did not
sleep and felt awful. In the morning we complained at the front desk and
received silent nodding and an offer of a 13 Euro discount. This was not
very satisfying. (WE did attempt to checkout, but all nearby hotels wer
full!) So, beware that larger ( and Noiser) groups seem more important to
the hotels than you an I. We did mention we would be reporting our experience
back to Rick and got a blank stare. So, just beware of the possible snafus.
Happy Travels
Cathy
St. Paul, MN USA 05/23/03
Miro museum in Barcelona
In your guidebook you mentioned the using the audio Guide at Miro Museum.
Great advice! I spent about 3 hrs at the Museum only beacuse you said he
was for real. You were right. Understanding what he was up to took some
time and effort, but well worth it. It was a wonderful experience! Thanks.
San Diego, Ca USA 05/18/03
Towns in Spain, Portugal
Very good call on Salema; I have some Portuguese students who haven't heard
of it, or been there! Would love information on the north of Portugal, esp.
Braga, Porto. Should include Trujillo and Merida in Spain, as they are both
great stops en route to Madrid/Lisbon.
Kristin Pedroja <email>
Lisbon, Portugal 05/13/03
Madrid Eating
La Casa de Abuelo in Rick's Book (And Fodor's also) doesn't look like much
as previously mentioned in someone's comment, but was the best place I have
ever eaten in Madrid. Don't let standing up fool you. Order a few rounds
of shrimp and the vino de la casa. I take 2 bottles home every time I go.
I live in Barcelona and have been to Madrid 4 times. I go there every time.
Christine <email>
Barcelona, Spain 05/12/03
Southern Portugal = True Vacation
We just returned from a wonderful vacation in Portugal. We flew into Lisbon,
stayed at a hotel, and then headed down to the Algarve (Lagos) by bus. The
trip took 4 hours, was comfortable and cost only 29 euros for the both of
us. Our gracious B+B hosts picked us up in Lagos and drove us to their beautiful
villa in Salema. Now we knew we were on vacation. Sun, pool, beach and quaint
Portugese fishing village. Thanks to this graffiti wall and Ivone's recommendations,
we met Fridolin, Xenia and Peter Kowatschitsch. The retired Austrian couple
and their son run a "home away from home" complete with breakfast, tours
of the dinosaur footprints and true serenity. Very reasonable at 50 euros
a night. They love pets, so if you have allergies to cats it might be a
concern. Otherwise, I don't think you'll find a better, more accomodating
place to stay in the Algarve. Renting a car was not a problem either and
with the new road that just opened April 11th, we were back in Lisbon in
less than 3 hours. The information is: Villa Dame de Salema, tel. (351)
283-695682 or e-mail rop83040@mail.telepac.pt. (You can also read Ivone's
comments on this wall). Happy relaxing and enjoy the wonderful fish in Portugal!
Carlyn Zaniboni & Dennis Uyenoyama <email>
Rome, Italy 05/04/03
Salamanca and Toledo
I spent 8 wonderful days in Spain in early April. Visited my niece, who's
studying at the university in Salamanca, and then the two of us traveled
to Toledo by train.
We both LOVED Toledo and would go back again. Spent 3 nights and 2-1/2 days there. We did the walk around the city via the highway as suggested - it was wonderful. I cannot say enough good things about the Hotel Santa Isabel in Toledo - it was perfect. For 42 euros a night we had a beautiful, modern room with a million dollar view of the city. Staff was friendly and helpful, excellent location very near the cathedral, pleasant breakfast room, beautiful lobbies, and a great roof terrace. Their website is www.santa-isabel.com.
Salamanca is also a beautiful, historic city. The Rua Mayor area actually reminded me a lot of Oxford, England. The plaza is huge and grand. The city is about a 2-1/2 hour bus ride from Madrid, but the public buses are comfortable, punctual, and very reasonable. I stayed at the Hosteria Santa Maria (www.hosteriasantamaria.com) which was excellent in every way and about a 5 minute walk from the plaza.
People were friendly and gracious, but few in either Toledo or Salamanca
spoke English, even at the tourist office. You'll do fine with a phrasebook
though.
Judith Beck <email>
Perkasie, , PA USA 04/26/03
Stephen Drake-Jones: Old Madrid Walking Tour
The Old Madrid Walking Tour was quoted as costing a total of 65 Euros, which
was to include the walking tour, refreshments (tapas & drinks) and a family
membership to the Wellington Society of Madrid. In an email prior to leaving
for Spain, Stephen Drake-Jones wrote, "65 Euros is a total amount and you
pay nothing else." At the end of our tour, Mr. Drake-Jones hit my husband
up for an additional FIFTY Euros. Not quite knowing what was quoted, he
paid it. We ended up paying $126 for a 2 hour walking tour (plus light snacks
and refreshments)for a family of four. Might I add, not much ground was
covered during our tour. This was our only disappointment while in Spain,
otherwise, we had a GREAT trip!
D.S.
Shropshire, UK 04/21/03
Also just back from Spain
I just came back from a 17 day trip to Spain and Portugal and it was great.
I left when the war started and came back during the war and there were
no problems whatsoever. So do not let the war stop your travels! The following
are the places I went and where I stayed.
First I went to Barcelona-it was great. Took the AeroBus as recommended in Rick s book. Stayed at Hotel Continental. The hotel was on a great location right on the Ramblas! The staff was friendly and the room, though small, served all our needs. Did the Ramblas walk which was a great intro to the city. In fact I did all of Rick's walks in every city we were in . I recommend them: they are really informative! Also did all the suggested sights and thought they were all great. Spent about 1 day and a half. Do the Casa Mila, Cathedral and for the best view go to the park. These are all very easy to get to.
Then took the overnight train to Madrid. This was a bit tough; try to avoid the top bunk. All the heat rises to the top and it nearly cooked me. However my travel companion was not affected at all and had a good night's rest so it really depends on the type of person you are.
Arrived in Madrid and rented a car through Hertz. I found that it was cheaper to go through Hertz directly than rather through a travel agent. I did go through an agent for my airline tickets. Then picked up the car (had an international drivers permit from AAA) and drove to Segovia. On the way stopped at El Escorial and Valley of the Fallen-WOW! Got to Segovia with no hotel reservations but went to El Gato (in the guidebook) and got a room very easily. It was a great room at a great price. The city is small but beautiful and the sights are magical. Seeing the Roman aqueduct at night was a great experience. Ate the Meson Candido and it was a great meal and experience.
