There are many travel destinations that can enchant the tourist, where the well worn flagstones of the oldest part of town can capture the traveler's imagination, set you musing on the throngs of feet that might have trod the very spot where you and your Canon Sure Shot now stand. One of our favorites is Spain. Travel every corner of the Iberian peninsula and you'll find a wealth of different landscapes and cultures await. Make sure your Spanish vacation plans include some time in Spain's old world cities, not just the spectacular beaches for which she is rightly famous.

© photographer Carsten Reisinger; agency Dreamstime.com

Spain's Geography
Many first time visitors to Spain are surprised to discover her impressive land mass. Occupying eighty-five percent of the Iberian Peninsula at the southwestern tip of Europe, Spain encompasses over 195,000 square miles and is the third largest country in continental Europe. Today, Spain is home to over forty million Spaniards. In addition to mainland Spain, her territories include the Balearic Islands to the east and the Canary Islands over six hundred miles south, off the North African coast. For vacationers, tourists, expats and business travelers alike, there's a lot of Spain to explore.
 
Spanish Destinations

ANDALUSIA MURCIA BALEARIC ISLANDS BARCELONA CATALUÑA CÓRDOBA GRANADA MADRID SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELLA SEVILLE SPAIN'S BEST RESORTS VALENCIA

 
Spain's History & Heritage
Spain is one of those evocative destinations… a sweeping backdrop for some of the most intriguing, grand and turbulent history that has ever been written. You may be taking your vacation in Spain for the sea, sun and sand of it, but be sure to explore beyond the beach. There are stories and legends lurking in the shadows, just waiting for an invitation to take a walk with you.

Spain today is an exuberant blend of striking contrasts, a place where the traditional and the ultra-modern live side by side. Spanish identity has been shaped by a long, eventful history and by the large footprints left by those who first invaded and colonized the land. Ancient Greeks and Phoenicians swept through the peninsular ahead of the Romans who came in 300 BC, and as you might have guessed, built great roads and cities which forever shaped Spain's destiny. The imperial conquerors brought their highly developed language and architecture, their agricultural techniques, and unusual new crops like wine grapes and wheat. Evidence of masterful Roman engineering, like the amphitheater in Merida and the great aqueduct in Segovia, remain dotted across the landscape in many parts of Spain today.

© photo Alex Bramwell; agency Dreamstime.com

After the Romans, came the Visigoths, one of the many Germanic tribes who had converted to Christianity. They ruled Iberia from their court at Barcelona for three hundred years, until the seven hundreds. Next to take center stage in Spain's drama were the North African Moors who occupied Iberia for seven centuries, imprinting what would become the Spanish language, Spanish architecture and Spanish cuisine with their own unique eastern characteristics. Their influence and legacy are particularly visible in the south in places like Granada where the great Moorish Fortress, the Alhambra, still stands. Until the Moors were driven out of the Iberian peninsular in 1492, Spain remained a disconnected group of separate kingdoms. Andalusia, Galicia, Leon, Castilla, Aragon and Cataluña were autonomous and independent until Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand began the process of uniting them into one nation, España. The ensuing turn of the century began the Golden Age of Spain. Intrepid explorers like Columbus, Pizarro and Cortes had set sail around the globe, and for the next two hundred years Spain achieved naval and economic supremacy, making it one of the leading colonial powers of the day.
 
These days, you are unlikely to encounter marauding Visigoths when you visit Spain. But once in a while, it must be said, your luggage arrives looking as if it had. Consider getting some affordable travel insurance. Spain will be much more fun when you can rest easy and relax into your Spanish vacation experience without nagging thoughts like what if something goes wrong? Your worldwide travel needs worldwide coverage. Travel insurance travels with you. Get a free quote now!
 

	Hotels in Spain
	Find your perfect Spain Hotel at SpainBy.Com. Beautiful Descriptions and Photographs.
	SpainBy.Com - Hotels in Spain

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Spanish Culture
Predominantly catholic today, the Spain of earlier times was traditionally a cosmopolitan blended society with a reputation for humanistic tolerance. Medieval Moorish culture from 750 to 1050 was highly educated, particularly advanced in mathematics and medicine. For centuries, a substantial Jewish population which prized learning and philosophy endowed Spain with its wisdom and business acumen. Spanish Jews, Moors and Christians lived together in what we would regard today as a very progressive liberal society. The great university at Salamanca was founded in the early 13th century and became the brightest beacon in Europe, matched only by the famous bastions of education founded in the previous century in Paris, Bologna and Oxford. For several hundred years a degree in the Sciences from Salamanca was the most coveted credential to which a scholar could aspire. Down through the ages many empires have scaled Iberia's mountain ranges, inhabited her shores and marched across her arid plains. Ultimately all succumbed to Spain's siren song and were assimilated into her culture, impacting and changing it, as much as they were impacted and changed by it.
 

© photo Rui Vale De Sousa; Dreamstime.com

What To Expect When You Visit Spain
Today's Spain is a parliamentary monarchy comprised of autonomous regions. Each has a distinctive landscape, its own unique history and cultural traditions, a regional cuisine, and sometimes a separate language which distinguishes its natives. The intoxicating energy of Spain can seduce, mystify and mesmerize. Few visitors escape the lure of her charms. You can ski the peaks and snow caps of the Pyrenees, sunbathe on endless white sand beaches, rub elbows with the jet set in Marbella, or take a dusty road up into the pueblos blancas and find your soul in the raw emotion of Andalusia's gyspsy flamenco. Just bring your open heart... you won't find a warmer welcome anywhere on the continent.
 
If the typical Spain travel package doesn't appeal to you, rent a car and see Spain at your own pace. Or pick up a Eurail Pass and get unlimited train travel throughout Spain on one of Europe's great rail transit networks. Besides main line Spain train travel, your rail pass affords you additional discounts on ferries and local mountain railways. Visit Eurail Spain Rail Pass for further details.

Villas in Spain
Holiday rental villas for rent in Spain direct from the owners.


 
Before You Go
Are you planning a visit to Spain? Click the link below for money saving travel tips... get the most out of every vacation dollar.
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Learn Spanish... Find the Best Spanish Language Courses on the internet  
 
Take Me To The Beach  
Take me To The Balearics  
 

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