[BARCELONA] — I know I’m in the minority in being a steadfast fan of boutique hotels these days, whilst the rest of you are Airbnb’n, but I still am bullish on the whole hotel experience. In fact, I usually book my vacations around the hotel, often traveling far and wide just to visit a special place. Barcelona has been almost overrun by Airbnbs, so much so that whole apartment buildings are being converted by investors into full-on apartment rentals — much to the scorn of local residents, pushed out by reasonable growing rents. But just before the HomeAway trend hit BCN, a flurry of boutique hotels were built, high on style, funky design and cool restaurants, dramatically increasing this great city’s inventory of cool places
Continue reading…
[COSTA BRAVA, SPAIN] — This is a big, long post about cool things to do in the Cost Brava region of Spain. But hopefully, a good overview to start planning your trip here. I consolidated several previous posts into one comprehensive post for Costa Brava. I haven’t spent a lot of time on the Costa Brava, but passed through here two different times over the span of three months on the way to other places, each time just for a few days. So I just got a chance to dip a toe in and explore this beautiful coast. Here’s the best I found for you. Actually, each trip through I didn’t really get a chance to do any advance research — I was googling hotels along my
[CATALONIA, SPAIN] — So I was sitting in a cool hotel on the edge of the Sahara one day before I was scheduled to fly back to the States. I’d been on the road for a month in Portugal and Morocco, but I wasn’t ready to go back quite yet. So I cancelled my return flight, flew to Barcelona, walked up to the Hertz desk and asked “Can I rent a car for two months?” “Si! Si, Señor!” I had no plan. And a lot of time. I was in heaven. I didn’t really have a plan or destination in mind, but I looked at a map and the towering mountains of the Spanish Pyrenees and just headed in that direction. Didn’t really know anything
[MADRID, SPAIN] — There are lots and lots of Madrid guides, so I won’t go into much detail here, just think of this post like an old postcard rack at the train station, look for places that look good, then go find them. These are all my favorite places in Madrid. The Best Things to Do in Madrid, at least the best things to do over a winter weekend in Madrid. I won’t go into much detail here, others have already done it. Just think of this post like a cluttered old postcard rack at the train station. Look for places that look good to you, then go find them. This is a long post, so forgive me. I consolidated a bunch of smaller earlier
[BARCELONA, SPAIN] — There are lots and lots of Barcelona guides, so I won’t go into much detail here, just think of this post like an old postcard rack at the train station, look for places that look good, then go find them. These are all my favorite places in Barcelona. The Best Things to Do in Barcelona, at least the best things to do over a winter weekend in Barcelona. I won’t go into much detail here, others have already done it. Just think of this post like a cluttered old postcard rack at the train station. Look for places that look good to you, then go find them. I’ve been in and out of Barcelona a half dozen times. Sometimes just as an
[BARCELONA] — El Born is a cool, quiet chill neighborhood away from the crazy crowds. It was super quiet when I first started coming to Barcelona in 2011, but has really filled in with many more cool shops, bars and restaurants. Now it’s become super hot and a bit swallowed up by Airbnbs, but still gorgeous. Perfect for walking around in summer or winter. Cool shops, mellow restaurants and beautiful streets. There’s a great little square with four or five outdoor cafes, perfect to just sit and watch Barcelona go by. You should go here. Here’s a good article from TimeOut on what to do in El Born and its trendy neighbor. — Last visited December 2011, May, June, July 2015 —