Astrophsx

Not sure how Costa del Sol would make that list... when I went there it seemed like a european version of south padre island + branson + tons of british tourists.

Seville was beautiful, sister city to Kansas City.

parioli

Please also look into San Sebastian area.

MissJ

To see Barcelona listed so high on so many lists is making me more excited to be there on Monday

Would you particularly recommend any of these other cities in this thread for a day trip from there?

sushanna1

Not on the list, but I highly recommend visiting the Dali Theatre and Museum in Figueres. See http://www.salvador-dali.org/museus/.../en_index.html

pvdecastro

I´m a great fan of Galicia, the Basque country and Cataluña:

Barcelona, one of the most vibrant cities in the world.

San Sebastian for the food and la Concha.

Bilbao for the gin´s and tonic, the somewhat british feel, the food, Guggenheim and the wild, unspoiled beach scenary around town.

Vigo and La Coruña, for the special people of Galicia, the beautiful coastline, some of the best seafood in the world and la movida.

China Clipper

I love that.... harshness incarnate

David-A

Although I have no idea what or where "south padre island" and "branson" are, so this sounds like a rather personal (to both of you) comparison.

Make no mistake though, you can easily see only the tacky side and wanna be showoffs on the costa del sol - if you are not looking carefully.

However, looking carefully, there is serious money about the place, most of it you would never ever see even if you are looking. People not wanting to be seen, etc. Old money, new money, Spanish money, European money, world money.

If you think you are seeing the money, then you are almost certainly in the wrong place. We are talking a different scale to the tack you can see.

Also, keep in mind that there is a lot more on the costa del sol than the tacky places. Many 'real' places to.

HIDDY

Indeed.

You don't have to venture far from the package holiday resorts to sample the real Spain.

My favourite areas of Spain are Gallicia and Asturias.

China Clipper

I've never been to either place, but I get the joke. If you don't, you can always use the internet to learn. It's around here somewhere.

David-A

If I was inclined I could indeed do so, but I'm not reading a section about where ever they are.

The point of my post was to highlight that making comparisions of places in country A to places in country B is of limited relevance on an international site, when the thread is about place in A, in a section that covers A. (But not B).

And having said it is of limited relevance, it is of even more limited relevance when you don't say proactivly say where B is.

It would be like posting in the section for airline X, wanting to understand aspects of their flights, but saying you want to book their flight not using X's miles scheme, but 'flyaway miles' - leaving the people of section X to work which airline has a currency called 'flyaway miles'.

tupungato

In Valencia, the aquarium is a must. One of most amazing aquariums in the world:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nes0YvPPm7E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzJxFOZxpIw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxiP_Ftu9lY

dia1

Merida
Has a wonderful Roman bridge and other unusually well-preserved Roman "ruins" along with a good museum. Was the capital of Lusitania.

JR14

This is a tough one when it depends so much on who you are and what you like when you're traveling! Here's my list, in no particular order:

1. Granada -- fantastic atmosphere, free tapas, nightlife, Alhambra castle, old neighborhoods
2. Cádiz region -- for the beaches and the views
3. Barcelona -- architecture, history, nightlife, etc.
4. Canary Islands -- beautiful beaches, near-perfect weather (I've been told they cancel school here when it rains)
5. Asturias -- incredibly scenic, great food, beautiful villages on the northern coast
6. Salamanca -- definitely worth a stop-in to watch the lights come on in the beautiful Plaza Mayor, and great atmosphere/nightlife, especially for young people
7. Toledo -- for the views and the history
8. The "White Villages," especially Ronda and Arcos de la Frontera -- for fantastic vistas a little bit off the beaten path
9. San Sebastian -- for the views, the old town area and the culinary scene
10. Seville -- for the sightseeing, flamenco, and sun