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• Explore Madrid (website: www.esmadrid.com). The Prado is a paradise for art lovers. The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia focuses on modern art and houses Picasso's famous Guernica. Also don't miss the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid's Royal Palace, the atmosphere around Puerta del Sol and Madrid's historic square, the Plaza Mayor.
• Immerse yourself in Barcelona (website: www.bcn.cat), from cramped alleyways of the Barri Gótic (Gothic quarter) to 19th-century Eixample quarter where many Gaudi buildings lie. Stroll along the Rambla and on to old Barceloneta and the seafront. Sights include the Sagrada Familia (Holy Family), the Seu (old cathedral), the Episcopal Palace and the Palau de la Generalitat. Take the funicular to Tibidabo or a cable car to Montjuic.
• Visit Frank Gehry's marvellous Guggenheim Museum, which has turned Bilbao (website: www.bilbao.net/bilbaoturismo), the main city of the Basque region, into a top tourist destination. The museum has been hailed as a masterpiece of 20th-century architecture. Bilbao's Old Town is extensive with a gothic cathedral and an attractive Town Hall.
• Check out Santiago Calatrava's City of Arts and Science Park in Valencia (website: www.comunitatvalenciana.com). The Hemispheric, an amazing glass structure, houses a planetarium, IMAX dome and laserium. While in Valencia, visit the cathedral. It claims possession of the Holy Grail.
• Try Pamplona (website: www.pamplona.net) outside the fiesta season. The main attractions are its old walled quarter, Renaissance cathedral and imposing citadel.
• Capture a whiff of ancient Rome among the stunning ruins of Merida. Other important Roman remains are to be found in Tarragona and in Italica, near Seville.
• Live and breathe the essence of Moorish Spain in the winding streets of Cordoba (website: www.turismodecordoba.org), the former seat of the 10th-century Caliphate. The Mezquita (Great Mosque) is a mystic wonder. Just outside the city the ruins of Medina Azahara are similarly atmospheric.
• Visit Seville (website: www.turismo.sevilla.org), the romantic heart of Spain, city of Carmen and Don Juan. See the cathedral, the world's largest gothic building and bell tower the Giralda. The Alcázar is a superb example of Mudéjar (Moorish) architecture. Wander narrow ways in the old Jewish Quarter, and drop in on a tapas bar or three.
• Discover the magic of the Alhambra (website: www.turgranada.es), the palace-fortress in Granada, built by the Nasrid rulers in the 13th and 14th centuries. Rising majestically above the cathedral city of the conquering Christians, the Alhambra is Spain's popular tourist attraction.
• Head south of Madrid to the ancient Spanish capital of Toledo (website: www.toledoweb.org), which is dominated by the magnificent cathedral and Alcazar. Home to El Greco, many of his most famous paintings can be seen here, including The Burial of the Count of Orgaz, in the Santo Tomé Church.
• Take the high road to Spain's loftiest provincial capital. Avila (website: www.avilaturismo.com) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site famous for its perfectly preserved 11th-century walls and for being the birthplace of the 16th-century mystic, St Teresa.
• See Salamanca, an ancient university town with many superb buildings in the Renaissance style known as Churrigueresque. Visit the unusual and absorbing Museo Art Nouveau y Art Deco, with its fascinating collections of objets d'art from the first half of the 20th century.
• Bask on the beaches of The Balearics (website: www.illesbalears.es). Majorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera offer unrivalled combinations of relaxation, sun, fun, sea and sand.
See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.
• Immerse yourself in Barcelona (website: www.bcn.cat), from cramped alleyways of the Barri Gótic (Gothic quarter) to 19th-century Eixample quarter where many Gaudi buildings lie. Stroll along the Rambla and on to old Barceloneta and the seafront. Sights include the Sagrada Familia (Holy Family), the Seu (old cathedral), the Episcopal Palace and the Palau de la Generalitat. Take the funicular to Tibidabo or a cable car to Montjuic.
• Visit Frank Gehry's marvellous Guggenheim Museum, which has turned Bilbao (website: www.bilbao.net/bilbaoturismo), the main city of the Basque region, into a top tourist destination. The museum has been hailed as a masterpiece of 20th-century architecture. Bilbao's Old Town is extensive with a gothic cathedral and an attractive Town Hall.
• Check out Santiago Calatrava's City of Arts and Science Park in Valencia (website: www.comunitatvalenciana.com). The Hemispheric, an amazing glass structure, houses a planetarium, IMAX dome and laserium. While in Valencia, visit the cathedral. It claims possession of the Holy Grail.
• Try Pamplona (website: www.pamplona.net) outside the fiesta season. The main attractions are its old walled quarter, Renaissance cathedral and imposing citadel.
• Capture a whiff of ancient Rome among the stunning ruins of Merida. Other important Roman remains are to be found in Tarragona and in Italica, near Seville.
• Live and breathe the essence of Moorish Spain in the winding streets of Cordoba (website: www.turismodecordoba.org), the former seat of the 10th-century Caliphate. The Mezquita (Great Mosque) is a mystic wonder. Just outside the city the ruins of Medina Azahara are similarly atmospheric.
• Visit Seville (website: www.turismo.sevilla.org), the romantic heart of Spain, city of Carmen and Don Juan. See the cathedral, the world's largest gothic building and bell tower the Giralda. The Alcázar is a superb example of Mudéjar (Moorish) architecture. Wander narrow ways in the old Jewish Quarter, and drop in on a tapas bar or three.
• Discover the magic of the Alhambra (website: www.turgranada.es), the palace-fortress in Granada, built by the Nasrid rulers in the 13th and 14th centuries. Rising majestically above the cathedral city of the conquering Christians, the Alhambra is Spain's popular tourist attraction.
• Head south of Madrid to the ancient Spanish capital of Toledo (website: www.toledoweb.org), which is dominated by the magnificent cathedral and Alcazar. Home to El Greco, many of his most famous paintings can be seen here, including The Burial of the Count of Orgaz, in the Santo Tomé Church.
• Take the high road to Spain's loftiest provincial capital. Avila (website: www.avilaturismo.com) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site famous for its perfectly preserved 11th-century walls and for being the birthplace of the 16th-century mystic, St Teresa.
• See Salamanca, an ancient university town with many superb buildings in the Renaissance style known as Churrigueresque. Visit the unusual and absorbing Museo Art Nouveau y Art Deco, with its fascinating collections of objets d'art from the first half of the 20th century.
• Bask on the beaches of The Balearics (website: www.illesbalears.es). Majorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera offer unrivalled combinations of relaxation, sun, fun, sea and sand.
See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.
