South West Spain - Recommendations?

Outtomunch said:

The Sierra Nevada and Alpujarra; the land that time forgot and absolutely beautiful

Andres

Click to expand...

Couldn’t agree more, utterly beautiful, some brilliant roads (tarmac and gravel) and views to die for. Granada is pretty cool too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

depends how much of a history buff you are but just a bit off your route but close are Badajoz, Ciudad Rodrigo, Almeida, Portugal, then obviously there is Salamanca being a peninsular war nut couldn't miss visiting some of them, Ciudad is a cracking little town in its own right, but the walled town at the top of the hill inside the fortifications has not changed since 1800 and you can walk right round the fortifications

The Iberian Peninsula covers an absolutely huge area and is a fantastic place to visit!

The appreciation of what you've seen (and potentially missed) instils an addictive compunction to revisit, time and time again!

Yes, the more occasions you'll visit, instils an indelible mindset of hasta la vista.

BTW; the term "Hasta la vista" is a Spanish farewell that can be literally translated as "Until the (next) sighting" and means "See you later" and "Goodbye".

Have you and your good lady created a bucket list of places to visit and accordingly created a route?

Or have you merely created a draft route and booked hotels?

Whatever you've planned to date, I truly appreciate your dilemma of what to potentially include and (unfortunately) exclude during the course of a two week tour.

As with the veritable culinary delights of Tapas and smorgasbord (please forgive the food metaphors), places to visit (hopefully with memorable enjoyment) is ultimately down to individual personal tastes and preferences.

Consequently, I'd suggest you may wish to review the very many historic threads on this forum for potential suggestions.

BTW; for your reference and consideration, here are some which I've very recently posted:

Euro Tour 2020.08 - Spain & Portugal - The Grand Tour https://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php/551451-Spain-amp-Portugal-Some-of-my-favourite-roads-for-your-review-and-consideration

The tour itinerary spreadsheet details many potential interesting places to visit.
Here's a Dropbox link FYI. https://www.dropbox.com/s/jgch4ee8v3nkc49/Euro%20Tour%202020.08%3B%20Spain%20%26%20Portugal%20Itineary.xlsx?dl=0

Moreover, it's often said "a picture paints a thousand words"; so here's a link for further additional dated photos:
https://flic.kr/s/aHsmUJ6cgS

02.09.2020 to 04.09.2020; I visited Albarracín & surrounding areas (my fifth occasion).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albarrac%C3%ADn

11.09.2020 to 13.09.2020; I visited the Granada & surrounding areas (my fifth occasion).
Historically, I've previously avoided visiting the Alhambra because of the huge number of visitors.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alhambra
However, resultant from the 2020 global pandemic in 2020, there weren't many visitors! Consequently, I didn't need to pre-book and merely required to present my passport as ID.
IIRC the admission fee was 18 euros and a further additional 16 euros for parking.
Yes, I could have utilised nearby street parking, however the Spanish often prefer a tactile approach to ameliorate any perceived parking dilemmas.
Consequently, discretion is the better part of valour, especially where vehicles are regularly (intentionally) driven into other vehicles to lay claim to any coveted (already occupied) parking space!

15.09.2020 to 17.09.2020; I visited Ronda & surrounding areas (my fifth occasion).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronda
IIRC, to the contrary of the "intimated" secure maned parking charge, it actually cost me 18 euros the for 12 hours. A small price to pay for peace of mind and the convenience of town centre parking.

28.09.2020 to 30.09.2020; I visited Ciudad Rodrigo.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ciudad_Rodrigo

Especially interesting for anyone with even a marginal interest in history and the Peninsular War.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peninsular_War

Have you read any of the historical novels by Bernard Cornwel? If so, you'll recall many were subsequently dramatised in the "Sharpe" TV Series?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharpe_(TV_series)


Euro Tour 2019.09 - Spain - Ruta de la Plata bimble https://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php/551842-Euro-Tour-2019-09-Spain-Ruta-de-la-Plata-bimble


I hope my recollections of recent Euro Tour ramblings may be of some assistance with your dilemmas.

Best wishes and kindest regards,
Jan

PS; I'd strongly suggest you refrain from sending any personal messages to Wapping (AKA Richard) to request assistance with the subject matter.
PPS; However, if you do decide to request Richard's learned counsel, a shocking diatribe may possibly be forthcoming.
PPPS; Will definitely be forthcoming.
PPPPS; Moreover, because Richard seemingly loves Wales more than Spain, you'll probably be directed to visit Rhondda, rather than Ronda (Spain).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhondda

I have no idea what oddjob is on about but it all looks jolly good. My and forum’s thanks to him for his posts on Spain and other jaunts

A reminder to everyone that the quaint one is after ideas in south west Spain only.... before we know it the Millau bridge will pop up.

Wapping said:

I have no idea what oddjob is on about but it all looks jolly good. My and forum’s thanks to him for his posts on Spain and other jaunts

Click to expand...

I thought you liked the Rhondda?

Thanks for all the replies. I probably should have said that I’ve toured on the bike in Spain lots of times - well, seven separate trips, three of them with the current wife on the back. Plus three or four flying/hire cars hols including honeymoon in 2019. We like Spain!

We’ve just never been to the south west before and while we’re happy to look for things to see and places to go ourselves, based upon what we know we like, it would be a shame to miss somewhere recommended by others.

So far , Sevilla and Ciudad Rodrigo seem to be consistently recommended.

We have booked accommodation but nothing that couldn’t be changed if necessary. We have thrown ourselves at the mercy of the Paradores and will be flashing our Amigos Oro card as we head for our suite! . (So free parking in central Ronda if nothing else.)

I read Wapping’s acerbic responses to others’ travel queries with much amusement and will be happy to be subjected to his rapier wit if necessary, safe in the knowledge that a quiet word to someone in the tea huts will make his next trip on the channel tunnel unforgettable. For all the wrong reasons. COYQ!