I live in Pamplona. Here, anger/frustration is directed at the US Government, not at its citizens. In spite of the numerous protests, you will have absolutely no problem here. I agree with the earlier comment, though, about not wearing your "I love W t-shirt". Enjoy.

Just returned from 18 days in Spain (our first time there), and encountered no hostility or even tension around our being Americans. The only less than friendly people were occasional service industry personnel in the Costa de Sol area...probably related to the volume and type of tourism they encounter there. The Spanish people were uniformly warm and friendly toward us. We also traveled to Morocco for a day trip and had a wonderful experience with the people there as well (we did have a guide). Go and have fun!

Just got back from Spain and I concur with the other postings. I felt absolutely safe in Spain, though this time I noticed that more people wanted my opinion on our goverment and my stance on the war.
I agree also with Diana, getting away from the bombardment of our news and media is just one more reason to go.
It truly is an eye opener to view our country and its' place in the world from the outside in.

We are fed by fear from the U.S. media and believe me, there is nothing to be afraid of at this time, to travel in Spain. Expect for the usual travel precautions.

laduque: wow. VERY well stated. I agree with you 100% on ALL points.

Regarding the vacation, I was feeling the stress of overcoverage of "the war" before leaving for Spain and then... ahhhh... I hardly watched TV or read the paper so it was good to take a break. Still, when turning on that TV or reading that paper Spain DEFINITELY has a different version of the information we in the USA are being fed 24/7. We ARE fed by fear and it may be one way our governments (and I mean ALL governments of the world - NOT just the US Government) manipulate us.

During my 3 weeks in Spain I NEVER felt unsafe but was always cautious of men walking alone at night on the other side of an otherwise empty street, homeless people in bushes or trees, etcetera.

I really thought THIS was going to be MY turn to get it with all the news we all read here on the message board about safety but I escaped once again without incident - that makes, like, 7 trips with NO incident. A friend whom I met for a drink told me to be careful with my backpack. I told him I was always careful but had never had any problems in Madrid. Then he paused, looked me over and said something like, "Claro. Porque pareces muy fuerte." This made me smile.

While in Spain I did avoid any demonstrations and, as laduqe mentioned, people were curious of my side of the war and were only interested in discussion not confrontation. I think Spaniards will respect you for your opinions even if they differ from their own... AS LONG AS you have some clear reason or knowledge about what's going on instead of simply saying, "I don't think it's right" or "I think we should make them free" with no backup. Spaniards seem to be VERY knowledgeable about how this world turns and yes, they probably know more about the USA and our government than we do here in our own country.

I'm convinced that we all received "filtered" news no matter where we are in the world. Along with that goes that we can't believe everything we hear/see in the news no matter who's reporting it.

So yes, as was mentioned before, as long as you aren't walking around the streets of, say, Barcelona and wearing your white T-shirt with the American flag on the chest or have a USA FLag pin on your lapel or wearing a I(heart)USA baseball cap you'll probably be just fine with everyone you encounter.

(addition) By the way, while always cautious herself, my ladyfriend always rolls her eyes when I ask "are you sure it's safe?". And she sometimes say, "You Americans spend so much time and effort worrying if things are safe or not. Stop worrying and start living!" (the aforementioned paragraph was paraphrased and that last sentence was actually taken from the title of a book by self-help, introspective guru Dale Carnegie - a book I've not read). She makes a lot of sense actually and gives me what I believe to be a valuable second-opinion or alternative-perspective of my country.
(end addition)

Have a fun, safe, time in Spain (just as I did!).

Saludos, MadridMan