Trip to Spain.....Need help!

I plan on doing 2 weeks in Spain next summer with the family.

I booked Hotel Arts in Barcelona for 9 days and was going to do 5 days in Majorca. Only problem now is that occupency is a major issue and the hotels I desire in Majorca don’t allow 3 in a room.

Now that this plan is shot, I was going to do the remainder of the trip in San Sebastian, but then, due to crazy flight costs, train back to Barcelona to fly back to LAX.

I’m realizing that although tons of day trips are possible, I think I should expand our cities.

Not stuck on 2 weeks in Spain any longer as I have never been to many European Cities and would be happy to do some time in Spain and make my way toward San Sebastion than London maybe??

Or maybe start in Paris, go down to San Sebastion than over to Barcelona?

Any help would be preferred. My only pre-requisite is that I want a few days of relaxation in the mix so a place with a beach is needed. Also will be doing Marriott/SPG properties as I’ll be using points for the hotels.

Any help would be really great!!!

Why not rent a car and drive from Barcelona to San Sebastian? It’s only 5-5.5 hrs on the toll road. Pick up the car at the airport on your way out of Barcelona and leave from there.

I spent several days in Barcelona a few years back. La Rambla is fun, the Museu Picasso is interesting in that it showcases much work of a young Picasso, Fundació Joan Miró is equally impressive, Barri Gòtic is worth a visit, and Sagrada Família is certainly impressive. You could see all of that in a day and a half if you pushed it or a leisurely 2 days. Unless you’re planing to simply relax in Barcelona (as opposed to sightsee) – and Barca does have nice beaches – I think you could comfortably halve your days in the city.

Are you locked into Barcelona for 9 days? Madrid in smack dab in the center and everything is 5-6 hour drive from Madrid. There are fast trains and slow trains to almost every city in Spain.
Train routes.jpg
Blue lines are Fast trains (AVE) Purple are the slow trains Renfre.

I have some really good friends who just returned from their honeymoon and they literally went everywhere. She had a local travel agent that is Spanish that planned their trip. They had a driver to drive them from city to city or they took a fast train. It was planned out to the T.

Many years ago, we semi-based our 10-day trip in Barcelona. In addition to the city itself, where sites/food/wine can occupy you for at least 3 days, we drove and did day-trips up to the Pyrenees (liked the small and interesting mountain towns of Ripoll and Puigcerda at the French border); north towards France and visited Cedaques, Girona, Figueres for some cool Dali and Picasso exhibits; south to the beach towns of Sitges and Tarragona; and drove up 4 hours to the south of France and stayed 3 nights at Arles where we wandered around Montpellier and including the Chateauneuf-du-Pape region. Lots of interesting places to drive to from Barcelona.

Not locked in anywhere. I just cancelled the hotel reservation in Barcelona to regroup. I think I may need to consult a travel agent to at least assist with the path…

I Realize you want to use points but 2 weeks in hotel rooms with the family is not my idea of vacation. :slight_smile: There are lots of great apartments to rent.
There is so much to do in Spain that we have not even come close to covering it in 3 trips.
9 days in Barcelona is too much.
Outside of some beach time what do you and your family enjoy doing?

George

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Would love to get some ideas!! Barcelona was going to be a home base of sorts to take day trips to other spots for some of the days, but I honestly have no clue. We want Beach time, good food (but kid friendly), history and culture, but don’t want to feel rushed. I would love to hit some wine spots, but not sure how kid friendly vineyards are or if my daughter will get bored.

Be in Madrid as the base. Maintain flexibility
Head to any coast in a few hours.
Look to Seville and the south beaches
Also spend a day or so on the Islands.
Train ravel is the best. No need for a car or driver

This.

VRBO, get an apartment with a terrace. Make coffee. Pull cheese and ham from the fridge. Use points for 2-3 night stays. Anything longer, get the apartment.

If you haven’t already, have a read of this thread for the rest of Spain.

https://wineimport.discoursehosting.net/t/12-14-nights-in-spain-sometime-between-march-15th-may-15th/145152/1

Don’t discount Portugal either. Lisbon and Porto are great cities and you can get your beach fix down south. It’s generally a bit cheaper than Spain too. The trains are pretty good to use in both countries.

Looks like Mallorca is off your itinary, however it would get my vote, especially the north, places like Soller are less known and should have either hotel availability or better still a short term rental. Good places to eat around the town square plus will be able to stock up on local wines.

On the mainland, Alicante the city, not the resorts situated north and south, is massively underrated. Again, excellent places to eat and buy wines from DO Alicante and Jumilla. Hotel Melia rooms are big and it’s right on the harbour, you get a sea view wherever the room is.

We did this but stopped for a night in Rioja (in Haro, at Hotel Los Agustinos). It was an easy and fun drive and Rioja was a blast.

I’m going to piggyback on eric’s thread to ask about mine:

My itinerary
5 nights San Sebastien
5 nights Mallorca
3 or 4 nights Granada
4 or 5 night Seville

The question relates to whether I should do 3 Granada/ 5 Seville or 4/4. Based on my trip 25 years ago, I preferred Seville, but because of Citi Prestige’s fourth night free, I can do 4/4 and save about $200. I’m leaning towards sticking with 5/3 but being that my experience is quite dated, I thought I’d check in here.

I just walked into the door from returning from Spain tonight. I would round out those days with out trips, like seeing the Alpujarra while you’re in Granada, let someone (I’ve got a name) and plan out a few “non run of the mill tourist thinks”. When you go to Sevilla take a day trips to Jerez de la Frontera and drink Sherry and see the school of horse training… Go to Cordoba and see the Mezquita…

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I’ll have to check them out. I’ve been to Cordoba and had a great time - we go pretty slow these days so given the driving I think we’ll be doing in Majorca (plus day trip to Bilbao), we probably just want to soak up where we are at.

Spain is my favorite place to visit, thinking of bringing the kids this year for the first time. Backpacked in college, went there on our honeymoon and 15th wedding anniversary.

On our last trip we rented a car in Madrid and drove to San Sebastian, with a few days stop in Laguardia for wine tasting. We managed with maps, and did not have phone access. With google maps it would be super easy. Madrid is centrally located. We flew in and out of Madrid.

San Sebastian is a great place to visit. Great beaches. Great food. Thinking of taking my kids there this summer. I also love Sevilla. Then again, I love Barcelona, and Madrid too, and Segovia, and Cordoba, and Toledo…

FIFY [wow.gif]

Just got back and did 3 nights in Seville and 2 in Granada. Wish I was able to do Seville 4 and Granada 3.

I’ll read through the above notes, but Leslie and I are looking for recommendations for Madrid (3 days) and Majorca (7 days).
For Madrid, our only plan is a day at Prado and possibly the Bernabeu. But otherwise we’ll just walk around and eat tapas and drink wine. I haven’t booked a room there yet as i’m trying to decide which area is best for us.

In Majorca, we’re staying at Marriott Son Antem and we’ll have a car. In particular looking for restaurant and wine suggestions there. Thanks!!