Next returned to Madrid and returned the car at the CharMartin Station. Driving in Madrid was a bit tricky but no harder than driving in a big city here in the States. Stayed at Hotel Europa and got around effortlessly with the Metro. The Hotel was great-nice room and great location. The pass was a bit more (like 30 cents) more than listed but it was no big deal at all. Everyone was really helpful getting around the city. Highlights of Madrid: the Prado art museum (a must-see). Also if visiting the Prado, take the chapter from Rick Steve s Mona Winks. It was a lot better than the descriptions that are given at the muesuem. I followed along with the map and descriptions and had a great time. In fact strangers asked me to read to them from the pages that I had! The Royal Palace was great as well. Took a train to Toledo and thought that was a great getaway from Madrid on the third day. Then returned to Madrid and got ready for Granada.
The train ride to Granada was nice. There is an 8:15ish train that gets to Granada at 2 from Madrid. The cost was 25 Euros one-way. Alhambra was awesome. I bought my tickets ahead of time on the internet, which saved me the big, long line to get in. Do not miss seeing it during the day and at night from St. Nicholas viewpoint. Stayed at Los Tilos which was very nice and very easy to get to.
Then we got another car and drove through the White Hill towns. From Granada it took about 3 hours to get to Ronda-but what a drive. It was so beautiful that we did not even feel the hours. Ronda was great-the bridge over the gorge was awesome. Also went to the bullring, which was nice because it was all set up for the tourists to walk through with good English explanations. Then from there went to Grazelema which was great. It seemed that we were the only ones there besides the locals. We saw sheep farmers running on the roads-quite a site. Then we spent the night at Arcos de la Frontera at El Convento. The hotel staff were very nice. We did not get the balcony but the view from the toilet was awesome. Did the walk and thought the White Hill towns were a highlight of the trip.
Then drove to Seville the next day and stayed at Hotel Simon. Very easy to get to from the Cathedral and great location. The rooms were old but were very nice. Saw a flamenco show with no dinner. I would recommend a show in Casa para la memoria de anadulas-it is 10 Euros and very intimate setting. Then have dinner at a less expensive place.
After two days we went to Lagos/Salema. We went by bus and it was very easy and inexpensive. Left at 7:30 and got to Lagos at 3 ish. There were no taxis to be found from where we were, so we called Jose from Rick's book. He was great! He speaks English and was very friendly. In fact he took us to the train station at 6 in the morning when we left Salema. We stayed at the Pension Mare with John. It was great! The room was spacious and three minutes from the beach. It was nice to be resting in the Algarve. We ate great food at the Boia Bar. We walked to the cliffs and seemed to be at the edge of the world. If you want a moped (which would be great fun in Salema) make sure to book a day before.
Then went to Lisbon via train from Salema-Jose took us and we got the 655 AM train to Lisbon and got there at 1100 AM. Arriving at Lisbon took the ferry and made it across around 1200. We took a taxi to the hotel Roma Residencia which was about 5 euros. The hotel was great again great location and nice rooms! Taking a taxi to the Belem district was about 13 Euros-but we took the bus back which made for a good morning. Also went to Sintra-when in Lisbon-if you have two days go to the Belem district and Sintra-WOW! Getting to Sintra is a snap; it costs less than 2 euros and takes about 40 minutes. Follow the guidebook on how to do the sites in Sintra, and definitely picnic when there. We did in the Pena gardens and it was great.
I would say find your own places to eat. Rick's recommendations are good
but there are so many that you should just follow your instinct and explore.
I found it to be more fun that way. Also we did go out at night but found
Rick's book to be lacking in nightlife info. We took Let's Go and it made
this trip perfect. I would like to thank Rick because w/o his guidebook
this trip would not have been as good as it was!
Fernando <email>
Salt Lake, UT USA 04/07/03
Just Got back from Spain
We just got back from 2 weeks in Spain. One highlight of the trip was our
tour with Stephen Drake-Jones, Rick's recommended tour guide in Madrid.
He was wonderful and I am so glad Rick recommended him. By the way, Stephen
has a fledgling "grafitti wall" of his own on his "Wellington Society" web
site-check it out.
We were in Madrid during the first days of war and protests. It was a bit scary since we stayed a block away from Plaza del Sol, which was filled that night. We just stayed in. The Spanish have lots of resources in their country but they could take several lessons from Italy as being tourist friendly. A lot of places had little or no english and their Tourist Information offices enjoy the siesta everyone else takes while the tourists stumble around because they can't get help. You'd think that they would figure out that supporting their tourism industry pays big time.
On a pleasant note, although spain is the smokiest of countries we had
been in certainly worse than Italy, there are non-smoking accomodations
that can be found.
Jim Meehan <email>
McLean, VA USA 04/05/03
Hotel Europa, Madrid
My sister and I stayed at the Hotel Europa in Madrid, February 2003. The
hotel was perfect, a great price, great location, friendly and efficient
staff. There were lots of places to eat nearby, and plenty to do, including
museums, el rastro market, parks, and entertainment.
Shelli Dunayer <email>
St Petersburg, FL USA 03/28/03
Spain & Portugal
I recently returned from two weeks in Spain (December 2002) and a month
in Portugal (February 2003) and highly recommend Rick's book. I never would
have survived without his Spanish & Portuguese Phrase Book. In Spain I visited
Madrid, Salamanca, Sevilla, Rhonda & Granada.
As a solo female traveler, all of my touring was done on foot or by train. All of the cities were very festive with the coming celebration of Christmas. I did not, however, enjoy the food that much. Tapas and bocadillos were my food of choice. The people of central Spain, while nice, were not that friendly and very few spoke any English. In southern Spain, English was spoke everywhere. If it weren't for Rick's phrase book, I would never have been able to book my train tickets in Madrid's Renfe stations. In Sevilla, after about 10 minutes of trying to book 3 different train trips, the Renfe agent finally relented and spoke perfect English! I guess he justed wanted to see me struggle, which I didn't mind a bit.
Southern Spain was beautiful. The Parador Rhonda is spectacular along with its views and the Ana Capri hotel in Granada was just fine. The location was wonderful for the solo traveler on foot. The Royal Palace in Madrid is a must see. In Granada, the Alhambra was a disappointment as most of it was closed for renovations. The jewel of the trip was the Alcazar in Sevilla. It was absolutely worth the whole trip.
Portugal is wonderful. The people are extremely friendly and will struggle to help you even when your Portuguese is just horrific! (Again Rick's phrase book is a gem.) Portugal, for all it's scrubby charm and rural nature, is fast disappearing, especially in the Algarve and inland. I recommend Salema, Tavira and Cabanas for anyone who wants to see the remnants of a Portuguese fishing town in the Algarve. In about 3 years they will be gone with all the construction that is going on right now.
