We have 1 day in Madrid, 1 week in Barcelona, 1 week in Malaga over the Christmas/New Years' Holiday! I've been reading alot of the day trips on here. Is Ibeza 85F all year long? What is a must see while we are in these areas? Whats close enough to these areas that we can do in a day without another hostel booking? Were open to all ideas.

For the one day in Madrid, I'd suggest either the Queen Sophia Museum of modern art or else the Royal Palace tour. Or both.

Geeze! Lots of Philadelphia posters here on this board....have you been marketing your site in Philly Madridman?

Must see... in Madrid, I agree with the Royal Palace you can do it in a couple of hours. I also recommend just roaming the streets of old Madrid.. around Plaza Mayor, Puerta del Sol, Gran Vía, etc. The museums are absolutely wonderful to see, but if you just have one day, you might want to spend it soaking up the local flavor of the city and doing as the Madrileños.... tapeando and eating churros con chocolate and enjoying the holiday spirit on the streets.

I´ve been to Barcelona on a couple of occasions, but cannot recommend day trips outside the city for lack of experience. In the city be sure to visit Montjuic, La Sagrada Familia, Manzana de Discordia (The Block of Discord), Las Ramblas, Parc de Güell, and the Barrio Gótico. The Moll d´Espanya is Barcelona´s example of Penn´s Landing with a night life and several great restaurants... also worth a visit. I had eaten at rice restaurant there called L´Elxe (or L´Elche)... it was very good! Be sure to try the local cava (champagne) .. Frexinet, which is very available in the American market is from Barcelona.

Enjoy your trip!

You're right, Chica. I suppose we should let a *few* non-Philadelphians in on this thread. Any takers?

As for Barcelona, Shazz, I suggest you get a one-day pass for the Bus Turistic and ride its two loop routes around the city when you first get there. It'll give you a great general idea of the major sites, and you can hop off and on the buses as often as you like. Generally speaking, the Bus Turistic's South Loop is more interesting than the North Loop. Also note that a great many of the sites that the (amazingly) multilingual guides announce on the Bus are closed part of the week at this time of year.

¡Buen viaje!

go to bed El Viajero!! Isn´t it like 4am over there now!!?? :p

Hehehe.... Yes, it's 4:10 a.m., but I just got back from Madrid yesterday and my sleep schedule's a bit... er ... random at the moment.

chica wrote:
...And chain-smoking. Mustn't forget the chain-smoking. (El Viajero ducks and runs away to take another Benadryl)