Destinations

When you decide to take a vacation to Barcelona, you will want to spend time enjoying the sites. What are the top ten tourist attractions in Barcelona? Where should you visit?

1. Sagrada Familia by Antonio Gaudi (2,056,448 visits/year) and if you only have time to visit one site, then this is the one you should see. It is the most visited site in Barcelona. Work is ongoing since the building has never been completed. The work has been going on for 100 years. It is thought that it will be completed by 2020 but there are no guarantees that will happen either. At the moment it looks like the first Mass might be held in 2008, but only if the roof is completed on time.
2. L’ Aquarium de Barcelona (1,375,271 visits/year) is a great place to take children. Here they have an 80 meter long shark tunnel. You can even arrange to dive among the sharks if that is a dream you have always had. As a special for children between the ages of 8 – 12, you can spend the night with the sharks where you can see what they do at night.
3. Poble Espanyol de Montjuic (1,346,938 visits/year) otherwise known as the Spanish Village, has different areas where houses and architecture can be seen which cover different locations and styles seen in Spain.
4. La Pedrera – Casa Mila by Antonio Gaudi (1,133,220 visits/year) This building has wavy bricks and tiles which are very colorful. This gives it a very distinctive look.
5. Barcelona FC Museum (1,032,763 visits/year) If you love football/soccer then you will want to visit this museum. You can take a tour that starts in the changing rooms, goes out through the tunnel, onto the pitch and then ends up in the presidential box.
6. Barcelona Zoo (1,015,000 visits/year) You will find the zoo located at the arc de la Ciutadella. If you go to the park you will be able to walk to the zoo by following the signs.
7. Picasso Museum (887,958 visits/year) Here you will find a collection of Picasso’s paintings. You should allow quite some time to visit here because you will want to look at sketches, oils, doodling and painting.
8. Imax Cinema (671,512 visits/year) When you visit the L’ Aquarium de Barcelona go to the Imax Cinema because they are next door to each other.
9. Miró Museum (518,869 visits/year) This is a wonderful art gallery which has many of Miró’s works.
10. National Museum of Art of Catalunya MNAC (442,692 visits/year) is a museum which has art from 1,000 years ago and which encompasses many different art forms.

You should also consider buying a Barcelona card which will give reduced rates for entry to many of these attractions.

You have arrived in Madrid and you have a limited time to visit some sites. What are the top ten tourist attractions in Madrid?

1. Museo del Prado is one of the top museums in the world. Here you should plan to spend many hours or make multiple visits to get the full benefit of seeing all that is included here.
2. Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia has the best of Spanish art. Many of the paintings span the 20th Century. The one painting you won’t want to miss is Picasso’s Guernica in Room 6 on the 2nd Floor. This is one of the most famous paintings in the world. There are many other famous Spanish artists’ whose works are shown at this center.
3. Arab Wall is the fortification built by the Islamic rulers as far back as the 9th century and some areas are from the 12th & 13th centuries.
4. La Casa de Campo gets nearly half a million visitors on weekends when people come to cycle, walk or have a picnic here. This isn’t so much a beautiful place as it is unkempt, but it has over 1,700 hectares for you to wander around.
5. Plaza Mayor is beautiful and a visit here will be a highlight of your vacation. It was designed in 1619 by Juan Gomez de Mora and, after a fire which destroyed it in 1790, it was rebuilt.
6. Puerta del Sol is the official center point and it has elegant facades. You can expect it to be very crowded here because many people pass through here going somewhere else, whether they are walking or using the metro. This used to be the eastern gate of the city. On New Year’s Eve, crowds gather here waiting for the clock to strike midnight. There is also a statue of a bear nuzzling a strawberry tree, which is the symbol of the city.
7. Museo Arquelogico Nacional has a collection of artifacts which cover many different cultures and periods. Some of the highlights are the mosaics in Room 22 & 24 and the gilded Mudejar domed ceiling in Room 35.
8. Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas is one of the biggest and most impressive bullrings in Spain. Even if you don’t want to go to a bullfight, it is worth taking a visit here to see the bullring and its architecture.
9. Plaza de Orient is a great place to visit on a hot summer evening. This used to be the site of the old Alcazar but the square took on its current form under the French occupation in the early 1800s.
10. Parque del Retiro is a place you need to visit on a weekend. During any other day of the week, you will find it too quiet. People visit this park to read the Sunday papers, take a trip on the lake, have a drink at an outside café or, for the children, watch the puppets during the summer. The best time to visit is at sunset when people gather to watch and dance. You will also find a memorial to the victims of the 2004 bombings in the southwestern corner.

If you love camping then you will want to camp in Spain. There are over 1,000 campsites in Spain. Some of the camping grounds are near beaches, others are in the woodland, and some are near towns. What are the top ten tips for camping in Spain?