The food in Portugal is excellent, with fresh fish, lamb and beef. I strongly recommend the small (10 tables or less restraurants in the coastal towns). Also, Portuguese wines are sold in half bottles so I sampled the regional fare wherever I went and I am now a convert to Portuguese (red) wines.
Never once in either country did I feel threatened or unsafe. Two nights in Madrid were a little scary since I was staying at a hotel on the pedestrian streets, off the Puerta del Sol, and the shopping crowds were so thick no one was moving. That's when a moneybelt came in real handy. Also, when walking at night, as a single female traveler, I try to walk right behind a family with small children (Europeans dine out late with their children). In this way, I try to look part of a larger group and not a single target. Keep your most of your cash, air and train tickets and credit cards in the hotel safe. Be alert, be smart and be friendly and you will have a wonderful experience.
Also, for women, bring a washcloth if you use them and your high-wattage travel hairdryer if you have thick, long hair like me. The hotel hairdryers will never dry your hair! And never bring more than one small suitcase and a small carry-on bag as none of the stations have elevators and you will be walking around with your bags quite a bit!
Susan <email>
Germantown, MD USA 03/26/03
Seville: Hostal Sabriego/Sabariego Sanchez great!
We went to Spain in May, 2002. Although most of the places Rick recommended
in the cities we chose to visit were unavailable (our itinerary and the
hotels we chose can be seen here: http://scalefigure.com/itinerary), we
did actually get in at the Hostal Sanchez Sabriego/Sabariego (I can't remember
how to spell it, sorry!). Someone else complained about this hotel and I
feel obliged to point out how charming we thought it is, ideally located
and a very good bargain to boot. We've got pictures of it online at http://scalefigure.com/spain/seville.php?i=41,
if you don't believe me! Look at the pretty atrium, the lovely balconies,
and the way the light shines inside of the building. Even though it was
cash only, we though we got a great deal here and I'm glad for the recommendation.
My general tip to all: call a month in advance for Barcelona, or as soon
as you know you are going, to make your reservations! I called seven hotels
before I could find one with an opening, and walking through the Barri
Gotic when we were there, night after night the hotels all had the sign
saying "FULL" in their front windows. (Although truth be told the hotel
owners all know who does have a bed, so I'm sure the unprepared traveller
probably won't be thrown on the street.)
T. Wiswell <email>
Seattle, WA USA 03/14/03
Spain & Portugal
Three of us (ages 50, 55, 73) spent the month of January following part
of Rick's tour from Madrid with stops in Segovia, Salamanca, Coimbra, Lisbon,
Evora, Salema, Sevilla and Toledo. In the north the weather was chilly,
highs about +5 to 10C. From Lisbon south, the highs were a nice 13 to 18C.
It was a good time of year to travel because there were hardly any tourists,
yet all the attractions are open. We booked accomodations before leaving
to make sure we got the type of place we wanted (central, clean, english-
speaking, bath or shower in room and low-cost). When possible we booked
places recommended in Rick's book. We found valuable information on the
Graffiti Wall so I'll pass along some tips.
Our hotels were all good and met our objectives. It's great staying in the center of everything because our daily tours were on foot and very close. Here's where we stayed: Hostal Gonzalo in Madrid (4 nts), Hostal Don Jaime in Segovia (1 nt), Hostal Italia in Salamanca (1 nt), Hotel Astoria in Coimbra (1 nt), Residencia Roma in Lisbon (5 nts with kitchen), Youth Hostel in Evora (1 nt), Pension Mare in Salema (5 nts with kitchen), Apartment Murillo in Sevilla (3 nts with kitchen) and Hotel Imperio in Toledo (3 nts). Daily room rates were from 33 euros to 54 euros for a double.
The length of stay in each city was just right to see the main sights. We could have used more time in Madrid and Lisbon. Salema was a great "vacation away from the vacation" and you can't beat Apartment "A" in Pension Mare for an Algarve stop.
The two places we stayed that are not in Rick's book (Italia & Murillo) we found on the internet. They were both good choices.
The cost of food in Spain and Portugal is comparable to home and the mix of "self-catering" and restaurants worked well for us. It helped us to eat lower fat foods and to keep the costs down.
Each day was filled with wonderful sights, galleries, museums, ambiance and lots of walking. Here are some tips. El Escorial offers both a guided english tour and the wand audio tours in english. I'd recommend both, but get the wand before starting the guided tour to save walking. We found the Meson de Candido in Segovia over-rated and over-priced. We had much better meals in the smaller places we found on our own. The Stephen Drake-Jones tour was great. There were only the three of us on the walk and we visited 4 tapas bars over the 4-hour tour. The art galleries were excellent and on a par with the best anywhere. Many galleries and cathedrals have english audio wands.
Just about everyone we met under the age of 25 in Portugal speaks english (which they learn in school). In Spain, english speakers were not as common, however we had no trouble getting by.
In the cities, a car is useless. We just found a nearby garage and walked or used public transit. Ask the hotel where to park. If they had something, it was cheaper and closer than a public garage we'd find on our own. Secure parking ranged cost 6 to 13 euros per day. We picked up the car in Madrid and dropped it in Toledo. There was no problem getting from Toledo to Madrid airport by bus and subway (2.5 hours during rush-hour).
Spain and Portugal were great and we'll be back some day. Thanks to Rick
Steves and graffiti contributors for your help.
Bruce Adamson <email>
Thunder Bay, ON, ON CA 03/03/03
Pamplona: Running of the Fools
It is not just a matter of specific nationalities running amok in Pamplona
during the Running of the Bulls: every drunk there is obnoxious and the
whole situation is ugly. The local newspaper coverage sets the tone. Last
summer, it featured close up pictures of medics treating a cute blond American
girl, who had her calf literally ripped to shreds by a goring. Stay away
unless you are young and nuts.
Joe <email>
Santa Barbara, ca USA 02/28/03
Spain & Portugal 2003 book update
The Sintra Moorish castle is no longer free for people who hike it up. This
has been changed a year and a half ago. We were there Feb, 2003.
stan <email>
seattle, WA USA 02/28/03
Family fun in Sevilla and Madrid
Notes for families... In Sevilla, take Concepcion Delgado's walking tour.
It's all outside and she takes you down some of the wandering little sidestreets
you might never see on your own. For our family of 5, she only charged for
4. Email her before you go; she will respond promptly and her English is
superb.
