I enjoy reading trip reports - both as an escape and a support for planning. I hope my report can be useful to others for either purpose.
ITINERARY
My husband and I (50s and 60s) are currently in Spain for a 20 day trip to the following places:
Segovia - 3 nights
Salamanca - 2 nights
Cordoba - 4 nights
Sevilla - 7 nights
Madrid - 4 nights
PLANS AND PLANNING
This is my fifth trip to Spain - the second for my husband so we decided to take a slow pace - enjoying being in each of the places we’re visiting without a tightly held itinerary. The last time we were in Spain was over 20 years ago - we were younger and poorer and have been looking forward to visiting again with a little more disposable income and vacation time. We have some things planned and scheduled but a lot of flexibility to go with our whims.
I recently learned about Trip Waffle an app that helps to organize your travel details ( plane bookings, train reservations, hotels etc). This app has changed my travel planning life - everything is easily stored with lots of tools to support planning such as suggested packing list, weather reports, visa requirements etc.
ACCOMMODATIONS
We’ve begun to enjoy staying in historic properties that have been converted to hotels. We booked two former monasteries/ convents, one apartment hotel and two regular hotels. We thought this mix of accommodations would give us a nice variety of accommodations to experience over our time in Spain.
PLANES , TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES
Flew SFO to CDG and on to MAD. The entry at CDG went smoothly, well organized with plenty of time to make our connection.
We’re experienced long haul travelers and decided that on this trip we would make things a little easier ( and therefore more costly) on ourselves. We booked a private transfer from MAD to Segovia. This was booked through our hotel in Segovia and was a nice treat to ourselves after a long journey.
We pre booked our in country train tickets prior to departing the US - taking advantage of the earlier booking prices. Tickets all stored in Trip Waffle. Our train travel to date has been effortless with train stations well marked and lots of helpful support on the platforms, As has been mentioned before train stations in Spain tend to have a security screening process (although not all). Arriving 30 minutes prior to departure is recommended.
SEGOVIA
Segovia was a great place to settle in, recover from jet lag and ease into our trip. I had been to Segovia as a day trip Almost 30 years ago. It’s a lovely place to stay for a few nights and wander. Here are a few details that others might find helpful:
Hotel : Aurea Conventos Capuchino - lovely historic hotel, short walk from Plaza Mayor. We took the breakfast on two days - fantastic variety of breakfast items including cook to order options.
Meals - JOSE MARIA - for suckling pig - CAFE BERNADINO - great meal here for Judianas and a beef cheeks stew.
Pastries - LIMON Y MENTA for the Ponche Segoviana. Divine!
From Segovia we took the train to Salamanca. We love train travel -it’s always a highlight for us and wish we had a similar system in the US.
SALAMANCA
The architecture in Salamanca is breathtaking- particularly when illuminated in the evening. We don’t normally eat or drink on plazas but Salamanca was an exception. Gorgeous plaza and the drinks were not excessively overpriced. We enjoyed a daily Tinto de Verano.
Hotel - Hospes Palacio de San Sebastián - enjoyed our stay although not as luxurious as Aurea in Segovia.
Food - Salamanca is known for their jamon - we tried several varieties and enjoyed them all.
From Salamanca we’re onto Cordoba - with highlights to follow….
In the meantime - welcome any suggestions for sightseeing, off the beaten path ideas , food, drink etc. in our remaining destinations ( Cordoba, Sevilla and Madrid).