Best of Spain

Las Ramblas, Barcelona
Nonstop people watching. Stroll down the main street and you'll love that this 20-minute walk ate more than 2 hours of time. You'll find a grand opera house, elegant cafés, street mimes, prostitutes, pickpockets, artists, an outdoor bird market, great shopping. Grab a bench and take it all in.

La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona
La Sagrada Familia (Sacred Family) church is Gaudí's most famous and unfinished work. From 1883 to 1926, Gaudí himself worked on this monumental church. Don't wait for it to be finished.

New Year's Eve, Madrid
Revelers brave the unrelentless cold at Puerta del Sol and countdown the New Year by eating 12 grapes, one for each strike of the clock, a traditional countdown. Celebrations punctuate the New Year events.

Aqueduct, Segovia
Visit a 2,000-year-old Roman aqueduct, a Gothic cathedral, and a castle that probably inspired Walt Disney, all within a 10 minute walk from each other.

Toledo
Only an hour south of Madrid, Toledo is well-preserved (the Spanish government has forbidden any modern exteriors) and full of cultural delights. See over 3,500 years of history mixed together -- Roman, Visigothic, Moorish, and Christian.

Salamanca
Don't miss this wonderful college-town -- home to Spain's grandest plaza, its oldest university and 2 cathedrals (the old and new).

El Camino de Santiago
Whether you see it by car, bus or walk the entire 465 miles yourself, experience life as a world trekker.

The Mezquita, Córdoba
No camera can capture the magnificence of this former Grand Mosque of Córdoba. Don't be put off by the cathedral dropped in the middle. Avoid that area and take in the grandeur.

Semana Santa, Sevilla
Bear witness to the Pageant of The Passion, a week when more than 55 church brotherhoods, carry over 115 different floats, or pasos, through the streets of Sevilla.

Las Fallas, Valencia
A riotious week of city fires, explosions and parades in honour of Saint Joseph. Join in the celebration as 15-foot tall papier maché figures of movie stars, politicians or any notoriety are suddenly stuffed with fireworks and burned - a cruel, but fascinating expression of satire.

Pamplona Bull Run
Popularized to the world by Ernest Hemingway in 1926, this Running of the Bulls can be observed behind a very sturdy fence, or in front of a bull's horns! Every July 6th, a rocket signals the start of the fiesta and may well announce the end of your sobriety. Be sure to wear all white with a red bandanna around your neck.

Pamplona Bull Run
Popularized to the world by Ernest Hemingway in 1926, this Running of the Bulls can be observed behind a very sturdy fence, or in front of a bull's horns! Every July 6th, a rocket signals the start of the fiesta and may well announce the end of your sobriety. Be sure to wear all white with a red bandanna around your neck.

The Alhambra
An ancient palace and fortress of the Muslim kings built between 1248 and 1354. It is currently a museum exhibiting exquisite Islamic architecture.