In Madrid, go see the armory at the Palacio Real. It is a very large
room filled with sets of armor for both man and beast. It is a great antidote
for antsy children or adults who need a break from the excess of the palace.
Anne <email>
West Hartford, CT USA 02/24/03
Spain
Went on family trip to Spain in Nov. Loved the book, it helped us to find
many a good meal, and to spend our time wisely. I agree it is best used
in conjunction with other guides, if more detailed maps and sites is needed.
It would have helped our Grandma to have information for disabled travelers
as there was some dificulty from time to time.
N E
Albany , NY USA 02/22/03
Hotels from recent trip
For what it's worth, here are the hotels we found in Iberia these past three
weeks, what we paid, what we got and what we thought. Caveat emptor!
Madrid: NH Hotel Nacional -- right on top of Atocha railroad station, right next door to McDonald's, (for those who cannot do without). Quite expensive during the week, but the rate falls bigtime Fri - Sun night. Quite comfortable, although the rooms are small. No breakfast included. Near lots and lots of cafes, including two friendly ones on Calle de Atocha. Extremely well-placed for museum hopping. Rates: weekdays = $170, weekends = $103.
Granada: Casa de Aljarife -- right in the Albaicin in the old section of town. Not for those with lots of bags, a car or heart conditions. Straight uphill. We thought that quarter of town a dump, while some would say it is charming. We don't find overflowing garbage bins charming. The hotel/b&b itself has a rather brusque owner and lumpy beds. Great views of the Alhambra, though. Cost was about $96/night including breakfast. Ho-hum.
Carmona: Parador San Francisco right up the hill from town. WOW! Beautiful place, great room, lovely vista out on the plains, special deals in off-season, including ours with half-board (breakfast, dinner) which came out to E374 for two days in a first-class hotel room with first-class meals. Seville is a 40-minute drive away, so you can come and go as much as you like, but not stay in some ripoff hotel (unless it is the Alfonso XIII, which is another WOW place, both in terms of decor and price). Highly recommended.
Faro, Portugal: Hotel Eva -- right on the waterfront. Nice room, a little stinky on the mildew side and watch out when the young 'ens run around at 4 AM, drunk on aguardente, screaming outside your windows...and this was the off-season! Breakfast included and the rate was swell = $95/night. We just thought most of the Algarve sucked, to put it mildly.
Evora: Albergaria do Solar Monfarim -- this was the big bargain of the trip. Gigantic ensuite room in a typical Portuguese residencial. Lovely breakfast (you can take on the terrace in high season), friendly staff, parking spots...we loved it. $66/night. Yowzah!!
Lisbon: Hotel Metropole -- you couldn't ask for a better location, right
on the Rossio, double-glazed windows cut down on the noise, breakfast
included with your enormous room. Great rate with Expedia = $120/night,
at an incredible location. Highly recommended.
Shelley
Hudson, NY USA 02/14/03
14 Feb 03 Spain Update
We just got back from Spain (last night) and I offer a few comments and
updates:
1) The Hostal R. Veracruz II at #1 Victoria Street was great. I highly recommend it. Each room has its own full bathroom, color TV w/remote, little safe in the closet, and everything sparkling clean - absolutely. Our family of five had one double and one triple and it was just over $100 per night. Over four nights we saved $165 off the very nice looking Hotel Europa. BTW, the Veracruz is just off Puerta del Sol, above the Museo de Jamon. The people are a bit reserved, but I think they are just beginning to get Americans because of Rick's listing. They were caring and helpful.
2) We enjoyed Rick's walking tour from Plaza Mayor to the National Palace. But we really enjoyed his recommendation to buy cookies from the nuns just past the Mercado San Miguel. You definitely want to do this! The cookies (both the Almendra and the galletas) are excellent. But it was fun! You don't see much inside, but it's a fun thing.
3) We enjoyed Manasterio Real de La Incarnacion, two blocks from the Royal Palace. Be advised -- the wait is long and the tour is short, but the tour is through a very old cloistered convent and well worth it.
4) The only negative part of the experience was one of the streets between
Puerta del Sol and Gran Via is rather given to tattoo parlors, piercing
studios, a couple of sex shops, and street walkers. With our kids, we
didn't like the seediness and it was a slightly threatening enviornment.
It runs on the eastern side of the big Carmen Church. All the other streets,
near Corte Ingles, etc, were fine. Madrid overall was wonderful! The Metro,
the buses, the many plazas, the museums, generally friendly people. A
great trip.
Brad Bruton <email>
Sterlins, VA USA 02/13/03
Lisbon Hotel
We spent three January nights in Lisbon at Hotel Lisboa Tejo. It's in Rick's
book on Portugal and is just lovely. It couldn't be better located and we
had a room for three that was actually a beautifully renovated suite. They
were finishing up a remodeling, so if you travel this spring and summer,
everything should be done. We recommend it highly.
Julie Miller <email>
Wurzburg, Germany 02/12/03
Spain
We traveled over Thanksgiving and into December to Spain, traveling by train
in a big loop from Madrid through the south, over to Barcelona and back.
It was fabulous! It was a perfect time to go--lower prices, fewer crowds,
and decent weather. Some thoughts:
(1) The Alavera de los Banos in Ronda is great. The rooms were wonderful--simple, cozy, yet elegant in a rustic way. And the breakfast was the best in Spain! It was the best place we stayed and a great value for the price.
(2) We enjoyed Toledo best at night after all the tours left--we caught a free concert in the Cathedral, a serenade at Plaza Zodocover, it was a magical evening.
(3) The proprietor of Hotel Landazuri in Granada kept our passport overnight and made us pay in advance, cash only--and the hotel was pretty ramshackle. at least it was cheap and had a good location. The Alhambra was fantastic and the view from San Nicholas mirador, with the Alhambra and the Sierra Nevadas in the background at sunset, was breathtaking. There is a little cafe just steps away where you can drink Alhambra brand beer and just enjoy the amazing view.
(4) We enjoyed just wandering in the Santa Cruz neighborhood in Sevilla, so much charm and great tapas. We took the AVE train from Madrid, very fast and comfortable.
(5) Artemesia vegetarian restaurant in Madrid was some of the best food we had in Spain.
(6) Irati tapas bar in Barcelona was the friendliest place for us to experiment with many different tapas at a reasonable price.
(7) Gibraltar was a bit disappointing due to the ugly sprawl but still interesting because of the history and the monkeys. If you go, schedule a day tour thru a tour company in advance, don't just get there and do a taxi tour (they don't take you everywhere and are expensive, and we couldn't find the real tour companies' entry points).
