Korean Job Discussion Forums

n3ptne · Joined: 14 Sep 2005 Location: Poh*A*ng City

Anyone done it?

At present we're planning to rent a car in Barcelona and travel along the coast until Seville, and then going up to Madrid and catching a flight to Prague.

We have 13 days there.

That route means we'll miss Bilbao.

Is the Guggenheim really worth it?

How about a short venture into Portugal, or France/Pyrenees Mountains?

Tangiers?

Also, does anyone have an idea what it's going to cost to rent a car for this amount of time?

Is it possible to rent in Barcelona and return in Madrid?

Natalia · Joined: 10 Mar 2006

I'm not going to be able to help much with the car rental, but I do know it's a hell of a lot easier (and cheaper) to rent and return in the same country, and a hell of a lot cheaper in Spain than places like Italy.

If you are going to Spain make sure you spend time out of Madrid and Barcelona. They are both fascinating cities, but not particularly representative of the country and the culture. Rome is distinctly Italian and Paris distinctly French, but Barcelona and Madrid are not very 'Spanish'.

Thirteen days isn't very long to see such a diverse country, but I wouldn't try and fit too much in, because it is as important in Spain to experience the lifestyle as it is to see every palace and church.

Seville is the best base for seeing the south of the country. I actually just spent all of August there (and I'm missing it terribly). It's beautiful, quiet and safe. And you can't really go to Andalucia and not see Granada and Cordoba.

Of the European cities I have visited (and I've lived in mainland Europe on and off for years), Madrid is the most dangerous as far as petty crime. On my last trip my travel partner had everything - camera, passport, jewellery, phone... stolen, and they were being really careful. I know more than one person who has been mugged in Barcelona too. Don't be turned off - they are great places - but nowhere near as safe as other major European cities.

Oh, and I REALLY love Portugal and France, but thirteen days is not enough time. Limit your destinations and enjoy your trip.

atomic42 · Joined: 06 Jul 2007 Location: Gimhae

Check yer PMs.

Tiger Beer · Joined: 07 Feb 2003

Mr. BlackCat · Joined: 30 Nov 2005 Location: Insert witty remark HERE

I really enjoyed Barcelona on two seperate occassions (started and ended my Spain/Portugal trip there). Like another poster said, it's not very 'Spanish'. It's Catalan!

I personally didn't find Madrid that great, but everyone I know loved it.

Seville was fantastic. I loved every minute of everyday I was there. I actually skipped out on some other cities just to spend more time there. It felt very mideval Spanish to me. One of my top cities of all time, easily. Granada is close by and nice, too.

I agree that 13 days isn't much. I'd recommend starting in Barcelona-Madrid-Seville-Granada (reverse the last two if you need to). Hopefully you can return the car to a different city. A friend of mine rented a car down there and said it was cheap. Can't be much more help than that, though.

Have fun in Spain. It's a wonderful place.

n3ptne · Joined: 14 Sep 2005 Location: Poh*A*ng City

yeh I know. 13 days isn't much.

My fiancee and I are taking 6 weeks off. A month is being spent in the US (boo), and then we're spending 3 days in Prague and 3 days in Amsterdam before going to Moscow and on to Seoul.

I'm not worried about the safety. The current plan is to rent a car, drive for the day, find a little place to spend the night, and the continue on, and seeing the things worth seeing during the day.

articulate_ink · Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 9:18 am Post subject:

Yes, the Guggenheim is worth it. So's the rest of the city. Bilbao's an intriguing little city if you can spare the time.

And keep an eye on your belongings if you take the metro in Madrid. My first day there, something weird happened: I thought someone was acting strange, because he walked up to me and stayed close. He then explained someone had just tried to pick my pocket and he had physically walked between me and the would-be thief. From then on, I kept my wallet in my inner jacket pocket.

It was a dreary time of year (late December) to be in Madrid. Barcelona was warm and gorgeous, though. It was like coming back to life after being dead for a week. I love that city and can recommend a good boutique hotel if you're going that route.