Guidebook Updates for Spain

• Senior-fare train tickets are no longer available online before your trip, as the card that allows for these discounts, the Tarjeta Dorada (€6, available to anyone 60 or older) is only sold in Spanish train stations, not online — and you now need to enter the Tarjeta number to buy a ticket at the discounted rate. If you need to lock in a specific train departure before your trip, look at regular, adult-rate advance-purchase discounts (and then buy a Tarjeta Dorada, and any other tickets for your trip, upon getting to Spain).
• IRYO trains now accept Eurail passes.
• You can now can book passholder seat reservations on Spanish trains via Eurail.com. (You can book passholder seats on the international Barcelona–Lyon–Paris route via Rick Steves/Rail Europe.)

For books printed before July 2024, the following may also apply:

• Spain's high-speed AVE trains now have another competitor: privately operated IRYO trains, which operate on most of the same routes as AVE trains (but offer generally fancier service).

• Guitarist Paco Seco now performs at Ronda Guitar House, not at Casa Don Bosco (€18, daily at 19:00, no shows July–Aug and Dec-Feb, Calle Virgen de los Remedios 23, +34 660 280 720).

For books printed before July 2024, the following may also apply:

• Cars are no longer permitted within Arcos de la Frontera's old town.
• Ronda guide Antonio Jesús Naranjo no longer has a website, but you can contact him by email ([email protected]).
• Ronda's Soho Boutique Palacio San Gabriel no longer offers a Rick Steves discount (new owners).

• The north terminal of the World Trade Center is now closed to cruise ships, and the south terminal is closing at the end of 2026. Ships will continue to dock at the five berths at Moll Adossat.
• The blue cruise shuttle bus and hop-on, hop-off Bus Turístic red route now stop near the World Trade Center, a 10-minute walk or quick taxi ride from the Columbus Monument at the bottom of the Ramblas.

For books printed before May 2024, the following may also apply:

• All four of Sagrada Família's evangelist towers are now complete. Construction of the final, central tower is expected to wrap up in 2026.
• The bus running between Sagrada Família and the Eixample is #D50 (not #50 or #19).
• Park Güell is now open until 22:00 April–Oct (but last entry in summer is at 19:30; the rest of the year it closes at sunset). The Monumental Zone no longer requires a timed-entry ticket. The Bus Güell shuttle between the Alfons X Metro station and the park's side entrance is no longer running — we recommend taking either a taxi or bus #24 to a stop near the side entrance.
• The Picasso Museum's center ground-floor entry is the only way in to the museum.
• Casa Batlló now offers early entrance daily.
• Juan, the owner of the Bar Pinotxo in La Boqueria market famous for his gregariousness and warm smile (long pictured in our guidebooks), has passed away.
• While renovations to the Camp Nou soccer stadium are underway, an interactive exhibit and the flagship team store remain open at Camp Nou, but the team is playing in the Olympic Stadium on Montjuïc, likely through some point in the 2025–2026 season.
• The Sagalés bus connecting the Costa Brava Airport to Girona (and to Barcelona via train to/from Girona) now runs hourly (not every 10 minutes), but only takes 30 minutes (as opposed to 1.5 hours).

For books printed before October 2022, the following may also apply:

• Tickets are no longer sold on-site at Sagrada Família — all visits now require a pre-booked timed-entry ticket (check the site for new opening hours and ticket options).
• Visitors must now pay to enter Park Güell. The Monumental Zone now includes just the terrace and dragon stairway/fountains. Bus #24 no longer stops at the park's side entrance, and bus route #92 (which had also stopped at Park Guell's side entrance) has been discontinued.
• Reservations are now required for guided tours in English of Casa Museu Amatller and at the Palace of Catalan Music (although both offer audioguides).
• The Barcelona Cathedral has changed the hours it's open for tourist visits. Visitors can no longer use the side door facing Carrer dels Comtes, and cloister doors are reserved for those with reduced mobility.
• The Barri Gòtic street Sant Doménec del Call has been renamed "Carrer de Salomó Ben Adret."
• The tourist information offices on Plaça de Sant Jaume and on Plaça Nova (in the Barri Gòtic, inside the Catalan College of Architects) have closed, but a new office is now open on Pla de la Seu, next to the cathedral.
• The T10 Metro travelcard is no longer available. The new T-casual card covers 10 rides for €11.35, but this card is not sharable; each rider needs their own ticket.
• Barcelona's main airport has been renamed Josep Tarradellas Barcelona–El Prat Airport.
• The Gaudí Exhibition Center has closed.
• Casa Lleó Morera is now closed to the public.
• The Barcelona Guide Bureau has closed.
• Several recommended restaurants have closed, including Café de l'Academia and El Senyor Parellada.
• The Kitchen Company shop has closed.
• Hotel Banys Orientals is now Hotel Habana Hoose.

For our Barcelona audio tours, these older updates also apply:

• Sardana performances take place on Sundays in front of the cathedral at 11:15 (not noon, none in August), and some Saturdays at 18:00.
• La Pedrera no longer offers free entry to its atrium.

For books printed before May 2024, the following may apply:

• ​The basilica on Montserrat now charges admission, and requires timed-entry tickets not only to see La Moreneta (the Black Virgin) but to enter the basilica.

• Hotel Bilbao Jardines has closed. (Hotel Bilbao Plaza is still open.)

For books printed before July 2024, the following may also apply:

• ​The Basque Museum in Bilbao remains closed for renovations.
• Claire Lohiague is no longer working as a guide in Bayonne.
• The Chronoplus and Hegobus bus lines in the French Basque region are now operated by a new company, Txik Txak.