1. Have your own transport. Very few campsites are near to public transport since most are not near city centers.
2. Choose where you are going to camp carefully. If you want peace and quiet then you would want to avoid the places that come to life at night when lots of people decide to party at the campsites.
3. Choose your tent with care. Your tent will be your home for the duration of your vacation. What would happen if the weather were to turn bad and you had to remain inside your tent? Would there be enough room for all the family to spend many long hours together?
4. Choose your camping equipment carefully. You will need to decide which type of sleeping bag you are going to use and what other types of equipment you will need. You will want a bag that is warm enough in case it gets cold, but not so warm that you can’t sleep because you are too hot.
5. Know what type of amenities you need. What are the stores like and will you be able to buy all the foods that you want to cook? What are the hook-up facilities like for electricity? Will the showers be hot at all times during the day? You need to consider these types of questions before you set off.
6. What facilities are there for your children? You need to know that your children won’t be bored during their vacation. Is there a swimming pool for them? Are there activities for kids organized at the campsite? If not, then you will need to decide how to keep them from becoming bored. You might want to bring bikes so you can all go exploring together.
7. Have a checklist of items you should bring with you. This should include a first aid kit. Even though you hope you won’t need it, you should make sure you have a good first aid kit with you.
8. Learn how to cook different foods in a different way. You will find there are plenty of dishes you can cook when camping but you might need to consider what your family normally eats and what they will eat while away.
9. Discover the local attractions. You might want to find out where they are before leaving home. You might want to plan certain trips away from the campsite and knowing the hours which those attractions are open will save you a lot of time.
10. Leave valuables at home. You won’t have anywhere secured to leave your items safely at the campsite. Don’t bring your children’s expensive toys or games with you unless you want tears should they be stolen or broken.

Many people who go to Spain will have visited the Costa’s on their trip. There are so many different places to visit in Spain that it is difficult to know where you should go. To make your life easier we are recommending the top five Costa Brava Resorts.

1. Tossa De Mar is one of the first places the tourists go when they take their vacation overseas. Here you will find it almost impossible to see the water during July and August because many people come here to make the most of the sun. There are a number of different beaches and coves here. Tossa has around 70 hotels of different types but very few are open outside the tourist season from Easter to October. If you want to camp then you will find some campsites here as well.
2. Girona is the largest city in Northern Catalonia. Here you enter a medieval center where you can see diverse architecture such as Gothic, Roman, and Baroque. There is a new town and both are linked by a bridge across the river. If you have an interest in buildings and different cultures, then this is the place to visit because you will see so many different influences.
3. Figueres is a well known resort because it is the place Salvador Dali created his works of art in the 60’s and 70’s. If you want to look at some of his creations then you will enjoy visiting places like Placa de Gala I Salvador Dali which has sculpture outside. You will also want to see the pink wall at Pujada del Castell.
4. L’Estartit & The Illes Medes has some of the best diving in the area. You will be able to scuba dive here but you should always check the equipment from any diving school you use. If you are an experienced diver then you can find plenty of places to dive, but if you want to get your PADI then you will have to take the five day course. This is a typical package resort that many tourists take for their vacation.
5. Platja D’ara and Palamos are the two party spots in the Costa Brava. No longer are these places full of foreigners because there is now more tourism from Spaniards. You will find many concrete building and the night life is very busy. There are many beaches and again, during the tourist seasons, they are full.

It doesn’t matter what type of vacation you are looking for you will find something in the Costa Brava which will meet your needs.

Valencia is a business center which means that many hotels are not full on weekends. Because of this, you can normally ask for a better rate at some of the best tourist hotels in Valencia.

1. Hotel Excelsior was renovated in 2000 and now you have a hotel which is in the center of the city. The rooms are spacious and clean, with a lot of extra features including wireless internet in each room.
2. Casa Sibarita is in a village called Rafelguaraf. It is a 19th Century restored house and it is in a very peaceful location. There are beautiful gardens with a pool and it is not to far visit the rest of Valencia. There are only 5 rooms in this hotel, but you should consider booking well in advance to stay here.
3. Vincci Lys is an excellent hotel. If you want to have a balcony then you should book an executive room on the fifth and sixth floor.
4. Hotel Europa has some great reviews, and we recommend that you to ask for room 103. This room has two balconies and it has recently been refurbished. The hotel is just a 5 min walk from the Old Town.
5. Hotel Neptuno overlooks the beach. It is an ideal hotel if you want to combine a beach holiday with a cultural tour. It is a new, modern hotel and the food at their restaurant has some of the best dining will find in the area.
6. Petit Palace Bristol is a boutique hotel which was formally a 19th Century mansion but has been refurbished retaining some of its past. It is worth upgrading for one of the superior rooms on the fifth floor.
7. Hotel Reina Victoria is ideal if you want a faded charm look. It has been renovated and it is positioned in the center. The rooms are large and well-furnished.
8. Hotel Ingles is another renovated 18th Century mansion. Some of the rooms have a view of the main entrance to the Palacio del Marques de Dos Aguas.
9. Jardin Botanico is an intimate 16 room hotel. Their slogan is “Chill Out” and that is their goal for the people who stay at this hotel.
10. Ad Hoc is within the Old Quarters. The hotel was a 19th Century building which has been completely renovated but you can still see some of the original features.