(8) Nearly every hotel we used was in Rick's book and had a website to schedule, which made the process so easy and gave us confirmations in writing. Try searching on the web for the name of the hotel and the city and you should find their reservation website.
(9) The Hotel Continental in Barcelona was perfectly located just steps from the Metro and at the top of the Ramblas. The 24 hour coffee bar and free breakfast were great. Speaking of coffee, get used to it European style -- that's all you get.
(10) Gerona was a short day trip from Barcelona -- very much worth the
effort.
Hilary & John <email>
Tallahassee, FL USA 02/10/03
Toledo, Madrid, El Escorial, and Segovia
My wife and I just returned from a short trip. We live in Germany, and took
Germanwings (www.germanwings.com) to fly from Cologne, Germany to Madrid,
Spain for 76 euros round-trip for both of us, including taxes. More information
is in the "Savings Tips" section of the Graffiti Wall.
After we arrive in Madrid, we took the airport shuttle to Plaza Colon (2.40 euro per person per way). Then we took a cab to Atocha Train Station, and took a train to Toledo. We slept in Hotel Imperio.
Toledo was okay. Many sites were closed due to renovation (Alcazar, Museo El Greco, Sinagoga del Transito, etc.). We were able to visit the Cathedral, and Santa Cruz Museum was open. We did not find the city too interesting, and it was touristy. We checked out the "flea" market on Tuesday morning. The flea market is really not a flea market, but a bunch of merchants selling cheap stuff to local people - not worth your time.
The hotel (Imperio) was fine and friendly. They gave us 5% discount for showing Rick Steves' book as mentioned in the book.
We ate at recommended Casa Aurelio III (I and II were closed on Monday). Very expensive, and the food was not that good. We had the recommended roasted suckling pig and baby lamb.
The next day, we took the train to Madrid, and spent two nights at Hotel Europa. The hotel was fine. We paid 65 euros plus tax. There were some street noises at night. We really liked its location.
Initally, I was going to go to one of the two internet cafes mentioned in Rick's book on Gran Via, but found an internet cafe called, easyInternetCafe, about 50 meters from Puerta del Sol. Its address is Calle Montera 10. It is located on the back side of Hotel Europa, across the street from KFC. It is open 24 hours, easy to use, and cost about 1 euro for one hour. Be aware of thieves. I heard one woman complaining about her bag being stolen by someone while using the internet.
We found Madrid similar to other big European cities: crowded and not too interesting. We did the recommended walk from Sol to Royal Palace. We could not find the Torre del Oro Bar Andalu. The book needs better directions for finding it. We found everything else. The Royal Palace was decent, though we have seen better palaces in other cities or countries. Prado Museum was a disappointment to us since we have little interest in older paintings. We enjoyed the Reina Sofia as it has more modern art displays.
We also did the Pub-Crawl Dinner as outlined in the book. We found all the places interesting and fun, except La Casa del Abuelo (didn't look too interesting or of good value for money from outside) and couldn't find Casa Toni (we think it went out of business). We really liked Museo del Jamon for their price, service, and interesting food choices with pictures to choose from. It was packed with locals and some tourists on a weekday night.
We took the metro to get to Moncloa to catch a bus to get to El Escorial. When we got there we found out the monastery closes at 1700 in winter unlike 1800 in the book. So instead of seeing the monastery, we opted to see the Valley of the Fallen. We enjoyed our time there though we thought two hours was too long to see the sites. It takes well less than an hour to see it. The funicular was not operating, and according to the lady who works there, it has not been operating for three years, and she did not know when it will be operational again. Please update this information in the book.
After we were done in Madrid, we took a bus near metro stop Principe Pio to catch a bus to Segovia. Be sure to get a bus ticket from the ticket office before going to the bus.
We really enjoyed the trip to Segovia as much as we enjoyed the city. The view was great during the bus trip to the city. We saw many small towns as well as spectacular snow-covered mountains along the way. We slept in Hostal Don Jamie as Rick recommends. The hostal was very clean and people friendly. You will appreciate the location since you don't have to climb up to the city center. The climb would have been pretty hard with heavy bags. We really liked the atmosphere of Segovia. It was less touristy than Toledo. We enjoyed looking at the huge Roman Aquaduct. We did not get to go into the Cathedral and Alcazar due to early closure in winter, but we still enjoyed the city and the looks of the cathedral and alcazar from outside. We really liked Segovia, and wished you spent more time here than in Toledo or Madrid. The recommended restaurant, Jose Maria, was closed due to renovation.
On the way back to Madrid, we found out that you could get off the bus at Moncloa or Principe Pio, meaning you can catch the bus from either location to go to Segovia. The book only mentions Principe Pio.
Theft Tips - We have travelled in many European cities, and we have yet
to lose anything to theft. Maybe we have been lucky so far. We think we
have some techniques which make us less of a target. We use the "wingman"
technique: when one person is looking at a map or asking for directions,
the other is "covering" the other person, especially the bag. We use this
technique even when we walk in metro, ride escalators, etc. We still walk
holding hands most of time, but when things get tight, one person with
a backpack walks right in front of the "wingman." When we enter crowded
areas, such as metro or flea market, and think people will be rubbing
elbows with each other, we wear our backpacks on the front, and keep our
hands in pockets or on top of valuables, such as camera. After we enter
a subway, the person with a backpack leans against a wall, or stands in
a corner, making it very difficult to open the backpack. We use this technique
even when we use internet cafes. Basically, we are constantly aware of
our surroundings but we still enjoy ourselves.
Jay Cha <email>
Schweinfurt, Germany 01/18/03
Possible 2002 Guide Book Inaccuracies
We traveled to Spain and Portugal in mid-Oct to mid-Nov 2002 and came across
a number of things that were different than described in the 2002 guide
book.
Barcelona - the opening hours for the cathedral were not correct (Let's Go had the correct times); the Barcelona Modernissmo ticket did not include the Gaudi attractions (not sure if this was just true for 2002 because it was declared the Year of Gaudi); Pizza Marzano had a better selection, pizza, atmosphere, and bathrooms than LaPoma recommended by Rick (prices were similar).
Figueres - the guide book led us to believe that the Dali museum did not have any labels in English, but it did; also, we never did find the video mentioned in the guide book.
Seville - Bus #70 did not run to the train station; we had to take Bus C1.
Jerez - the Sandeman bodega is open later than 14:00.
Granada - there is an extra charge at the Alhambra to see the upper floors; the guide book gives the impression the upper floors are included in the price of the ticket.
