So here goes: As we traveled, we gave each site a 1 to 10 rating (In our scale, a rating of 1 would be equivalent to a night at Medieval Times in Buena Park, CA and a rating of 10 would be equivalent to the Sistine Chapel or the Swiss Alps). We also rated cities on overall quality of sights, public transportation, attitude towards visitors and food options (vegetarian friendly, if it has a (V) it is fully vegetarian). Hopefully this info will come in handy to anyone that is planning a trip in the future. If not, then I suppose we are just losers with too much time on our hands.
Here are our ratings of the cities of Spain that we visited (in order of appearance):
Here are our ratings of the cities of Spain that we visited (in order of appearance):
Barcelona
Our Hotel:
Welcome Apts. - An okay place but we wouldn't stay there again. They do have some penthouse apartments that looked much nicer than our place. We stayed in their budget option because it was all that was available.
Our Favorite Sites:
Food:
Valencia
sights - 8.01
trans - 9.00 - buy 10 trip transit tickets for cheaper... called T10 and can be used by multiple people
attitude - 9.25
food - 9.50
Barcelona was our 2nd favorite city on our trip, I can't explain exactly why we liked it so much, but you will understand when you visit. The city just has a fantastic vibe about it.
Our Hotel:
Welcome Apts. - An okay place but we wouldn't stay there again. They do have some penthouse apartments that looked much nicer than our place. We stayed in their budget option because it was all that was available.
Our Favorite Sites:
Park Guell - 9.16 - One of my favorite places of the trip. Take a picnic lunch OR stop for tapas at Mylka (on Travesera de dalt between Lesseps metro and Parc Guell). Mylka has the best sangria I have had in my life!
Gaudi Houses - 8.13 - We just admired the outside, the ones that are open cost a lot to get in. Remember that we were poor travelers.
Fountain Magica - 7.75 - Themed classical music/fountain show on select evenings in front of the art museum. Unique and free.
Las Ramblas - 7.00 - their is a great market here but there are a lot of tourist trap restaurants as well... the bottom line is that you have to stroll through it because it is one of the main drags of the city.
Food:
Mylka - mentioned above, great tapas bar
Sesamo (V)- odd hours - but awesome food. I had Moussaka, P had Souffle made of Chufa.
Organic (V)- There is a stand in mercado de la boqueria. We had a crepe and papalla from the stand (very hard to find veggie papalla in Spain) If you enter through the main market entrance, it is on the back row. Also, they have a regular sit-down restaurant a bit out of the way but within walking distance... I have never eaten so much food!!! The sit-down restaurant is a better value than the stand.
Valencia
sights - 5.75
trans - 5.50
attitude - 7.00
food - 7.25
The older section of Valencia has more of a small town vibe. The modern city seems much more sprawled and less distinctive. If you are in the area, it is an okay place to check out, but we were more impressed with the other cities in Spain that we visited.
Our Hotel:
Backpacker's Home Hostel - A giant, multifloored hostel. They have a decent communal kitchen. It's kind of a party atmosphere. It ain't serene.
Our Favorite Sites:
Botanical Gardens - 6.50 - A nice botanical garden with a very cheap entrance fee.
L'Oceangraphic - 6.00 - This place had some cool aquariums and animals but it just wasn't worth the overpriced admission. Restaurant not veggie friendly. The park is part of the Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, which is worth a walk around -- it looks like it belongs in a sci-fi movie.
Cathedral - 5.00 - Supposedly has the holy grail in it....somewhat dubious.
Valencia Plaza - 5.5 - A nice plaza :)
Food:
La Tastaolletes (Salvador Giner, 6 - Barri del Carme) - (V) - my favorite Tapas in Spain! A must if you go to Valencia
Madrid
sights- 7.75
trans - 7.75 - also has T10 tickets
attitude -7.50
food - 7.50
Our Hotel:
Cats Hostel - It has a really nice common area and free internet. But it is crowded, loud, and every night sounds like ten dub-reggae bands are playing beneath your bed. Bad showers here too. But it is cheap and I met an Italian kid here who thought that the the Venetian hotel in Las Vegas was better than the actual Venice in Italy....which was kind of funny.
Sites:
El Museo Thyssen- Bornemisza - 8.25 - A really well-rounded art museum. The had a great special portrait exhibit when we were there. A must-see...I actually liked this place better than the Prado.
Museo del Prado - 7.50 - Spain's version of the Louvre. Another must-see, but I would check the schedule and go on a day where there is free admission.
Real Jardin Botanico - 7.25 - Top notch for botanical gardens in Europe! Small, but well maintained.
Parque Buen Retiro - 6.75 - It's a pretty, big park. Kind of standard for a large city.
Centro de Arte Reina Sofia - 7.00 - A great collection of Miro, Dali, and Picasso. It houses the Guernica painting. It's nice but definitely a notch below the other two big museums in the city.
Centro de Arte Reina Sofia - 7.00 - A great collection of Miro, Dali, and Picasso. It houses the Guernica painting. It's nice but definitely a notch below the other two big museums in the city.
Food:
El Granero de Lavapies - I loved this place. We had good quinoa, avocado salad and pineapple upside down cake here. This was some good down-home cooking.
Al Natural - Another good place...also like home cooking... not fancy or anything but good eats.
Seville:
We went here on a day trip. It was nice, we had some really great tapas that were super cheap. The cathedral here is massive. Parts of the city are a bit touristy but it also has many spots that would look what someone would expect a "postcard-friendly version of Spanish-ness" to look like.
Bilbaosights - 7.50
trans - 7.25
attitude - 7.50
food - 5.00
Our Hotel:
Pension Bilbao - It was nice enough for a few nights - the owners speak Basque and a little Spanish, so communicating with them is funny. Really clean bath/shower, decent bed, pretty quiet and relaxing. It's easy to locate, just off the trolley and metro line.
Sites:
Guggenheim Bilbao - 8.5 - What a beautiful building! If you want to enjoy the outside architecture go Monday when it is closed. We paid to go inside, but I honestly liked the outside better. P did like some of the architecture inside though as well. Most of the art is rotating special exhibitions.
Funicular de Artanxa - 7.75 - A great place to view Bilbao from the hills above.
Casco Viejo - 7 - The Old Town section... some pretty buildings, including an old Gothic church. In one of the main squares there are some great cafes/bars.
Transporter Bridge - 6.5 - This is outside of Bilbao proper, in Puente Colgante, not much of a real tourist attraction but a cool thing to see if you have time on your hands. It is a really old bridge that moves a cable car from side to side.
Food:
For some reason, the dinner schedule here was way wackier than the rest of Spain. I suggest you eat when you see something open that looks good... we were following Spain dinner time and went out at 7pm and nothing was open... Bilbao is not really a tourist town so it doesn't have restaurants set up for that, I guess. The tapas in Basque country are way different than in the other regions of Spain.
Other Spain notes:
If you are sick you can go to the pharmacy and they will help with a lot of stuff and it will be easier than trying to find a doctor that speaks English. Also, do not take a night train Spain, this lead to the worst night of our trip.
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