Hola.. Quetal? Advice for first time travel to Spain.. (Barcelona & Madrid)

[Anirudh]

Hola a toda la gente agradable en este foro..

I'm from New Delhi, India. Would be visiting Spain for the first time in January..
Plan to be in Barcelona for 3 days & Madrid for 2 days..

With all the good advice available here, could anyone please recommend places to see or things to do in these 2 cities in this short time period.

Is it good to stay in hostels in Barcelona & Madrid..?? I would be travelling alone.
Is there any special precaution I should take while in these 2 cities..?

Thanks..

I look forward to see SPAIN !! :)

[Angie]

¡Hola Anirudh!

I was in Madrid and Barcelona (and a few places in between) for a couple of days over the summer. In Madrid, definitely don't miss El Museo del Prado. It's one of the most famous art museums in the world, with paintings and sculptures from 1100AD to the beginning of the 1800's. It houses several paintings by Goya and El Greco. El Prado is also very close to the Parque del Buen Retiro, a very pretty and relaxing park (I consider this to be can't-miss in Madrid as well). If modern art is more your thing, check out the Museo Reina Sofia. It has primarily art from the 20th century, including Guernica, a very famous painting by Picasso (it's especially famous in Spain). And, if you have time and are in the neighborhood, pay a visit to San Ginés Chocolateria, on Pasadizo San Ginés, very near to Puerta del Sol. They have great churros con chocolate, and very reasonably priced (just a couple euros bought enough for the group I was with).

In Barcelona, make sure to see Las Ramblas. It's basically a long street of shopping. Even if shopping's not something you're really interested in doing, there's lots to see here from street performers to vendors painting pictures that are later available for sale. This is a good place to get souveniers, not only for the greatly varied selection but you can usually find good deals if you look around. And don't be afraid to haggle :). Don't miss the Catedral de la Sagrada Familia. Even if you don't go inside (you have to pay, I believe), it's well-worth the trip just to see the outside. If you're in to soccer (or fútbol, as they call it), try to arrange a tour of the Barcelona stadium. The people in my group said it was one of the highlights of their trip. Barcelona also has an aquarium.

Really, there's so many great things to see and do in each city, you can't go wrong.

[kaike79]

Hello Anirudh,I'm from Madrid,so I think I could give you a piece of advice.As Angie has said,you can't miss El Museo del Prado.In my opinion,you could start your trip in Atocha Station(you can arrive there via Metro or train).Just in front of the Station there is Museo Reina Sofia,with paintings of Dali,Picasso(Guernica is great,try to study its story).You could walk from there over Paseo del Prado to Museo del Prado(paintings of Goya,Cervantes...).And if you really like art,you have Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza near there to.Then,I recomend you to continue walking from there to almost the finish of Calle de la Castellana,focusing the best of Madrid architecture.You could visit too,Santiago Bernabeu Stadium,the tour inside and the visit to the museum of the football team with most important titles.Before that,La puerta del Sol(metro Sol) is a great choice.Nearby you could buy something in Calle Preciados,eat Churros con Chocolate in San Gines (Calle Arenal),admire Plaza Mayor and drink some wine or a soda in La Latina.Beware of the pickpocket around this area.Unfortunately,two days is less you'd need to see all you should see.
Un saludo desde Madrid.Pasalo bien.

[Angie]

Oh, yes, the pickpockets. I meant to put in something about that. Before I went to Spain, everyone in my group was warned about how Madrid and Barcelona are very safe cities, except for the pickpockets. I can't say if our experience was typical, but we spent a couple of days in each city and no one lost anything. Anytime there's a lot of people in close quarters you need to pay attention to your belongings. The same goes for if you notice someone is too close to you even in places that aren't too crowded (My understanding is that Europeans, and Spaniards in particular, tend to stand closer together than others, but you'll know if someone is truly too close to you. The only place anyone in my group believes they were "nearly" pickpocketted is in the Prado; they were examining a painting and when they turned around, there was someone they didn't know standing very close to them. This person walked away very quickly once they turned around. That said, the Prado was still one of my favorite places in Madrid.)

Don't leave things unattended, either, even if you'll only be gone for a minute or two. Basically, just follow the same guidelines you would follow in any major city, and you should be fine.

[parubin]

... Museo del Prado (paintings of Goya, Cervantes...)

:o
:confused:
;D