El Escorial - you can only buy the tickets to the Valley of the Fallen at the bus station between 14:45 and 15:15; you take Bus #660A to the Valley and buy the return ticket from the driver when he comes to pick you up at the Valley.
Evora - the museum and choir at the cathedral are closed on Monday (to see the cloister only is 1.50 Euro); the Chapel of Mercy is worth seeing.
Sintra - the ruins are not free (3.00 Euros I think), but they are free
with the Lisboa Card; the bus stop for Bus#434 is to the right of the
train station, not across the street; there is a shuttle from the Pena
Palace bus stop to the Palace that costs 1.50 Euro (it's a long, steep
climb up!).
D. McKinley
St. Louis, USA 01/13/03
A great place to stay in Salema, Portugal
I went to this beautiful small fishing village in November 2002. Thank you,
Rick, for telling me about this place in your book. It was my little paradise
for the 3 days I spent there. I did find my own private little beach where
I hung out for hours. My wonderful B&B hosts showed me a few sites along
the beach where I could find dinosaurs' foot prints and Roman ruins. Speaking
about my B&B hosts, I'd like to recommend them to any of you planning to
go to Salema. They were very friendly and helpful. Their guest house is
clean, comfortable, and beautiful with a great view of the ocean. I was
lucky to have the whole house to myself since I was the only guest they
had at that time - a bonus for traveling during off season. The house is
a little bit uphill from the beach, but the walk was enjoyable. Besides,
you can just hang out at the swimming pool if you don't feel like walking
all the way to the beach. For all these I paid only 30 Euros per night including
breakfast!
Here is their information: Villa Dame de Salema Owners: Fridolin & Xenia
Kowatschitsch (they are a retired couple from Austria). Telephone: (351)
282-695682 Fax: (351) 282-695031 Email: rop83040@mail.telepac.pt Website:
http://www.algarve-west.com I really enjoyed their hospitality and kindness.
Plus I got to play with Lola, Maxell (their cats), and Leo (their dog).
The cats sometimes hang out at the guest house, but the dog stayed with
Frido and Xenia at their house, which is nearby the guest house.
Ivone <email>
Seattle, WA USA 01/08/03
Hotel Europa, Madrid
Be careful about the highly polished floors in the rooms in the Hotel Europa
in Madrid. I made the mistake of taking a nap with my socks on, got a leg
cramp, jumped out of bed to staighten my leg, and promply found myself face
down on the floor, bleeding profusely. My feet just slipped out from under
me on the slick as glass floor. Other than the killer floors, it's still
one of our favorite places to stay in Madrid.
Leonard <email>
Tulsa, OK USA 01/01/03
One or two other notes about a December trip: Avila is an excellent
day or overnight stop on the way to or from Salamanca from Madrid (although
darn cold in the winter!), and per my other message, there is very frequent
bus service Madrid-Salamanca and v.v. Also there are many trains or buses
Avila-Madrid. Salamanca-Avila needs prior timetable research, though, as
there are only a couple of buses or trains each day, in particular, there's
nothing at all between about 7 am and 1 pm. Both Auto-Res bus company and
RENFE (train) which serve these routes have good web sites for schedule
info, linked to Spanish tourist office site, in turn linked to this one.
For Sevilla/Cordoba, buy the AVE ticket roundtrip and save 20% over two
separate one-ways. This will work with a Cordoba stopover en route to or
from Sevilla, although that will result in two separate tickets for your
nonstop Madrid-Sevilla leg (not a problem, you don't have to change seats
or anything). Madrid-Sevilla AVE roundtrip costs 100 euros. In Sevilla we
got a super rate at the 5-star Melia Colon through hotels.com for 80 euros
per night for a double (plus 7% hotel tax). There is a Starbucks across
from the Prado for those who do not wish to patronize one of Madrid's mere
10,000 or so more authentically Spanish coffee bars!
PBB
USA 12/20/02
A couple random tips and updates from a trip just last week to Spain.
The Prado was open Sunday until 7:00 pm, rather than 2:30 as stated in all
the guidebooks (not sure whether this is a permanent change). The admission
charge to the Prado and Reina Sofia is not 3 euros, but 3.01 (believe it
or not!), as a result I think of hyper-accuracy in the peseta-euro conversion.
A minimal difference to be sure, but a bit of a pain if you haven't got
that spare penny handy. Rick's guidebooks are not alone in sometimes giving
insufficient attention to bus alternatives. In particular, bus service from
Madrid to Salamanca is much more frequent, and I believe faster and cheaper
than the train (2 1/4 hours about 14 euros one-way, express buses by Auto-Res
leave virtually every hour on the hour from a bus station a block or so
from Conde de Casal metro; decent greyhound-style coaches with reserved
seating, but beware, there's no toilet on board.
PBB
USA 12/20/02
Barcelona and Madrid, Spain.
All the restaurants in Barcelona are mentioned in Rick Steves' book.
Barcelona Restaurants: La Fonda, Les Quinze Nits and Hostal de Rita are
good. La Crema Canela is so so. Look for the fixed Menu, great value, Monday
- Thursday only. Avoid El Pintor Restaurant in the Gothic Quarter, it's
expensive and the food is not up to par. Hotel Toledano in Barcelona is
truly borderline dumpy, the room is small and you can hear your neighbors.
Madrid Restaurants: Cocido at La Bola (Bola,5) near Metro Santa Domingo, and Cochinilo Asado at Botin (Calle de Cuchilleros, 17) near Placa Mayor are excellent. As a matter of fact, the Cochinilo Asado at Botin is better than the ones they served at Candido in Sergovia, home of this dish. Expect to pay around 25 Euros per person at these places. El Txoko (Jovellanos, 3 - in the basement of a Basque cultural building) behind the Congress house, serves interesting Basque's tapas. Avoid high price items at Hotel Europa restaurant (Puerta del Sol) , expensive and not up to par.
EasyInternetCafe 24hrs/day in Barcelona and Madrid.
Barcelona: Near Metro stop Liceu, about the middle of the Ramblas, if you walk toward the Columbus Monument, it's on your right side. Among various options, the 2 Euros for 24 Hrs, and the 4 Euros for 7 days passes are the best.
Madrid: There's one on Mantera, between Gran Via and Puerta del Sol.
If you walk from Gran Via toward Puerta del Sol (3 blocks), it's on your
left side. Same prices and options as the one in Barcelona. EasyInternetCafe
website (Stores locator on right hand pane): http://www.easyeverything.com/
Le Pham
San Jose, CA USA 12/06/02
Spain & Portugal
I am so glad that I bought this book and read it before my trip began. I
was able to do so many more things in addition to the typical tourist attractions
and it wouldn't have been possible without Rick Steves! Muchas gracias,
can't wait for my next trip!
