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Introducing Spain
Some clichés hold true. Spain, stretching sun-drenched and untamed to the south of the wild and majestic Pyrenees, is a passionate nation littered with glittering beaches where beach lovers soak up pitchers of sangria over steaming paella (at its tasty best in Valencia). Flamenco bailaors (dancers) stamp and swirl in flounces of colour, while toreros flaunt their bravado in the bullrings. Scratch this surface and a vast, unexpected panorama unfolds before you. It is extraordinary what splendours remain off the beaten track: the green hills and ocean coves of the north; proud, solitary castles and medieval towns, like Toledo, across the interior; the white villages of Andalucía; and mountain ranges such as the Gredos and Sierra Nevada (Europe's southernmost ski resort).
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Few know that Spain has four official languages. Its regions differ vastly from one another but are held together by a national passion for drama, contrast and a noisy, live-for-today hedonism. If there is one thing all Spaniards love, it is to eat, drink and be merry, whether enjoying tapas over fine wine in Madrid, Seville or Barcelona, or the elaborate Basque Country equivalent, pintxos, over cider in the north. A day hardly goes by without one town or another celebrating a fiesta.
The country combines its superb artistic and natural heritage with an infectious, go-ahead dynamism. In its kitchens, stores and building sites, Spain's avant-garde chefs, designers and architects have unleashed a formidable wave of uninhibited innovation. So pack your bags and head out to see it all for yourself.
Make it happen
Ready to go? These recommended tours make it easy:
- traverse the finest trails of the Sierra Nevada-Alpujarras National Park and explore Granada
- take in the Sierra de Tramuntana and the Majorcan coast on foot
- explore two of Spain's most fascinating cities on this exciting 8-day adventure to Madrid and Barcelona
- or check out some exciting things to do in Madrid
Want more? Choose from a wide selection of similar trips in Spain
Last updated: Oct 22, 2009
Tips & articles
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Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled Spain itinerary
10 November 2009
A circuit through the northern reaches of Spain, incorporating colourful local festivals, is an Odyssean...
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Batalla del Vino: La Rioja’s great wine fight
10 November 2009
Festivals, food and sport are three primal passions of the Spaniards, and often they’re fused together...
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Weirdo a go-go: the world’s strangest festivals
1 October 2009
Forget Glastonbury & head instead to one of the world’s more unusual festivals – far more exciting...
Spain
Our Top Picks For Spain
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1 Santiago de Compostela
The object of pilgrimage for centuries and still so today, this beautiful medieval city marks the end of the Camino de Santiago
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2 Madrid
With its grand boulevards and art museums and outrageous nightlife till dawn, there’s no time for boredom
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3 San Sebastián
The elegant old centre of this Basque city, sited on a crescent-shaped beach, is a hive of nocturnal activity
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4 Barcelona
Spain's Mediterranean jewel sparkles with its Gaudí and gourmet delights, a buzzing waterfront scene and 2000 years of history
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5 Balearic Islands
From Menorca's crystal coves and Mallorca's dramatic mountain coast to Ibiza's clubs and Formentera's chilled scene, these islands offer it all
Fast Facts about Spain
- Average life expectancy
79 years
- Highest point in peninsular Spain
Mulhacén at 3479m
- GDP
€840 billion
- Area
505, 000 sq km
- Unemployment rate
9.1%
- Inflation
3.9%
- Population
44.1 million
- GDP growth
3.4%
- GDP per head
€20, 020
- Biggest paella
Made in Valencia in 1992 in a pan 20m in diameter; it was eaten by 100, 000 people
Related Groups
Our favourite Spain Blogs (beta)
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Riding the Rails in Europe
Blog: Nomadic Matt's Travel Site - 13 November 2009
One of the highlights of my recent trip to Europe was all the train travel I did. Using my Eurail pass, I rode across the continent through the amazing scenery. In the past, I had done limited train travel but, usually my travel plans are always random, so I typically jet set around Europe on [...]
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The Doctors and Brazil
Blog: Send The Bugger Back - 12 November 2009
I sorted out my bus ticket for Madrid in the morning, I’m getting the 10:45 getting in at 14:30 and it cost 15 Europeans. The lady didn’t speak any Spanish so I wrote down what I wanted, it then occurred to me that tomorrow is Friday 13th. Crikey. After a bit more lazing about I done [...]
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Apathetic in Aragon
Blog: Send The Bugger Back - 11 November 2009
Mercadona is the name of that supermarket I went to yesterday, I nipped back today to grab a sandwich for lunch. They have a little couple of seconds theme tune they play all the time that is just the name twice. It’s so catchy though. I actually think it’s some charts tune modified as I’m [...]
