Family of 4 travelling in July
Flying in and out of barcelona. Total trip duration in 12 days.
Need help deciding in itinerary.
How many days in Barcelona?
Do we go north or south from Barcelona?
Planning to rent a car and use airbnb and vrbo along the way.
What's the best loop?
Boys are 15 and 10.
Lots of variety so we feel like we have had the Spanish experience
Thanks
Have a look at these sites so you can make your own bucket list
And also
http://www.infocatalonia.eu/
http://www.barcelonaturisme.com/wv3/en/
http://www.timeout.com/barcelona
http://lameva.barcelona.cat/en
Not to spoil your hopes but the local culture is Catalan, far from the stereotypes of Hollywood movies: no flamenco, no bulls... and little Spanish spoken outside Barcelona and/or the migrant neighbourhoods of smaller towns. You'll however encounter a vibrant culture from a small old European nation: Catalonia.
It can be pretty hot in July, so you might consider spending part of the time in the Pyrenees NW of Barcelona. But Barcelona itself has a great deal of interest and--once you've digested a guidebook or two--you may decide you don't have time to go that far.
Spain (sorry, Enric) is huge, and twelve days won't give you enough time to see a great deal of it. I think it's better to drive less and see/experience more.
It may help others respond if you clarify exactly how much time you will have. What day do you arrive (I'm assuming from the US or Canada) and what day do you depart?
Ah! my mistake perhaps... I see Michael's post titles "....with Barcelona and area trip...", to me that did not include leaving Catalonia, then it wouldn't be "an area trip", right Michael?
Not sure how the OP is defining "and area" myself.
I guess I'm just used to people wanting to see Barcelona, Madrid, Seville, Cordoba and Granada in 10-12 days.
My impression is that the reference is to Catalonia, but I really think the OP needs to clarify.
Hi thanks for the replies. Let me clarify.
I don't want to spend entire days driving (+4 hours) to a distant location only to have to back track. We land on the 2nd and fly out the morning of the 12th so I'm mindful of the short time. Flight plan is in and out of Barcelona. Different departure and arrival locations from Canada are super expensive.
So let's say we spend 4 days in Barcelona, do we head north east to Girona?
Is it worth it to head up into the Pyrenees, if so, where should we go? River rafting and light hiking sure sounds like fun, but is it worth the trip?
Or do we head south and west into Valencia and Peniscola along the coast and loop inland to also stay in some wonderful ancient town?
Hope this helps shed light on my line of questioning
Ah perfect, so you want to stay in Catalonia, then my advice above remains.
For info, just under four hours' drive from Barcelona will take you to any of the corners of Catalonia -and if you're taking the coastal motorway even beyond, to València in the south or Montpellier in the north.
Anyway, my best suggestion is that you check out the information and I'm sure you'll come up with a bucket list.
Sounds like you would like some outdoor activities and some cultural ones, too. In July, I can't imagine a better location than Catalonia. Would recommend Girona (with its Medieval streets and nearby parks, like St. Daniel) with trips to the Pyrenees and some of the smaller coastal villages. Give yourself 4-5 days for Barcelona, and by all means go to Montjuic!
