Have just completed the "Best of Barcelona and Madrid in 8 Days" tour. This was our third Rick Steves tour, and was very possibly the best. We've been used to a day or two in any one stop, then pack up, get back on the bus, on to the next city. With this tour, we were able to get settled quickly in our Barcelona hotel, get to know the hotel staff and the area, then only "move" once to Madrid, where we did the same thing. The quality of our hotels was excellent and seemed quite a bit more "upscale" than previous RS accommodations. As always, our trip guides, the vivacious Barbara Schikofsky and the multi-talented, entertaining, and highly knowledgeable Frederico Garcia Barroso, made for a stellar experience. If you ever get the chance to travel with Frederico - who else could compare the Spanish royal sisters to "The Simpsons" sisters Patty and Selma????!!! - be sure to ask him to SING!
We luckily got out of Barcelona just before the civic disruptions started, and never felt unsafe or threatened. Madrid was also spectacular and very different from Barcelona's laid-back vibe. If Barcelona is San Diego, Madrid is London....hectic, huge, and imposing. Yet we were able to navigate the city easily during free time. A side trip to Toledo put the cherry on the Spanish Sundae!
Art? Amazing. Culture? Warm and welcoming. Our travel companions? Wonderful new friends. Food?....amazing is too weak a term. This trip is all about the food.....there's a lot of it and it's ALL GREAT!!!
We've loved our travel with the RS organization, but give the cities we explored and the guides with whom we worked, I'd have to rate "Best of Barcelona and Madrid" as our favorite, if only by a whisker.