Discovery of Spain and Portugal

After your flight has landed at Madrid airport, following a simple customs clearance, you’ll be chauffered to your first-class hotel. Once you’ve settled in, why not go out and enjoy this wonderful Spanish city. You can take advantage of an evening drive through the city’s busy streets, where visitors are often amazed at the colorful and dazzling lights along the way to the Plaza Mayor. This magnificent square, houses some of the best restaurants in the whole region, along with cafes and bars, where you can enjoy the local tapas. For clients of the “Premium Package” a delicious tapas experience awaits. After this meal, you can quietly stroll back through the safe streets to your hotel.

Your first tour will begin after you’ve sampled a delicious buffet breakfast. The tour will introduce you to some of Madrid’s outstanding architecture and attractions. Be sure to remember your camera! From the exquisite fountains of Neptune and Cibeles to one of the busiest places in the city, the Puerta del Sol. The sites and sounds will be unforgettable. Of course, there is more to come, in the form of the Alcala Gate, which is close to the city center and was built almost three hundred years ago. There are many more sites to take in such as the Plaza de España, Plaza de Oriente, and the famous Gran Via. Once the morning tour is over you have the afternoon to yourselves and may want to visit the art museums that are located in “The Golden Triangle of Art”. You may decide to take the optional tour that visits medieval Toledo, which was the capital of Spain until 1560. Its narrow streets offer welcome shade from the afternoon sun, and the quaint cobblestones protect the road from the footfalls of many fascinated visitors. You will see the masterpiece by El Greco which is hanging in the St Tome church, and you will experience the quiet peacefulness of the city’s gothic cathedral, all included as part of the tour. The rest of the day is yours and you may explore some more, or return to the hotel.

After your buffet breakfast, we shall set out to visit Castile and the medieval city of Segovia with its world-famous Roman aqueduct, which is over 2000 years old. You will also take in Alcazar Castle while in the city. Moving onto Avila you’ll see the 11th-century walls of the city, which are perfectly preserved. We now turn our attention to the afternoon tour of the city of Salamanca, with its historical university. Dinner tonight is included if you are on the Premium Package. After dinner, before heading to your accommodation, why not take a walk in the busy main plaza which is usually full of life and bustling activity.

Your buffet breakfast awaits, after which you’ll set out for Northern Spain and the Galicia region. You can wander the beautiful streets of Santiago de Compostela yourself or take the afternoon guided tour which takes in the impressive Cathedral. Dinner can be obtained from the hotel this evening and is included for Premium Package clients.

Soon after your breakfast buffet, you will head off towards Portugal visiting Rias Baixas on the way. The mouth of the Lima rivers holds the wonderful Viana do Castelo. Its castle and historic center are waiting for you. Continuing on, we get to Porto, in the Douro region. Here in the capital of northern Portugal, your accommodation awaits.

Your buffet breakfast this morning is followed by a visit to a local port winery and a guided tour of this city which lies on the Douro river. The Premium Packagec includes lunch. The afternoon and evening are yours to fill however you want, before returning to your accommodation.

Today after your buffet breakfast, you shall head to Aveiro, called the Venice of Portugal because it is the City of Canals. The Christian pilgrim destination of Fatima is your next stop. You will be given the opportunity to visit the basilica before lunch. Lunch is included for those on the Premium Package. After lunch, we then continue our journey to Lisbon. Here you have the option of taking in a Fado music show with your dinner, both of which are included for Premium Package clients. Fado music is both haunting and beautiful and after this show, you are free to return to the hotel or continue into the night.

Your buffet breakfast finished, this day sees you on a tour of the ancient city that stands above the Tagus River. The city has wonderful monuments to see including The Tower of Belem, which awaits among the splendid avenues, as does the Jeronimos Monastery. We recommend that everyone visits the villages of Cascais and Sintra with your free afternoon, and these tours are included with the Premium Package. Your accommodation is waiting for you in the evening.

After your buffet breakfast, we head back towards Spain, stopping in Marida to take in the archeological site of the Roman Amphitheater. The Premium package includes lunch, after which we continue towards Seville and the hotel for the evening.

Your tour of Seville will start this morning after your buffet breakfast. Even in Spain’s third largest city, you can still find havens of peace and tranquility such as Maria Luisa Park. Other monuments such as the Tower of Gold are breathtaking and when you visit the Santa Cruz Quarter you will discover the meaning of the word quaint. The final stop on this wonderful tour is the massive Cathedral with the Giralda Tower. After the morning tour, there is the Guadalquivir river boat tour that is optional that we recommend taking. Following this, you can have a relaxing lunch and then enjoy your free time in the afternoon shopping or exploring some more. Premium Package clients have the boat tour and lunch included for them. Before retiring to the hotel, why not try an optional Flamenco show in the evening, with the enjoyment of local wine. This is included as part of the Premium Package.

Cordoba is our first stop after your breakfast buffet today. The former Great Mosque which is now a Cathedral is waiting for you to explore. After which you have some free time to enjoy lunch. We pass thousands of acres of olive trees as we head to Granada. You should try to take in the distinctive Albaicin quarter this evening (optional) and see some Andalusian music and enjoy their wine and customs. It’s an enticing and enchanting venue.

A buffet breakfast is followed by an escorted tour of the fortress of Alhambra and the Gardens of the Generalife. At noon we head East for the coast and Valencia for our accommodation for the night.

This morning, after the buffet breakfast, you’ll join the city tour that visits the new Museums area. Followed by a journey North, in the early afternoon to Barcelona, which is renowned as one of the most cosmopolitan cities in Europe. We recommend dining at Pueblo Español in the evening where you can take in replicas of famous architecture from all over Spain. The Premium Package includes dinner. After, you can retire to the hotel or continue the fun elsewhere before heading back.

The morning tour of Barcelona follows the breakfast buffet. As one of Europe’s leading cities, this is one not to miss. You’ll visit the spectacular Cathedral in the old Gothic Quarter and can stop to revel in the beauty of the exterior of the Sagrada Familia or Basilica of the Sacred Family, which is Gaudi’s masterpiece. Later on the tour, we find Montjuich Hill (a former Olympic Stadium) which offers a spectacular viewpoint to take in all of Barcelona’s splendor. You then have some free time to enjoy lunch which is included for Premium Package clients. The afternoon can be used to wander at your leisure and eventually make your way back to the hotel.

This is your last breakfast buffet and we will be sorry to see you leave. Your transfer to the airport for your departure flight is after breakfast. If you are looking to spend extra time in Barcelona, you are able to book post-tour accommodation.