Spain

Madrid, Sevilla & Barcelona

Madrid

Where to Stay (Madrid)

We stayed at this Airbnb ♡* in the Chueca neighborhood. We absolutely loved the neighborhood, excellent restaurants & cafés near by. The Airbnb itself was perfect for a quick weekend in Madrid (also super clean, responsive host & perfectly located for seeing the city). Easy to get anywhere in the city from here. It borders the Salamanca, Centro & Retiro neighborhoods which are all great areas to stay in. Barrio La Latina is also a super cool area for great tapas and walking around. You can’t go wrong in these 4 neighborhoods.

Where to Eat (Madrid)

Juana La Loca ♡♡: this place is a must go to! Excellent food and service- more of a modern, trendy spot. You can only make reservations over the phone so it is a little difficult (I left voicemails back and forth 3 times and never got a hold of them, they called me back and left voicemails but never confirmed)- wait wasn’t terrible but definitely go!

Taberna el Sur ♡ : delicious, traditional tapas and Taberna! I can’t say enough about this place, we absolutely loved our dinner here. Great service, no frills, amazing food

Casa Salvador ♡: This is where Anthony Bourdain went in Madrid. This place is super, super old school and authentic. Go for lunch and get the Menu de La Casa (or menu of the day/house) - $22 euro for soup/salad, entrée, dessert and either a beer or glass of wine

Bodega de la Ardosa ♡ : Old school bar & tapas spot. There are not seated tables, you stand up at the bar, eat tapas and drink. Bodega de la Ardosa has been around since 1892 & is pretty famous. Perfect for a pre-dinner or midday stop-in .

Chocolateria San Gines ♡♡ : best churros/hot chocolate (dipping sauce) in town.  Its been around since 1894 – its famous and touristy but just do it – reminded us of Café Du Monde in New Orleans

El Madrono : Perfect spot to stop in for a beer or a quick snack. They have a cool outdoor patio right by Plaza Mayor. It is a little touristy as its right by the main plaza (Plaza Mayor). Its perfect for people watching and a quick snack/beer break if walking around the plaza.

Brunch Club Cafe : Eating breakfast in Europe is usually pretty difficult if you want a more american/english breakfast. This place is a perfect place to start the day with a more western breakfast. Super cute inside with excellent breakfast food! Definitely not a traditional / cultural thing to do but sometimes I just need some American Breakfast to start the day! I remember they had great smoothies as well.

Things To Do (Madrid)

Parque del Retiro : Gorgeous park in the middle of Madrid. Very similar to Central Park in NYC. Peaceful, calm and perfectly manicured park. Great for a stroll or picnic. You can also rent row boats as well in the pond/lake and it looks like they may have some festivals in the summer time here. It is also near a lot of the big museums so it’s perfect to pair together one day (museums + park).

Plaza Mayor : The main historic plaza in Madrid in the center of town. You will surely walk through it at some point walking around Madrid. There are some cool cafes and bars around there- Chocolateria San Gines (famous Churros spot) is also right off the plaza which is definitely worth a stop in!

National Archaeological Museum : I’ll be honest, my husband dragged me here. He really enjoyed it and I was just along for the ride. If you have questions, I can ask him more about it :)

Sevilla

Where To Stay (Sevilla)

Monte Triana : We stayed in the Triana neighborhood, just west of the river/Centro. This neighborhood was really cool, definitely a bit more local. It was about a 15-20 minute walk to Centro where everything is that you’ll want to see (the Plazas, Alcazar Real, Catedral de Sevilla), which wasn’t terrible. If I were to go back, I would probably stay in the Centro neighborhood for convenience. Hotel was great on a budget - no frills but perfect for the type of travelling we were doing and our budget at the time.

Where to Eat (Sevilla)

La Brunilda ♡♡: This was by far our best and most memorable meal in Sevilla. More modern type tapas in a pretty cool/trendy spot. They don’t take reservations so you line up about an hour before they open. We got right in when they opened (otherwise I think it can be a good 1.5-2 hour wait type spot). Definitely worth it though, we loved it.

Traditional Tapas: I unfortunately did not well-document some of the more local tapas spots we went to but the city is filled with them. You could spend a full day in just the Triana & Centro neighborhoods bar & tapas hopping. So many great places!

Things To Do (Sevilla)

Real Alcazar ♡♡: This was definitely my favorite thing we did in Seville. It is an old Moorish/Islamic influenced palace from the 11th century. Also, in Game of Thrones, it is where they film the Dorne Castle! I would definitely buy tickets ahead as lines can be super long! Definitely a must see and great to pair the day with Catedral de Sevilla & Plaza de Espana as all 3 are close in proximity.

Catedral de Sevilla ♡ : Catedral de Sevilla is one of the oldest and largest Cathedrals in the world. It is definitely worth a stop in and is right next to Real Alcazar and the Plaza de Espana.

Plaza de Espana : Beautiful plaza in the city (near Catedral de Sevilla & Real Alcazar). This is one of the more impressive and beautiful plaza’s in Europe. Definitely worth a stroll through for some photos.

