Hi! Would love recommendations on 3ish places in Spain to stay for 5-7 days each as bases for travel. Will be in June-July 2008. Will be four of us, including two eye-rolling teenagers!
Welcome Ella! Could you please specify a bit something about what you're looking for? And also: is sometimes "hot" too hot for you? Spain can be VERY hot in July! Doru, my guess is that it means "probably 3 but 4 may also do"....
Hello; Ah the dilemma of teenagers and travel. From experience I know the "eye-rolling" can occur from 12 to 20. Ages and gender of the teenagers will also be helpful in suggesting places. Do you have to be the recipient of the feigned boredom or are they old enough to explore on their own?
For a large city my recommendation would be Barcelona at that time of year. The city beaches are clean; there's lots of shopping; the art and architecture is weird enough to capture a teen's anarchic soul. Dennis
Posts: 205 | Location: Calgary, Alberta Canada | Registered: 08 November 2003
It sounds realistic to me.. I have no experience with travelling with teens though... Barcelona makes a very good place indeed and Gaudi can be fascinating EVEN for teens! Another area that definitely worths a visit is Granada, Sevilla, Córdoba but it can be very very hot in July... The Basque country is just gorgeous (and much cooler) with very different landscapes from the mediterranean coast. Asturias and Galicia can also make a great stay: rocky beaches and amazing mountain landscapes. Madrid of course is my favourite. More about your interests could help us being more precise...
I think it's a great idea to share your time between 3 places.
With teenagers the best places I know in Spain are Barcelona (beaches, ramblas at night, shops) , Granada (Alhambra and its tales, walking on suspended bridges in Monachil, horse riding) and Tarifa (kyte surf and shops, whales watching, day trip to Africa).
Any of your kids surfers? San Sebastian in the Basque country would be my first pick in that regard and many other regards (it's a near perfect small beach resort) and it offers lots of opportunities for forays in France and the Pyrenees as well.
Rather than Barcelona, I would go for Cadeques or Calella da Palaufrugell on the Costa Brava (or Begur) with day trips to Girona or the Dali monuments. (France, too, is not far from there.)
If your eye-rolling teens have any appetite for art and history, then Granada and Toledo are fantastic destinations.
If they really have a problm with combining heat and touristing (I do), consider the Basque country, Galicia and Asturias.
