Fodor's Spain 2012

Get inspired and plan your next trip with Fodor's ebook travel guide to Spain (including Madrid, Toledo, Galicia and Asturias, Bilbao and the Basque Country, the Pyrenees, Barcelona, Catalonia, Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Andalusia, and Costa del Sol).

Intelligent Planning: Discover all of the essential, up-to-date travel insights you expect in a Fodor's guide, including Fodor's Choice dining and lodging, top experiences and attractions, and detailed planning advice.

Easy Navigation for E-Readers: Whether you're reading this ebook from start to finish or jumping from chapter to chapter as you develop your itinerary, Fodor's makes it easy to find the information you need with a single touch. In addition to a traditional main table of contents for the ebook, each chapter opens with its own table of contents, making it easy to browse.

Full-Color Photos and Maps: It's hard not to fall in love with Spain as you flip through a vivid full-color photo album. Explore the layout of city centers and popular neighborhoods with easy-to-read full-color maps. Plus get an overview of Spanish geography with the convenient atlas at the end of the ebook.

What's Covered? Get to Know Spain: Madrid's boundless energy makes sights and sounds larger than life. The city's museums comprise one of the world's greatest repositories of Western art, the cafés in the Plaza Mayor and wine bars in Cava Baja buzz, and nightlife stretches into the wee hours around Plaza Santa Ana. Sunday's crowded flea market in El Rasto is thick with overpriced oddities. From Madrid there are several important excursions, notably Toledo, as well as Segovia and Salamanca.

The Basque region is a country within a country, proud of its language and culture as well as its coastline along the Bay of Biscay. Cut by some 23 deep north-south valleys on the Spanish side alone, the Pyrenees has a wealth of areas to explore and a dozen highland cultures and languages to match.

The bewitching provinces of Galicia and Asturias lie in Spain's northwest. These rugged Atlantic regions are a corner of Spain so remote it was once called finis terrae (the end of the earth). Galicia is famous for Santiago de Compostela and Asturias for its verdant hills, sandy beaches, and massive Picos de Europa mountain range.

A cultural connection with France and the rest of Europe define Catalonia. Valencia's signature dish, paella, fortifies visitors touring the city's medieval masterpieces and exuberant modern architecture. The Costa Blanca has party-'til-dawn resort towns as well as small villages where time seems suspended in the last century.

The Rambla, in the heart of the Barcelona, is packed day and night with strollers, artists, street entertainers, vendors, and vamps. The city's startling architectural landmarks include Antoni Gaudí's sinuous Casa Milà and unique Sagrada Familia church.

The Balearic Islands (Ibiza, Majorca, Minorca, and Formentera) offer something for everyone. From a summer playground for all-night clubbers in Ibiza and pristine rugged mountain beauty in Majorca to pastoral Formentera and serene Minorca.

Highlights of the eight provinces of Andalusia, include the haunting Mezquita of Córdoba, Granada's romantic Alhambra, and seductive Seville. The Costa del Sol and Costa del Almeria are especially seductive to northern Europeans eager for a break from the cold, and vast holiday resorts sprawl along much of the coast.

Note: This ebook edition is adapted from Fodor's Spain 2011but differs in some content. Additionally, the ebook edition includes photographs...