Hello all!

I’m back after several months on hiatus. I felt the need to post the details of my trip. This board was essential in my trip preparation. I hope the details below help someone in their planning. Let me start off by saying I love Spain, great country with wonderful people! I’ll definitely be going back.

In Madrid we stayed at Hostal Adriano. Wonderful place and great staff! The rooms are comfy, clean and very pleasant. It was a great deal at only 50 euro a night. We also had a room for three at 63 euro a night and it was quite comfortable. I wouldn’t hesitate to stay here again. We also stayed at the TRYP Alameda Aeropuerto for one night before we left for Barcelona. It was very nice and pleasant. The concierge let us leave our luggage for three days after we checked at no charge.

In Granada we stayed at the Vincci Granada Hotel. We used Bancotel coupons for the hotel and found it on the Bancotel site. The hotel was undergoing a change in management so the service wasn’t very good. We arrived and were told we didn’t have a reservation and that they didn’t have a request on file for a rollaway bed (there was 5 in our group). Luckily I had a faxed confirmation and when I popped that out they “miraculously” found a room and spare bed for us. The rooms were comfortable and clean. It was on a major street but a bit away from the city center.

In Barcelona we stayed at Hostal Grau. We booked an apartment for 5. The rooms were adequate for the price. The only annoying thing was the lack of hot water on most mornings. A cold shower isn’t very fun, especially in December. The staff was very nice though and helped us out immensely with directions.

Lastly, I highly recommend that if you rent a car in Spain you use Easy Autos (http://www.easyautos.co.uk/). We had a rental with two drivers for 5 days and only paid $235. Considering the exchange rate at the moment it was a good deal. The rental included collision and theft insurance as well. We were also lucky to get an upgrade.