Tourist sites

[Salam]

Okay, so like I mentioned earlier, me and my family are really interested in going to Spain next spring break, however, we were going to go with a group, but they said that it would cost about $5000 a person for 12 days, and it just seemed like it was too much, so if any of you know..what sites would you recommend to find info about traveling to spain..i mean, airfare, hotels, admission to each tourist atraction, etc...

[gary]

Okay, so like I mentioned earlier, me and my family are really interested in going to Spain next spring break, however, we were going to go with a group, but they said that it would cost about $5000 a person for 12 days, and it just seemed like it was too much, so if any of you know..what sites would you recommend to find info about traveling to spain..i mean, airfare, hotels, admission to each tourist atraction, etc...

Hotels - look no further that the link at the top right of this page for hotels - particularly at the costas.

I also use http://www.alpharooms.com for hotel accommodation

in Barcelona i have used http://wwwbarcelona-on-line.es which books hotels and hostals

Hostals are a great option if all you want is a clean bed and a shower, maybe breakfast but thats it. youll pay about $50 a night - per room (usually 2 people but many hostals have 3/4 beded rooms

Cant help with transatlantic flights - but inside europe Easyjet, Jet2, Ryanair, Flybe.. are budget airlines and much of a muchness - the flight prices get more expensive the nearer the date of the flight so book ahead if possible. You can pick up a return flight to most European destinations for say $100 - 120

Youre right about the groups and tour operators - Gill and I are going to the costa brava in August Do it yourself price = £600 for 8 days tour operator price £1100 for seven - you figure it out!!

[Salam]

Hotels - look no further that the link at the top right of this page for hotels - particularly at the costas.

I also use http://www.alpharooms.com for hotel accommodation

in Barcelona i have used http://wwwbarcelona-on-line.es which books hotels and hostals

Hostals are a great option if all you want is a clean bed and a shower, maybe breakfast but thats it. youll pay about $50 a night - per room (usually 2 people but many hostals have 3/4 beded rooms

Cant help with transatlantic flights - but inside europe Easyjet, Jet2, Ryanair, Flybe.. are budget airlines and much of a muchness - the flight prices get more expensive the nearer the date of the flight so book ahead if possible. You can pick up a return flight to most European destinations for say $100 - 120

Youre right about the groups and tour operators - Gill and I are going to the costa brava in August Do it yourself price = £600 for 8 days tour operator price £1100 for seven - you figure it out!!
Muchas gracias Gary! You're right, tourist companies have unbelievable prices, and it's ridiculous, especially since nowadays there are so many tourist links and books that pretty much anyone can get along on their own (well, maybe they'd have to speak spanish, but i do, so it's not a problem..lol). :D Have fun in Costa Brava! Hope you enjoy it ;)

[gary]

Muchas gracias Gary! You're right, tourist companies have unbelievable prices, and it's ridiculous, especially since nowadays there are so many tourist links and books that pretty much anyone can get along on their own (well, maybe they'd have to speak spanish, but i do, so it's not a problem..lol). :D Have fun in Costa Brava! Hope you enjoy it ;)

Sorry top left hand side!!

Heres the link

http://www.holidaysinspain.com/?referer=notesfromspain&idioma=en

[guapo]

Cant help with transatlantic flights - but inside europe Easyjet, Jet2, Ryanair, Flybe.. are budget airlines and much of a muchness - the flight prices get more expensive the nearer the date of the flight so book ahead if possible. You can pick up a return flight to most European destinations for say $100 - 120

As Gary says, flights within Europe are amazingly cheap at the moment. By way of example, on tuesday I had to make an emergency dash between London and Milan and the flight cost £20 (~€30) return. Just nobody mention those greenhouse gases :blush:

[gary]

As Gary says, flights within Europe are amazingly cheap at the moment. By way of example, on tuesday I had to make an emergency dash between London and Milan and the flight cost £20 (~€30) return. Just nobody mention those greenhouse gases :blush:


dont get me started on the myth of global warming

Eat beef to offset the carbon footprint of your flight then campaign for the closing of libraries and ban all sales of newspapers to preserve forrests:smug:

[Salam]

Sorry top left hand side!!

Heres the link

http://www.holidaysinspain.com/?referer=notesfromspain&idioma=en

Oh, thanks...yeah, that's pretty helpful! :)
As Gary says, flights within Europe are amazingly cheap at the moment. By way of example, on tuesday I had to make an emergency dash between London and Milan and the flight cost £20 (~€30) return. Just nobody mention those greenhouse gases :blush:
Yeah, I don't really think we'll be flying in Europe, cuz we're only going to Spain, and so we'll fly out of Michigan directly to Spain, but thanks anyways.
dont get me started on the myth of global warming

Eat beef to offset the carbon footprint of your flight then campaign for the closing of libraries and ban all sales of newspapers to preserve forrests:smug:
Haha, I agree. I'm actually pretty liberal, and you might call me a "tree-hugger" but only to a certain extent, because I really don't think we could live without cars, maybe other methods of transportation are helpful, but although global warming is troubeling, we can't always help it.
Um, is the honeybee problem occuring in Europe? Just wondering??

[Acosta]

Oh, thanks...yeah, that's pretty helpful! :)


Um, is the honeybee problem occuring in Europe? Just wondering??