• The Parador de Santillana del Mar is slated to reopen in July 2026.

For books printed before July 2024, the following may also apply:

• ​Pamplona's Restaurante Ábaco has closed.
• St-Jean-Pied-de-Port's Café de Navarre has moved to 2 Rue d'Uhart.
• Hostal Albany in León has a new email address: [email protected].
• Hotel Europa in Pamplona is now Sercotel Hotel Europe and has a new email address: [email protected].
• Ciudad de Astorga Hotel is now the Hotel Spa Ciudad de Astorga by PortBlue Boutique and has a new email address: [email protected].

​For books printed before September 2022, the following may apply:

• ​La Llave restaurant has closed.
• Hotel Boston has closed.
• El Patio de la Costurera is now La Casa de la Costurera.
• Funky Córdoba Hostel is now Arc House Ribera.

For books printed before July 2024, the following may apply:

• After entering the Alhambra, hang on to your ticket, as you'll need to show it again when entering the Palacios Nazaríes, Alcazaba, and Generalife.
• Oyo Hostal Austria is now Pensión Austria ([email protected]), but management hasn't changed.
• La Bella Granada hotel is now U-Sense Granada Centro ([email protected]), but the hotel itself hasn't changed.

• The Sorolla Museum is currently closed for renovation and scheduled to reopen in early 2026.

For books printed before July 2024, the following may also apply:

• The Royal Collections Gallery, a museum neighboring the Royal Palace that displays highlights of the monarchy's vast treasures in a sleek, modern setting, has reopened.
• Hotel Plaza Mayor is now the Hotel Madrid Centro Plaza Mayor and has new contact info: +34 913 600 606, [email protected].
• Several recommended restaurants have closed: Restaurante Palacio de Cibeles, Terrace Cibeles, and Coleccion Cibeles.
• The almost-hourly train service to/from Valencia now operates out of Chamartín station (not Atocha station; only three trains per day depart from Atocha) — but no Valencia trains leave Chamartín around 9:40 or 19:40, when trains do depart to Valencia from Atocha.
• Federico offers private city walks and museum tours for individuals and families; his tours are miscategorized under "Group Tours" in the seventh edition of Rick Steves Snapshot: Madrid. He now offers a two-hour "mini-tour" (€200) and a four-hour "maxi-tour" (€400).

For books printed before July 2024, the following may apply:

• ​In the first printing of the 18th edition of Rick Steves Spain, the map of Segovia (pp 528–529) shows swapped locations for two hotels: Apartments Aralso and Eurostars Plaza Acueducto. The former is on Calle Teniente Ochoa (near the bus station), and the latter is on Avenida Padre Claret (near the aqueduct).

​For books printed before September 2022, the following may apply:

• Bambú restaurant, just off Plaza Major, has reopened.
• Mesón El Minutejo has closed.

For books printed before July 2024, the following may apply:

• ​The regional tourist information office for Galicia has moved to Rúa do Vilar 1 and is now closed Sat–Sun.
• Bus 6A between the Santiago airport and the bus station accepts cash only.
• The visitor entrance to the Santiago Cathedral is now via a side door. Also, the Portico of Glory can only be seen with a reserved timed-entry ticket (free ones available by seven-day advance reservation; combo tickets available for sale otherwise). When the town is particularly busy with tourists, those just waiting to hug St. James and see his casket form a separate line.

For books printed before July 2024, the following may apply:

• The Santa Justa train station no longer has a baggage storage option; instead consider the Lock & Enjoy a few blocks away at Avenida Pablo Iglesias 7 (open 24 hours).
• Sevilla is extending its existing tram line to Santa Justa train station and to the airport; work may be completed in 2025. Trams no longer run later on weekends than the rest of the week (until 23:30).
• Sevilla Cathedral is now open slightly longer (Mon–Sat to 10:45–17:30, until 18:30 May–Oct; Sun 14:30–19:00 year-round).
• If you plan to visit the Church of the Savior as well as the cathedral, it's smart to visit the former first, as the two sights have a combo-ticket, and entry lines aren't a problem at the Church of the Savior. When visiting the cathedral with the combo-ticket (which you must do within two days of visiting the Church of the Savior), you can skip the lines and enter at the Puerta de San Cristobal entrance.
• Hospital de la Caridad now closes 14:00–15:00 Mon–Fri, when it also closes a half-hour earlier (at 18:30).
• A passport number is now required to book advance tickets for the Royal Alcázar (which we recommend doing). To book in person (recommended only as a last resort since a very limited number of same-day tickets are sold, and only via credit card), you'll need your actual passport on hand.
• At the Plaza de Toros bullring and Bullfight Museum, you no longer need to follow the an audioguide's predetermined route but are now free to wander (new audioguide available via QR code).
• The Museo de la Ceramica de Triana is now the Centro Ceramica Triana.
• Bar Santa Ana has closed.

For books printed before July 2024, the following may apply:

• ​The Coach & Horses Pub in Nerja has closed.
• Oliva restaurant in Nerja has moved to Plaze de Espana 2.
• Tarifa's Bar El Pasillo has closed.

• Inter Shipping is no longer operating, but Africa Morocco Link is now running ferries between Tarifa and Tangier Ville Port along a similar schedule, for similar prices.

For books printed before July 2024, the following may also apply:

• ​In case of emergency, dial 19 (not 190) in Morocco for police, and 15 for medical and other emergencies.
• We now recommend buying ferry tickets in advance at any time of year (not just in high season). Tickets may be nonrefundable, but you can change them for free and as many times as needed.