Highlights of Spain 10 Day tour from $1528     an Insight Vacations luxury tour

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Tour Highlights

Hotels

A varied selection of both modern & traditional hotels; with the contemporary  Princess Sofia in Barcelona & the impressively designed Saray in Granada contrasting  with the traditional style of the comfortable & spacious rooms at the Cuzco in Madrid.

Fellow Passengers

This tour attracts both the first time & the experienced traveller as it is a perfect introductory tour to the outstanding cities of central and southern Spain. Also appeals to those with a passion for art and architecture.

 Highlights

The remarkable Alhambra Palace in Granada, the Modernist architecture of Barcelona,  the white washed village of Peniscola & the contrasting cities of Seville, Valencia  & Madrid. Not forgetting, the greatest paintings of Velázquez in the Prado.

 Excursions & Sights

• Visit the Pueblo Espanol (Spanish Village) & see the Olympic Games complex in Barcelona
• See the Ramblas & Gothic cathedral in Barcelona's  old town
• Drive through Barcelona's Modernist Eixample district
• See Antoni Gaudi's controversial Sagrada Familia church in Barcelona
• See the white walled cottages &  castle of Pen­scola
• See Valencia's Gothic Generalidad Palace, octagonal  El Miguelete Tower & Cathedral
• See the City Gates and the Church of Our Lady of the Forsaken in Valencia
• Visit the tomb of Christopher Columbus in Seville Cathedral
• See the Giralda Tower, pretty Santa Cruz Quarter & Alcazar in Seville
• Visit  the fascinating 'La Mezquita-Catedral' in Cordoba
• See the Don Quixote statue in Plaza de Espana in Madrid
• See Madrid's Parliament, Cibeles Fountain, and cross the Puerta del Sol
• Scenic drives - Jalon River Valley, Cross the Sierra Nevada, Plains of La Mancha

Guided City Tours

In depth sightseeing tours in Barcelona, Seville, Madrid & Cordoba

Orientation tour in Valencia & Granada

Insight's First Class Services

• Escorted by a professional Tour Director
• Luxury air-conditioned coach with onboard toilet
• First Class hotels with all service charges, taxes and porterage
• Complimentary arrival transfer on Day 1 and departure transfer on Day 10

Quality Dining

Highlight Dinner with entertainment in Barcelona

9 buffet breakfasts  and 4 three course table d'hote dinners, or buffets, plus tea or coffee

Tour Itinerary

Tour Pace

Well paced tour with two night stays in the major cities of Madrid, Barcelona  & Seville; allowing you time to indulge in each city's treasures. Perhaps become better acquainted with Gaudi in Barcelona? In Seville, you have a whole day (Day 7) to relax or explore.

DAY 1 FRI - MADRID AT  LEISURE

Welcome to Spain! On arrival at Madrid Airport there are complimentary transfers to your tour hotel. This afternoon is at leisure to relax and settle in. This evening join your fellow passengers and Tour Director for a Welcome Drink. Hotel: Cuzco.

DAY 2 SAT - MADRID - BARCELONA

This morning we follow the wide arid plains of Castille. After passing Guadalajara,  we follow the Jalon River Valley, dotted with Mudejar Towers which are survivors of the bygone era of Moorish domination in Spain. Now we continue eastwards, passing Zaragoza in the province of Aragon, before encountering a different culture  and language in Catalunya. Our home for the next two nights is the dynamic and stimulating  city of Barcelona. Hotel: Melia Barcelona. (BB)

DAY 3 SUN - BARCELONA SIGHTSEEING

We visit the Gothic quarter on our guided tour and see the ancient cathedral.  Then we see the famous Ramblas, with its open-air markets and cafes. In contrast to the old part of town, we drive along the broad, elegant avenues of the Eixample district to admire Gaudi's extraordinary unfinished creation, the Sagrada Familia  church, about which opinions are so strongly divided. Tonight we enjoy a highlight dinner with wine and entertainment, and visit all of Spain in one park at the 'Pueblo  Espanol'! Before returning to our hotel, we drive past the Olympic Games site  and enjoy glittering views over the harbour. (BB,HD)

DAY 4 MON - BARCELONA - VALENCIA

Sadly, we bid farewell to Barcelona as we follow the Costa Dorada south. We stop in Pen­scola to view the white walled cottages clustered around the sea-lapped  castle used in the film 'El Cid'. We continue past the famous orange groves to Valencia,  our home for the night. An orientation tour with our Tour Director shows us the City Gates of Serranos and Cuarte, the Gothic Generalidad Palace, El Miguelete Cathedral with its octagonal bell tower, and the Church of Our Lady of the Forsaken. Hotel:  Husa Reina Victoria. (BB,D)

DAY 5 TUE - VALENCIA - GRANADA

Leaving Valencia this morning we head toward the Costa Blanca. We pass through the stately waving palm tree forests of Elche and then past the lemon groves in  Murcia. We then drive amid the superb scenery of the Sierra Nevada with magnificent mountain views on all sides, as we cross the Mora Pass to reach glorious Granada.  Here, over looking the town, awaits one of the most remarkable fortresses ever built, the Alhambra. We explore this exquisite palace; a fantasy of stone cut lace, arabesque gardens and fountains, built as a citadel by the Moors in the 13th century. We also  visit the exotic water gardens of the Generalife, the royal summer residence. Hotel: Saray. (BB,D)

DAY 6 WED - GRANADA - SEVILLE

This morning a beautiful drive through gleaming white villages and brilliant fields of golden sunflowers brings us to Seville, capital of Andaluca and  one of the most charming cities in Spain. Seville has a distinctive character and presence which our local guide unfolds for us. We visit the massive cathedral, burial place of Christopher Columbus and enriched with the spoils of the New World. We  pass the Moorish Giralda Tower and the Santa Cruz quarter with its flower-decked  balconies, before seeing the Alcazar. Now on to our hotel in time for dinner. Hotel:  Melia Lebreros. (BB,D)

DAY 7 THU - SEVILLE AT LEISURE

Today we are at leisure in Seville. Perhaps explore the peaceful Maria Luisa park with its archeological museum, or visit the museum of fine art inside a glorious former baroque convent? Or ask your Tour Director about an optional day trip to  the superb sandy beaches of Portugal's Algarve region. Tonight, perhaps do as the locals do, and eat at a traditional tapas bar? (BB)

DAY 8 FRI - SEVILLE - MADRID

We set off early this morning, driving along the Guadalquivir valley, past villages  and towns studded with Moorish towers and fortresses, to stop in the perfectly preserved Moorish city of Cordoba. We see the famous 2000 year old bridge before a guided  visit to the magnificent Mezquita, an 8th century mosque with a Christian church built inside it. Then across the Sierra Morena mountains and the plains of La Mancha, following in the steps of Don Quixote, on our way back to Madrid. Hotel: Cuzco.  (BB)

DAY 9 SAT - MADRID SIGHTSEEING

This morning we enjoy a sightseeing tour along the noble avenues to see the statue of Cervantes' fictional hero, Don Quixote in the Plaza de Espana. We continue past Cibeles Fountain and the Parliament, and cross the Puerta del Sol. We then  visit the Prado Museum to admire the paintings of Velázquez. Now time to relax  at a cafe or shop in the boutiques of Serrano? Tonight, why not join a farewell  dinner, in the heart of town, with wine and music? (BB)

DAY 10 SUN - MADRID

Sadly our tour ends after breakfast this morning with a transfer to Madrid Airport.  (BB)