Spain Travel Guide - Tips For A Better Stay
Thursday, March 5th, 2009Spain is a popular place to go for many people. If you are planning on backpacking round Spain and want to see as much of this wonderful country as you can then check out a few of these tips.
So the first thing you want to take on board is that speaking the language will make your stay more enjoyable. I’d say it is essential if you want to get away from the usual tourist haunts but even in the big cities, speaking Spanish will make your time there easier and better.
Plenty of people in the cities and on the Costas will speak English but you shouldn’t rely on this fact. If you want to see interesting parts of Spain that not many people visit then you need to get some basic Spanish phrases under your belt. Even simple phrases will help you get by on a day to day basis. You will relate to people if you have a conversational level of Spanish too and this will make your time more enjoyable because you will be able to interactive with people.
Next, try to get a plan of your travels together. Whilst it is more romantic to be spontaneous and travel here and there on a whim, it will also be more expensive. If you are back packing, your money may be tight so you want to limit the expensive. If you have a plan of where you will be on such a date you can pre-book trains, planes and buses. You can save upwards of 50% on advance bookings if you do this. Saving money means more time can be spent in Spain which is even better.
It does rain and is subject to the seasons in parts of Spain. This is especially so in northern Spain. If you want to get the best of the country then travel to Spain at the beginning of Summer or Spring. Start in the North and travel south and you will probably get the best of the weather. The Costas are pretty good for sunshine and are bright all year round, so you will be pretty safe from the weather down there.
It goes without saying that Madrid and Barcelona are must do venues. You could spend more than a few weeks in each place and still not see everything they have to offer. But if time is not a luxury, write down all the places you want to see in these two cities and get organized. You don’t want to leave Madrid with seeing the Prado or Leave Barcelona without seeing the Sagrada Familia.
With this said, there is much more to Spain than these two great cities. And Spain is a large country. The best way to see other parts of Spain is to use the fast train. You can get from one end of the country to the next in a matter of hours and still get to see the countryside as you go. This is something that you miss out on in an airplane.
Spain is a super place to travel to and you will have a great time if you just plan for your trip properly.