Skye <email>
Syosset, NY USA 11/22/02
Our fantastic 25th in Europe
We went on the trip of our lifetime several months back. We traveled through
most of Europe and settled at Spain as our final destination. We traveled
in May and the weather was unusually cool and wet except in Italy. Even
so, we had a terrific time and we can hardly wait to head back. When we
headed into southern Spain we did run into some problems with getting robbed
as many folks have experianced. The words of caution I would state would
be to never assume that there is no one waiting and watching for you to
slip up. We took our eyes off our knapsack for less than ten seconds and
it was gone. We could summon no help from the authorities which left us
feeling totally ripped. We found the Hotel staff everywhere we traveled
in Europe more than helpful We never had a problem arriving in a city anywhere
in Europe and finding accomidation for the same nite. We found the Hotel
information booths at the rail stations so great. Our budget was an average
of one hundred Euros max and we never went over except in Switzerland. If
we were to go again, and that could be soon, we would probably fly directly
to Rome and then travel by train. Rome stole our hearts and Alicante' stole
our backpacks. I would love to go back to Peniscola again(4 hours south
of Barcelona by car.) That little town has a wonderous beach and so much
to see. In good weather it would be all the resort area any could want.
It was even great when the weather totally sucked. Well we will see you
soon and thank you Rick for the great book. J&D
J & D McInnes <email>
Prince George , B.C. Can 11/17/02
Portugal, Spain, Morocco
September 16-October 16 A month of travel, using Rick's book and ideas from
Europe thru the Back Door. Landed in Lisbon with only our back packs, picked
up a rental car and 4 of us in our 50's had a marvelous spontaneous trip
around the entire Iberian peninsula, meeting great people in all the countries
we visited. We went north thru Nazare, Porto, Burgos, Bilbao, and into the
south of France, thru the Pyrenees. The drive thru Andorra was well worth
the time. Barcelona was having a Fiesta, so museums were closed and We were
unable to find a reasonable Hostel. Went on and found a small treasure of
a beach hotel down the road in Garraf. The ruins at Sugunto were a fantastic
unexpected bonus, not noted in our books. Hills covered with ruins covering
centuries in time, and no charge to visit. On to the Costa Del Sol with
lots of stops along the way. A week at a time share in Nerja. What a wonderful
low key city. A trip to Morocco was wonderful and we would recommend the
medina in Fes, with a guide. There is an incredible ancient city with leather
works and pottery/tile making tours, as well as shops and palaces. We enjoyed
the Alhambra, even in the rain, as well as the Nerja caves. Then on to Selema
as recommended, and stayed for 3 nights, on our way back to Lisbon. We did
not spend a lot of time in the cities, preferring the smaller towns. Went
without any reservations, and were able to find hostels, hotels, and pensions
wherever needed, and still keep the cost down. Not including air fare, but
including a rental car, and everything else we were able to travel for $50
per person per day, or $1500 for a month. A couple of notes. The exchanges
in Nerja wouldn't take $100 bills, and watch out for holidays, as msot places
will be closed, including banks. We will be using Rick's books again. What
a treasure,
Jim and Eileen <email>
Denver, CO USA 11/09/02
Southern Spain
My wife and I returned a month ago from two and a half weeks in Andalusia
and the Algarve. September truly is a high month in Spain; very crowded.
Tough getting a place to stay; prices are definitely steeper. Several parts
of Seville were - closed! There were "obras" (work projects) everywhere:
streets, the cathedral square, even the Maria Luisa park (which was entirely
closed). Wished I had paid for a consult with Rick's staff to find out about
these little surprises. We stayed at the Hostal Sierpes. Sure, the new bathrooms
are shiny, but the beds are awful. Friendly staff. Rented a car at the train
station on leaving Seville. All the highways were excellent. The demolition
derbies were in the towns and cities. Yikes! There is little mercy or patience
for those driving through the streets trying to find a hotel. Download or
buy a map of the city or town you will be driving in. Better than aspirin
for the headaches. Even then you may not be able to see the street name,
because sometimes there is none (particularly true in Cordoba). And now
a word about parking - nuts. Although some hotels advertise parking, it
is limited. If you arrive later in the day, the garages fill up, and you
are on your own. Problem is, if you leave your parking spot in the garage
for a day trip, it will probably not be available when you return. Loved
Ronda. A sweet, dreamy city. Two places recommended by Rick are indeed worth
the splurge: La Casona (www.lacasonadelaciudad.com) and Don Miguel, which
is at the edge of the gorge (ask for a room with a vista). We were treated
wonderfully at both places. Carmen, at La Casona, is delightful. You will
love this beautifully renovated large old house; it is a jewel. And if you
order ahead of time, Carmen will even prepare supper for you; breakfast
is served daily.
Skip Cordoba. Rick gives it only a passing reference in his book, for good reason. The Mezquita is as Rick described it: gutted to make room for a cathedral. Although much of it survives in original condition, seeing what has been done to this architectural marvel was sickening.
At Granada the Albayzin was a treat. All sorts of wares of the Middle East: teas, rugs, lamps, jewelry, blown glass. It's a feast for the eyes. Hard to resist the smells of spicy foods coming from the restaurants. The San Nicolas Viewpoint is worth it; take the bus unless you are in the mood for a long hike, or have access to a camel. Despite the hype, much of the Alhambra was closed. Obras were going on throughout the place, but no one warned us of the regular closings. Most of the towers were closed, as was the Washington Irving room. Staff told me that this is routine; they rotate closing different parts of the Alhambra. I wonder if they ever turn on the lights there. Even during the day, the rooms are dark and difficult to appreciate visually. A great place to buy souvenirs is at a shop called Artesania El Suspiro en Granada (Plaza Santa Ana 1, across where you catch the minibuses to the Alhambra). There are descriptions written about the pottery and the potters. A great selection. Shopkeepers speak English; very friendly couple.
