Forums » The General Travel Forum & Europe

Need Cheap Travel Tips for Northern Spain- Can YOU Help Us???

Europe
Topic Type: Suggestion

We would love recs for all sorts of "must sees" in northern Spain, as well as less expensive, clean accomodations (is there such a thing?). We are starting from scratch, so any and all suggestions are great!

Amanda and Griffin Schutt

Mandy and Griff Schutt
Post Count: 4

Msg: #1 1290 days ago, May 22nd 2006

Hi! We have tickets into Madrid for the 2nd of June, and only have about 11 days to see northern Spain. We have been traveling South America, and it has ben wonderful to see Argentina's and Chile's growing economy, but it was more wear on the pocketbook than we expected. Needless to say, we are down a few more dollars than we had anticipated! We would love to see the Spanish countryside, beaches, and it would also be cool to take in local art culture. We like history and politics, and outdoor recreation. We are not sure about a rental car vs. a train, or even a camper? We are open to everything so bring it on! IF you have experineced something wonderful in N. Spain, we'd love to hear about it! Thanks a lot for your time and contribution to our trip-planning!
Mandy and Griffin

Gus_Granada_Spain

Jose Luis Esteban
Post Count: 40

Msg: #2 1289 days ago, May 23rd 2006

The north of Spain is not the Spain you may have in mind when thinking about Spain: no bullfights, no flamenco, no olé, no palm trees, no white dashed houses, nothing of that kind (you will find that in southern Spain). Instead, the north is what we call 'the green Spain'. The landscape can be described as a mixture between France and England, green, cloudy and rainy most of the year (don't be afraid, you will find sun in June but be ready for some windy days).

The north of Spain is a well known destination among spaniards, specially in summer when everywhere else is suffocating hot.

There's a strong celtic heritage, stronger at the west. People can be surprised to find pipe players, skirts and folk music which reminds of Scotland.

If you have never heard about the 'Camino de Santiago', the route from France to Santiago used by pilgrims during centuries, I suggest you look for some information about it. It's very famous. Here's the official site:

http://www.caminosantiago.com/web_ingles/index.htm

I suggest you travel along the 4 'Comunidades Autónomas' in North Spain(semiautonomous regions, similar to the states in USA but with a strong historical identity): Galicia, Cantabria, Asturias and Pais Vasco/Euskadi -Basque Country-). This also means dealing with 3 of the 4 official languages in Spain: spanish, galician and basque.

You wont find big cities. The charm of this part of Spain is to explore towns, small villages.

The musts: Santiago de Compostela (Santiago de Chile was named after it ;-) ) and San Sebastian ('Donostia' or 'Donosti' in Basque language), add also Bilbao to the list because of the Guggenheim.

Other places: Santander, Covadonga, La Coruña, Pasajes/Pasaia near San Sebastian, the whole coast and a neverending list of small villages including Santillana del Mar.

Beaches: Santander and San Sebastian

I recommend you renting a car and explore at your ease.

Otherwise:

By bus:

http://www.alsa.es/ to Galicia
http://www.continental-auto.es/ to Basque Country

By train:

http://www.renfe.es/

More:

Galicia: http://www.turgalicia.es/
Asurias: http://www.infoasturias.com/
Pais Vasco: http://www.paisvascoturismo.net/

agrim

A Rimestad
Post Count: 3

Msg: #3 1225 days ago, July 26th 2006

I would also suggest visiting Zaragoza, a short trip north of Madrid.

We travelled around Spain 2 years ago and flew in and out from Madrid like you do. Had very enjoyable stay in Zaragoza, Barcelona, Valencia, Granada, Marbella and then back to Madrid.

if you need any recommendations from here I will try to help.

Have a good trip.

Number of Users: 3
Number of Posts: 3

Post New Topic

Forums » The General Travel Forum & Europe