Flamenco & Dinner show : We went to a flamenco show and dinner at Tablao el Arenal (I believe it was ~$75/person for the ticket, meal and a drink). Flamenco is a 200 year old, traditional Southern Spanish dance style. We enjoyed the show and food was surprisingly pretty good as well! *Tip: get there atleast 30 minutes before the show or they’ll turn you away at the door. We arrived 10-15 minutes ahead of the start of the show and almost didn’t get in.

Guadalquivir River : Walk along the Guadalquivir River and stop in some of the patio bars/restaurants for tapas and sangria! We stopped in a few places but can’t quite remember the names. They also have some river cruises that have mixed reviews - may be worth checking out!

Torre del Oro : This was a cool tower/maritime museum we stopped in. It was cheap and a quick stop in with some interesting facts. We enjoyed it. Not a “must do” but worth a stop in if you’re trying to kill an hour.

Barcelona

Where To Stay (Barcelona)

We stayed in a tiny hotel called H10 Raco Del Pi, right off La Rambla. Location couldn’t be more perfect for all of the sites and is a great place to stay on a budget. No frills, a little hard to get to but is perfect for Barcelona as you just need a place to sleep!

Where To Eat (Barcelona)

Bar Pinotxo ♡♡: If you do one thing in Barcelona, go here. It is in the Mercat de la Boqueria and was hands down our best meal. It’s basically a small bar where you sit around this tiny chef table in the middle of the market and eat the most amazing food. Anthony Bourdain went there too which is really cool (so you know its good!) We went for lunch which I recommend doing (maybe an off-lunch hour would be best). Be prepared to wait and kind of fight for a seat at the bar, but I promise its worth it. If you want their lobster, they will literally pull out a live lobster and cook it right in front of you. I am not even a ceviche fan but their ceviche was unreal. It was by far the best food we ate in Barcelona.

Cerveceria Catalana ♡ : This tapas restaurant is amazing. We went here for my birthday and loved it. Definitely a more trendy and modern spot - everything was delicious and service was great. They don’t take reservations so you have to put your name in and go grab drinks near by or at the bar.

Arcano : Great spot for a nicer dinner. They have tapas/appetizers but also had full plate/entrees. The interior of the restaurant its beautiful and all stone. They had a great wine menu and food was really good.

Xiroi Ca La Nuri : Fun spot right on the beach in Barcelona. They had great appetizers and drinks which was perfect after spending time on the beach. Great views, trendy decor, awesome patio. Definitely a tad touristy but with the location, its a bit of a given!

Things To Do (Barcelona)

Mercat de la Boqueria ♡♡ : Awesome market in the middle of Barcelona. This is a must do. Eat at Bar Pinotxo , you won be disappointed. Full review and more information above in the Where To Eat section above.

FC Barcelona Game ♡♡: If FC Barcelona is playing, absolutely go to a game. The energy is unlike any sporting event in the states. It is loud and rowdy, they sing and chant the entire game. Buying tickets ahead is very tricky and very difficult to obtain. We went through the concierge in our hotel - it was a bit of a sketchy cash exchange where he got a season pass ticket / scan card that we had to return - but hey, it worked and seats were great! Expect to spend about $250 to go to a game. The best way to get to the game is via train - its quick and easy from downtown. There are tons of cafes and bars around the stadium where you can go to before/after for drinks and food. We had a blast.

Sagrada Familia : This is the #1 thing to do in Barcelona. Everyone loves it. A Gaudi designed church. Buy tickets ahead or you will wait and hour or two in line. I bought tickets ahead for an allotted time slot, which I am glad we did as the line was wrapped around the block. I did not love Sagrada Familia. I was very underwhelmed however, I am the minority here. Everyone thinks I am crazy. I was very hungover from the night before, maybe that was part of it? I also didn’t do the towers which I hear are worth doing, so thats something to look into!

Park Guell (Gaudi Park) ♡ : Gorgeous Gaudi designed park. I loved it - worth walking around and seeing the views of the city. Its a little bit from downtown, 15-20 minute taxi. Worth a trip out to see it if you have time. I really enjoyed this part of Barcelona.

La Rambla Street: Definitely walk down La Rambla to shop and check out some cafes & restaurants. You don’t really need an agenda - tons of great shops. Definitely look out for some of their awesome ceramic shops to send back to the states!

Vineyard Tour ♡ : There are tons of awesome vineyard tours you can book for just outside of Barcelona. We did a 1/2 day trip (4-5 hours) and visited 2 vineyards along with the town of Sitges on our way back to town. Our vineyard tour link is in the itinerary link at the top of the page!

Sitges: Great little fishing town outside of Barcelona. We stopped here after our Vineyard tours for an hour to walk around.

Clubs: Barcelona is know for their incredible clubs. Don’t show up before 12:30-1:00am or you’ll be the only one there. There are tons of promoters on the beach - it honestly may be worth working with one to get in to avoid the insane lines. Opium is definitely the most popular club to get into. I think there were literally 1,000 people in line to get in so we went to a different one across the street (can’t remember the name).

* ♡ = a favorite

♡♡ = a must do