I have heard from my friend in Madrid that they have the same problem.

I have also heard here in the US the theory is that it is caused by cell(mobil) phones are itnerfering with the bees somehow.

[Salam]

I have heard from my friend in Madrid that they have the same problem.

I have also heard here in the US the theory is that it is caused by cell(mobil) phones are itnerfering with the bees somehow.
Yeah, that's pretty creepy, I've read a few articles, and some scientists are saying that the U.S. will be on a grain and water diet in a few years if this keeps up..I think we've lost 1/4 of the honeybee population this year..5 times the normal usual loss! But wow..in Madrid too?? That's really interesting though...about the cell phones, although I guess we're all so new to technology that no one really knows its effects...so um, I hope that it's not due to cellphones, cuz we couldn't live w/out them, however, I guess if I had to choose, honeybees would definetely be my first priority.

[eldeano]

No self-respecting bee would go anywhere without his mobile. ;D

http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:Ig7a2HIzjpcHcM:http://www.bberrands.com/BusyBee_phone_PM123.jpg

[imc]

Bueno, creo que el misterio de la muerte de las abejas ya está resuelto:

http://www.abc.es/20070429/sociedad-ciencia/espana-resuelve-enigma-muerte_200704290254.html

Podemos seguir usando los móviles ;D

[greytop]

Bueno, creo que el misterio de la muerte de las abejas ya está resuelto:

http://www.abc.es/20070429/sociedad-ciencia/espana-resuelve-enigma-muerte_200704290254.html

Podemos seguir usando los móviles ;DNothing there about cell phones. Can't quite understand how cellphones can be the new "root of all evil". I worked in the industry and both my heads are perfectly normal.;D

[ruthcasares]

Have you thought about renting a villa? It will spread the cost between you and you will have more privacy and independence and a private pool into the bargain.

Enjoy your visit.

Ruth.

[omeyas]

Have a look at my site as apart from having villas and apartments on it also has lots of information about Spain in general:-
Enjoy your visit.

Ruth.

Nice bit of free advertising.
Some of the "useful" Spanish on your site leaves a lot to be desired!

¿Donde Estar?------------------ a very useful phrase meaning where is it?
¿Donde esta los servicios?---- where are the toilets?
Buenas Dia--------------------Good day

Buenas Tarde-----------------Good Afternoon
Buenas Noche----------------Good Night
es dos y media------------------it is half past two
es tres menos quince ------------- it is a quarter to three

[Janel]

Hi Salam, My estimation would be that the total cost of going on your own could be (excluding transatlantic airfare) somewhere around 1600 (more or less) per person for 12 days staying at cheaper 2 or 3 star hotels, all food, having a nice dinner now and then and including transportation within Spain, entrances, flamenco, souveniers..etc.

But then, sometimes it may be worth it to pay a little extra to go with a tour company as long as they have great service and can make your experience as a whole much better than you would if you do it on your own. Maybe they could show you things you might not find otherwise or maybe if you come on your own you waste valuable time getting lost or trying to figure out where things are. It just depends on how much research you do before you go and what kind of experiences you want to have. Personally I like the adventure of going on my own but maybe to some places I'd like a local to show me around too.

[Alison30]

For apartments and villas rented directly from the owners I have used www.rentals.loquo.com/english (http://www.rentals.loquo.com/english), www.rentals.loquo.com/spanish (http://www.rentals.loquo.com/spanish) and www.ownersdirect.co.uk (http://www.ownersdirect.co.uk) and have stayed in some lovely and well priced places. Prices are very often per villa or apartment rather than per person (although I have noticed more are per person in the cities) so work out really cheap if there are a lot of you.

Have fun!

Alison

[Culebronchris]

I'd have a look at the official tourist info sites for each of the autonomous communities that you're interested in. You'll have to find them with Google or Yahoo or whatever but from my experience they are first rate and they know who to recommend and who not to for the local stuff.

Our two local ones are

http://www.comunitatvalenciana.com/
http://www.murciaturistica.es/PORTAL/ptm.home.menu?idi=1

[ribeirasacra]

Let us know what places in Spain are of interest and then maybe some of us can help to narrow down your search a bit better. Most of Spain's autonomous communities have a tourist web site that gives you free access to information. For example here in Galicia the tourist web site can book your accommodation free of charge.

[Acosta]

Bee's I now can correct myself

from slashdot com

Posted by Zonk (http://slashdot.org/%7EZonk/) on Fri Apr 27, '07 02:34 PM
from the most-reassuring dept.
http://images.slashdot.org/topics/topicscience.gif (http://science.slashdot.org/search.pl?tid=14)
radioweather (radioweather@sbcglobal.net) writes "A couple of weeks ago, there was a nutty idea discussed in The Independent that claimed the electromagnetic radiation from cell phones was causing bees to become disoriented (http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/15/0727238&tid=215), preventing them from returning to the hive. The flimsy cell phone argument was used to explain Colony Collapse Disorder. Today the LA Times reports that researchers at UC San Francisco have uncovered what they believe to be the real culprit (http://www.latimes.com/news/la-sci-bees26apr26,0,7437491.story?track=mostviewed-storylevel): a parasitic fungus. Other researchers said Wednesday that they too had found the fungus, a single-celled parasite called Nosema ceranae, in affected hives from around the country."