espt-brru

Madrid and Barcelona

DAY 1 PLACE OF ORIGIN – 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. 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. Gaudí’s steps lead us to his key work, Sagrada Family, an unfinished architectural Bible that has become a symbol of Barcelona. But Gaudí does not end here. Park Güell is in essential piece to understand Gaudí’s game between nature and architecture. Free time. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 4 BARCELONA – EXCURSION TO FIGUERAS AND GIRONA AND COSTA BRAVA Breakfast and departure in order to take a full day excursion to Figueras and Gerona. We will arrive in Figueras, where the genius and painter Savior Dalí was born. In the afternoon we will visit the Dalí Museum, an old theater decorated by the master that contains the broadest range of works spanning the artist career of Dalí. We will continue the trip to Gerona where we will visit the Cathedral, with its treasury, cloister, museum and Charlemagne Tower, the Arabic baths (from the 12th century), etc. Return to Barcelona along the Costa Brava. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 5 BARCELONA – EXCURSION TO MONTSERRAT AND SANT SADURNI D’ANOIA Breakfast. In the morning we will visit the Shrine of Montserrat, set in a spectacular granite landscape where Our Lady of Montserrat, Patron Saint of Catalonia and known by the name of the Moreneta, is venerated. Then we will vist a winery and discover the ancient traditions that still live on in Sant Sadurní, a land famous for its vineyards and the production of cava. Tour of cava winery to taste this sparkling drink (Parxet or Juvé i Campas or Marquis of Monistrol, etc). Return to the hotel. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 6 BARCELONA – ZARAGOZA – MADRID Breakfast. Departure for Zaragoza, where we will see Basilica of the Pilar, a grand religious work decorated with paintings by Goya, and the adjacent square, the Plaza of the Pilar, one of the largest in Europe. We will visit The Cathedral of the Savior (La Seo), recently restored and a mixture of styles. The dome, apse, main altar and the organ are not to be missed. Then we will head toward Madrid. Transfer to the hotel. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 7 MADRID Breakfast. Morning departure to take a guided panoramic tour of 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. We will visit the Prado Museum. Then we will visit Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, which belongs to the Real Madrid Football Club. Free time. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 8 MADRID – EXCURSION TO TOLEDO Breakfast and departure for Toledo, known as the city of three cultures, for having been inhabited for centuries by Christians, Jews and Muslims, as well as “The Imperial city,”for having been the principal seat of the court of Charles I of Spain. Panoramic tour of the city where we will contemplate the Cathedral, which we will visit, the Alcázar, the Synagogue of the Tránsito, and the Church of Santo Tomé, which we will also visit. Return to Madrid. Free time. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 9 MADRID – EXCURSION TO SEGOVIA and the ESCORIAL Breakfast. Departure for Segovia and panoramic tour of this ancient Roman city rich in historic monuments. The aqueduct, built in the time of Emperoror Augustus, the Gothic Cathedral, and the Alcázar stand out. Continuation to the Escorial to see the Monastery built by Philip II, World Heritage Site and location of the pantheon of the kings of Spain. Afternoon free. Dinner and lodging.

DAY 10 MADRID – PLACE OF ORIGIN Breakfast. Transfer to the airport for your scheduled flight to our point of origin. End of services.