Please sign in to post.

RS Best of Spain Tour

I'm taking this tour mid Oct to the beginning of Nov. It's my first time visiting Spain. I have taken only one other RS tour which was the Best of Europe. Of course I will read the RS guidebook, but for those of you who have been on this RS tour do you have any tips or advice that might be helpful from your experience in Spain?

Posted by
4219 posts

If you like to read about the history of a place, these were fascinating:
Seville, Cordoba, and Granada : A Cultural History (Cityscapes) by Elizabeth Nash
Dogs of God : Columbus, the Inquisition, and the Defeat of the Moors by James Reston

I'm also an avid regional cookbook reader!

Posted by
3874 posts

valadelphia is spot on, I've always found reading up on a country and its history very helpful to give context to one's travels. You're in luck with Spain, because my country is more a collection multiple countries (autonomous regions), rather than one unified culture. That's what many people find so fascinating about Spain, it's like giant quilt, each region contributes with its own food, language, and history, and they come together to make a diverse and distinct travel experience!

Posted by
2699 posts

Start getting used to dining late. Most of our non-group dinners were 9 or 10 PM, and we were still the “early” crowd. You can eat tapas earlier but the restaurant scene is later. Brush up on your Spanish, it will help. Surprisingly much less English spoken as compared to other Western European countries. If you have a chance to extend your time take at least a day trip got Córdoba to visit the Mezquita. It was one of the highlights of our trip. Enjoy this tour, it’s great!

Posted by
15560 posts

One resource I've found helpful for RS tours is the scrapbooks from previous tours. There are often good tips on what to see and do in free time, where to eat, and helpful info, like when and where to get laundry done.

Posted by
10 posts

Kaydee, I too am taking that tour, at approximately the same time this fall. I came across the comment that Spain can be “surprisingly crisp” in spring and fall. Along with all the forum comments about dressing for heat, I’m wondering just what likely weather I should pack for. What are you planning?

And, forum contributors who’ve been on that tour in late October, what do you recommend?
Thanks,
SCEMpls

Posted by
342 posts

We're taking that tour,too. With only the advised carry on sized luggage, I am not sure about taking clothes for "crisp" weather. Also FWIW, both the first and last hotels were over 200 Euros for extra nights

Posted by
16893 posts

The time that I did this tour it was Oct. 7 - 20 and felt like 80 degrees F every afternoon. However the average high in the second half of October is closer to 65 degrees in Madrid, for instance.

Posted by
261 posts

I did the RS Tour last September and then went to England afterwards during October, and I was able to include a light sweater and Gore-Tex rain jacket in my carry on. I didn't use either in Spain, but they came in handy in England a few days. A polypropylene t-shirt and light sweater usually handle crisp temperatures well.

All the best,

Raymond

Posted by
110 posts

Thanks for the replies. I too have been thinking about clothing to pack. I think that as many advise I'll be layering. It's hard for me because when I was on the BOE tour last spring it was hot and I mostly wore short sleeve shirts as opposed to long sleeve or sweaters. In southern Spain it might still be warm. If I wasn't packing light this would not be such a problem for me. My suitcase is a 22", which I check. LOL, I can't go 2 or more weeks with any smaller. Doing much laundry does not work for me especially as the tours are fast paced. I'll do a few things in the bathroom sink, but that's it. I imagine being out so late in Spain for dinners, it might be chilly in late Oct.

Jeff, I also added two days on either end of this tour and found that the tour hotels were at or above 200 euros. I booked them for the convenience of not changing hotels and thought this might be the going rate for a decent hotel in Barcelona and Sevilla.

Posted by
10 posts

To everyone’s reading list, I can add the Kindle books by David Penny on the conquest of Moorish Andalusia by the Catholic monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. Great historical fiction! Also Dan Brown’s Origin, with action in lots of landmark sites.

Is anyone planning to extend their trip to Lisbon after Sevilla? I’ll be flying over on my own on our last day, and would love to connect with others on local tours.