Salema, Portugal. There is a wonderful place to stay there: Romantik
Villa (www.romantikvilla.com), run by Lisa ("leeza"), Jost ("yost") and
the black lab wonderdog Filipo. Lisa, from Brazil, and Jost, a German,
have a magical villa with a large and diverse garden. You will be greeted
with a glass of wine on arrival. Rooms are outstanding, each opening out
to the garden, with at least a partial view of the ocean. It is a little
bit of a hike to the beach, but well worth it (the best beaches are further
out toward Cape Sagres). We liked Romantik Villa so much we stayed four
nights, and loved it. We'd go back in a heartbeat. Finally, a word about
smoke. Unfortunately, cigarette smoke is everywhere in Spain. Unless you
eat outdoors, it is impossible to escape it during a meal. At the Don
Miguel, we had to stuff a damp towel at the base of our door to keep it
out. So be warned.
J. Andrew <email>
Seattle, WA USA 11/07/02
Spain and Portugal
Four of us did a month in Spain and Portugal with Rick Steves' guidebook.
The Hotel Residencia La Almagara in Toledo was a great place to stay, especially
in the rooms with the view of Toledo. However, the breakfast was not worth
the additional cost--it was simply dry toast and coffee or tea. A pastry
shop along the way is a much better option. We did find it a bit hard to
find but stopped and asked directions and then were successful.
In Lisbon, we found that city easy to get around in and very delightful. We went to Casa Pasteries de Belem and tried the pastel del Nata which became a real favorite and hooked us on pastries for the month. Sunday afternoon was a very busy time there.
In Sevilla we enjoyed the city but the Cathedral had raised their rates from 4.80 euro to 6 euro--quite a jump, but still worth it. In Madrid we had tapas at La Plateria and that was a great stop. Also tried Salaon la Malloroquina for the Napolitana pastry which was excellent.
In Ronda, the Pileta Caves were great but a bit hard to find, we missed
seeing a sign or two but had allowed plenty of time. Peniscola was not
in Rick Steves book but we found it a very interesting stop--especially
the old castle. Also the Roman ruins in Tarragona.
Carolyn Granston <email>
Sun City West, AZ USA 11/06/02
Toledo-Hotel Imperio
I want to thank Rick for all of the hard work he does to make our European
trips memorable. In Spain we stayed in Toledo at the Hotel Imperio, run
by Pablo Gonzalez, who was extremely helpful and pleasant. When we needed
to cancel a reservation in Granada and the fax didn't work, he called them
for us, then wrote out a statement stating what he did, just in case. We
met his 87 year old father who is the original owner of the hotel, and just
as pleasant as Pablo. The family now owns a second hotel in Toledo, the
Las Conchas (named after Pablo's wife), which is thoroughly modern and quite
reasonable. He gave us a tour one evening after a drink in the Imperio's
cafe next door. We highly recommend either one of these places if you stay
in Toledo. The rooms are clean and comfortable, and the staff is excellent
in all areas. Thanks Rick! and thanks Pablo!
Ray <email>
Philadelphia, PA USA 11/06/02
Spain and Portugal
My 11 year old son and I just returned from a week in Spain. I used Rick's
book daily and carried it with me everywhere. I found it especially helpful
in the cathedrals and museums. We made Madrid our home base for visiting
Madrid, Segovia and Toledo. We stayed at the Hostal Dulcinea because Hostal
Gonzalo across the street was full when we arrived (even though we had confirmed
our reservation in writing). They are both essentially the same and I would
recommend them both. Small, but very clean and comfortable rooms with private
bath. Both run by very friendly and accomodating people, and for 43 euros
a night and just two blocks from the Prado and easy walking distance to
the Madrid Atocha train station, you can't beat it. We took the AVE to Sevilla
and stayed two nights at the Casas de la Judeira. Big splurge (138 euros
a night) but our room in that old house turned hotel was so beautiful it
was worth it. I loved using my Spain flexipass and going all over Spain
via train. They all ran on time and Rick's recommendations about the bus
connections into sites from the train stations were accurate, although bus
and taxi fares were a bit higher then mentioned in the book. This was our
very first trip to Europe and I used only Rick's book and did great!
Ana <email>
South Pasadena, CA USA 11/05/02
Spain
Rick's Guide to Spain was right on the mark. I couldn't and wouldn't travel
without it. It is a shame that Rick has yet to develop an itinerary for
northern Spain. The mountains, seashore, and towns of the Basque country
are delightful. Our favorite destinations were Segovia, Salamanca, Sevilla,
Arcos and El Alhambra. Day trips, should you have a car, to Burgos, Avila,
Toledo, and Cordoba are well worth it. The walking tour with Carmen in Sevilla
was much fun; Sandeman's sherry tour and tasting were excellent. And, unless
you are a musuem buff I'd simply quickly pass thru Madrid on my way to the
airport. It's big, bustly, quite pretty but lacks the charm of Spain's smaller
cities.
CraigSC <email>
Wynnewood, PA USA 11/04/02
Portugal
My wife and I took a long desired but last minute trip to Portugal for 16
days in October - with little time to plan, Rick's book was very useful
for making efficient use of our time (though the Michelin guide was necessary
for filling in the blanks).
And even with 16 days, we didn't get to see all that we wanted - Portugal has so many more treasures, natural beauty, and relaxed charm than we could comfortably enjoy at our preferred pace (at least two nights in each destination). We did four days in Lisbon, then rented a car for the grand tour through Coimbra, up to Porto, down to Evora and over to Salema, and back to Lisbon for one last day (had to see the Gulbenkian Museum!).
A couple of pleasant finds - in Lisbon, the weekend rate at the Hotel NH on Avenida da Liberdade (a business hotel in the Tivoli Mall) - they have a quota of rooms for $106 with taxes and breakfast included - very clean, comfortable, slick, convenient and a really great breakfast (sometimes the old world charm just doesn't cut it - i thought the Lisboa Tejo was depressing).
On the other hand, the Pension Mare in Salema was terrific but for the
fact that Rick Steves' tour groups occasionally reserve the entire hotel
and any current guests have to vacate the premises when the bus comes
to town (make sure to ask john when you make your reservations, and especially
if you just show up like we did). We wanted to stay in the worst way (the
view, the location, the ambiance, the fresh oj) but alas... however, john
did give us directions up the hill to a lovely place called Romantik Villa
- run by a stylish, lively and gracious Brazilian woman named Lisa. She
has remodeled her house with three rooms and a suite for rent - very nicely
done, lovely gardens, a pool, a lofty view, and a healthy but short uphill
walk ($60, no breakfast, but a fridge, coffee maker, utensils and other
little goodies and touches like the chocolates on the night stand, heated
towel rack, large bar of soap, huge shower); add in the spirited conversations,
fresh fish and of course, the beach - what a way to enjoy the last few
days of the summer season on the Algarve (www.romantikvilla.com).
Mark and Shirley <email>
milwaukee, wi USA 11/04/02