Country guide

Spain

Dinner starts at ten, and the bocadillo de calamares is not a tourist trap.

11Guides published2Cities coveredMay–JunBest season

Where we have beenCounted from the guides themselves — nothing here is typed by hand.

01MadridWhere to stay, where it eats, what it does after dark.3 guides 02BarcelonaTapas locals queue for, neighbourhoods worth the rent.8 guides

Every guide

All 11, newest first.

Everything we have written about Spain. The list fills itself as we publish.

Newest first, straight from the Spain tag.

Know before you go

The practical bits, answered.

Six things to know, then the questions people write in and ask.

VisaSchengen90 days in any 180 for many nationalities. Check ETIAS.

CurrencyEuroCards almost everywhere, cash for markets.

Best seasonMay–JunAnd September. August melts.

Meal times2pm / 9pmEating at 7pm marks you out.

TippingRound upNot expected beyond that.

Getting aroundBy railBeats flying. Both cities walk well.

When is the best time to visit Spain?+

May to June and September to October: warm, long evenings, and the inland cities are bearable. July and August are brutal in Madrid and Seville, though the coast stays manageable.

Madrid or Barcelona, if I only have time for one?+

Barcelona for a first visit, the sea and the architecture. Madrid for food, museums and a city that feels less visited. Three hours by train separates them, so one is rarely the real answer.

How many days do you need in Spain?+

Four days per city is comfortable. A week gets you both Madrid and Barcelona properly, with a day trip out of one of them.

Do you need to speak Spanish?+

No, but a little goes a long way outside the tourist centre. In Barcelona you will also hear Catalan; nobody expects you to speak it.

What do meals actually cost?+

A menú del día at lunch is the great value in Spain — three courses and a drink for roughly the price of one evening main. Tapas add up faster than people expect.

What should you eat first in Spain?+

In Barcelona, a proper vermut and whatever is on the counter. In Madrid, a bocadillo de calamares near Plaza Mayor — yes, really, it is good and it is cheap. Avoid any restaurant with photographs on the menu or a person outside trying to seat you.

When to goDrawn from the season line above, so the two can never disagree.