espt-brru

Barcelona, Madrid and Andalusia

DAY 1 BARCELONA Departure from our point of origin on a regular flight bound for Barcelona. Arrival in Barcelona and meeting with the attendant. Transfer to the hotel. Orientation meeting and free time. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 2 BARCELONA Breakfast. We are going to take a panoramic tour beginning with the Old City, which is divided by its most famous avenue, Las Ramblas. There we can find many places of tourisic and Cultural interest, as much on the street itself as in its surroundings. Then we will enter the Gothic Quarter, where the famous Gothic Cathedral dating from the 14th century can be found. Free time. Return to the hotel. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 3 BARCELONA Breakfast. Departure to visit Montjüic. Used as a military outpost since antiquity, the mountain of Montjuïc is the only elevation of importance in Barcelona apart from Tibidabo. The works done for the 1929 International Exposition and the 1992 Olympic Games have made Montjuïc a very interesting area. Built on the occasion of the 1992 Olympic Games, the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium, the Sant Jordi Palace, the Pernat Picornell Pools and the peculiar Telecomunications Tower by Calatrava form part of the striking Olympic Ring of the city. We finish the day with a tour of the famous Camp Nou Stadium, to get to know the history and the values that make Barça “more than a club.’ Return to the hotel. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 4 BARCELONA Breakfast. It is in the center of the Eixample, on the Passeig de Gràcia, where we find the most visited and best known houses of Antoni Gaudí. On one side, Casa Milà, the famous Pedrera with its ondulating shapes that are reminiscent of sea waves, and further down, Casa Batlló, metaphor of the legend of Saint George. But Gaudí does not end here. Park Güell is in essential piece to understand Gaudí’s game between nature and architecture. Gaudí’s steps lead us to his key work, Sagrada Family, an unfinished architectural Bible that has become a symbol of Barcelona. Return to the hotel. Free time. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 5 BARCELONA – MADRID Breakfast. Transfer to Madrid via high speed train (AVE). Guided panoramic tour through the city of Madrid, capital of Spain since Philip II selected it in the 16th century. During the visit we will see the Plaza Mayor, the Plaza de Oriente, location of the Royal Palace, The Cathedral, the Church of San Franciso the Grande, the Gran Vía, Puerta del Sol, Street and Puerta de Alcalá, Paseo de the Castellana, Paseo of the Prado, Retiro Park, Plaza de España, Columbus Square, Bullring, Plaza de Cibeles, Neptune, etc. Free time. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 6 MADRID Breakfast. We will visit the Prado Museum, the art gallery of Madrid that holds the most comprehensive collection of Spanish painting from the 11th to the 18th centuries, and many of the masterworks of the greatest painters of universal importance, like El Greco, Velázquez, Goya, Bosch, Tiziano, Van Dyck or Rembrandt. Then, we will visit Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, which belongs to the Real Madrid Football Club. Free time. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 7 MADRID – GRANADA Breakfast. Transfer to Granada via high-speed train (AVE). Arrival and transfer to the hotel. Departure to take a city tour, including the Alhambra, the most beautiful example of Arabic architecture in Spain. The Alhambra palace, citadel and fortress, residence of the Nasrid sultans (from the 13th to the 14th centuries). Today it is a monument with four distinct areas: the palaces, the military area (Alcazaba), the city (Medina) and the agriCultural estate of the Generalife, all of them surrounded by wooded areas, gardens and orchards. From the Alhambra, we will have a lovely view of the Albaycín. Continuation of the tour with a stroll through the famous Albaycín and SacraMount neighborhoods, where we will be able to enjoy the typical architecture of the city. Upon finishing, transfer to the hotel, dinner and lodging.

DAY 8 GRANADA – CORDOBA – SEVILLE Breakfast. Departure to visit Cordoba. From prehistoric settlements, passing through the Romans and the Muslims, Cordoba has enjoyed a confluence of cultures and races that has made it a jewel in and of itself, possessing a monumental characater and an erudite legacy that are difficult to surpass. That is why UNESCO declared part of the historic center of Cordoba a World Heritage Site in 1994. Tour of the Mosque, converted in the 13th century into the present-day Cathedral. We will also visit the Jewish Quarter with its synagogue. Continuation to Seville. Remainder of the afternoon free. Return to the hotel. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 9 SEVILLE Breakfast. Departure to take a panoramic tour of this monumental and colorful city. We will walk through the Plaza de América, with its famous white pigeons, and see the Mudéjar Pavilion. W will also see the Cathedral, Maria Luisa Park, the neighborhood of Santa Cruz, and the Royal Alcázares, the oldest royal residence of the Spanish crown, where we will be able to enjoy its patios and salons in a succession of periods and styles: Almohad, Gothic, Mudéjar and lastly Renaissance. Afternoon free. Return to the hotel. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 10 SEVILLE – RONDA – MALAGA Breakfast. Departure for Ronda and tour of this monumental city located in a basin surrounded by mountains of considerable continuity and medium altitude, giving it a magical quality. Lunch. In the afternoon, Continuation to Málaga. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 11 MALAGA Breakfast. Transfer to the airport for your scheduled flight to our point of origin. End of services.