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8-Nights Amazing Spain & Portugal - Classic Group

Spain/Portugal
8-Nights Amazing Spain & Portugal - Classic Group
Spain/Portugal
Insight Vacations
Vacation Offer ID 1470256
Reference this number when contacting our travel specialist.
Overview

Insight Vacations

Amazing Spain & Portugal - Classic Group, Summer
From walking the cobblestone streets of a former Roman colony to tasting a decadent 'Pastel de Nata' tart made from a 200-year-old secret recipe, this 9-day guided tour allows you to embrace the best of old-world Spain and Portugal. Listen as metal sizzles in a master artisan’s hands as he teaches you the craft of Damascene. In Granada, wander the fragrant and arabesque gardens of the Alhambra Palace. Learn the art of flamenco dancing, stomping your feet to the sounds of an acoustic guitar, in a private lesson with professionals in Seville. Then, cross the Portuguese border to scale a 16th-century fortress in Lisbon and visit Fátima, Portugal's most holy site. Finally, raise a glass and say ¡salud! to these ancient wonders during a celebration feast in Madrid.


Dining Summary
  • 3 Dinner with Wine (DW)
  • 8 Breakfast (B)
Choice Highlights
  • Choose between two carefully selected activities
  • Seville: Stroll through Barrio de Santa Cruz with your Local Expert to hear how the Jewish community has shaped the history of Seville.
  • Seville: Explore Seville's top sights on a panoramic city tour with your Local Expert.
Additional Included Highlights
  • : Personal radio headsets give you the freedom to wander during visits to famous highlights, without missing any of your Local Expert's fascinating commentary.
  • : Hotel and restaurant tips are included - you'll never have to worry about how much to give, nor search for foreign currency. We also include all taxes and porterage charges at hotels.
  • : We carry your bags for you and promptly deliver them to your hotel door.
  • : From time to time, your Travel Director will delight you with an Insight Flourish, which is a local specialty representing the destination.
  • : Stay connected with friends and family with our complimentary coach and hotel Wi-Fi (where available).
  • : If your arrival and/or departure flights are as per the itinerary start and end dates, then transfers are available at scheduled times. If your flights are outside these times, or you have booked additional nights accommodation with Insight Vacations, you may purchase transfers or make your own way from/to the airport.
Authentic Dining
  • Madrid: Join your Travel Director at 18:30 for a Welcome Dinner in a local restaurant and get to know your fellow travelers over a beautiful evening of delicious food and wine.
  • Lisbon: Delight in a taste of the famous Portuguese delicacy, Pastéis de Belém.
  • Madrid: With good food and wine, toast the culmination of your travels during a fabulous Celebration Dinner.
Insight Experiences
  • Toledo: At a Damascene workshop, meet a master artisan for a personal insight into this ancient craft. Witness firsthand their precision as they inlay gold and silver into iron, using a chisel and a hammer.
  • Granada: Visit the famous Alhambra Palace and Generalife Gardens. While others wait in line, you'll be exploring accompanied by a Local Expert, keen to share insights into this Moorish landmark.
Make Travel Matter
  • Seville: The Cristina Heeren Foundation aims to promote the teaching and conservation of flamenco and is a beneficiary of a TreadRight Foundation grant. Meet the students of the foundation, learn some basic flamenco steps, and then feel the passion as they perform an emotional show. The school enables students access to cultural education that otherwise may not have occurred. TreadRights sponsorship has helped students to complete their studies in advanced guitar, singing and dance. As students complete their training, they will carry on and safeguard the traditional flamenco dance, contributing to the protection of Andalusia and Spain’s cultural heritage. The Cristina Heeren Foundation advances UN Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education and UN Sustainable Development Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities.
Top Rated Highlights
  • Toledo: Explore this magnificent ancient city with your Local Expert and visit the Church of Santo Tomé to see an El Greco masterpiece.
  • Granada: Explore 'The City of the Pomegranate' with a Local Expert. During sightseeing you'll see the icons dedicated to this fruit throughout the city.
  • Seville: Visit the Seville Cathedral with your Local Expert. Pass the altarpiece dripping with gold and see the Tomb of Columbus, held aloft by four kings.
  • Seville: Stroll through Barrio de Santa Cruz with your Local Expert to hear how the Jewish community has shaped the history of Seville.
  • Seville: Explore Seville's top sights on a panoramic city tour with your Local Expert.
  • Évora: With your Travel Director explore the ancient city of Évora and visit the fascinating Capela dos Ossos, meaning the Chapel of Bones, a chapel decorated with human remains.
  • Lisbon: Explore with your Local Expert, from the Lower Town, beneath the hilltop Bairro Alto to the Terreiro do Paco. Visit the Belém Quarter to see the modern Monument to the Discoveries and the medieval Belém Tower.
  • Fátima: Join the faithful at one of the world's holiest sites and pay homage at the Chapel of the Apparitions or see the basilica.
  • Salamanca: See the golden stone buildings and handsome arcades of Plaza Mayor for which this city is famous for.
  • Avila: Explore within the ancient walls of this unique town.
  • Madrid: See the highlights of the city with your Local Expert. Visit the Old Town, traveling along the elegant Paseo de la Castellana, past the fountain in the Plaza de Cibeles, the Cervantes Monument and Royal Palace, before crossing the Puerta del Sol.
Well-being
  • : Enjoy the comfort of Insight's luxurious, air-conditioned, 40-seat coach with double the standard legroom and onboard washro

    Featured Destinations

    Salamanca

    Salamanca

    The ancient city of Salamanca, famous for its university founded by Alfonso IX in the early 1200s, is well preserved, with turreted palaces, faded convents, Romanesque churches, and colleges that have attracted scholars from all over Europe. Nearly all the attractions are within walking distance of the Plaza Mayor. In its day, Salamanca was ranked with Oxford, Paris, and Bologna as one of "the four leading lights of the medieval world." The intellectual life continues to this day, and a large invasion of American students brings added life to the town in summer. Still a youthful, spirited place because of the venerable Salamanca University, the city has been named a "World Heritage City" by UNESCO, one of six such cities in Spain.
    Destination Guide
    Lisbon

    Lisbon

    Portugal’s capital is an 18th-century city - elegant, open to the sea and carefully planned. Most places of interest are within easy walking distance. Rossio Square, the heart of Lisbon since medieval times, is an ideal place to start exploring. Many rebuilt houses with original façades provide stores and restaurants with modern interiors. High above Baixa is Bairro Alto - with its teeming nightlife. There are many monuments and museums, such as San Jeronimos Monastery, Royal Coach Museum and Gulbenkian Museum. Two well-known landmarks are the Monument to the Discoveries and the Tower of Belem. A statue of Christ looms above Europe’s longest suspension bridge. Madragoa, Bica and Bairro Alto, Lisbon’s older sections, offer a variety of sights: the Church of Sao Roque, with its beautiful tiles; St. George Castle, which offers a splendid view from its location above the Alfama quarter; the botanical gardens, featuring an unusual, cold greenhouse; and the cathedral, stunning with its Moorish design. Renowned Gulbenkian Museum is the cultural center of Portugal.
    Destination Guide
    Seville

    Seville

    Seville is one place most beloved by visitors to Spain. Although today Moorish influence is architectonically most evident - Andalusia was occupied by Moors for about 800 years - it has been a cultural center long before. Seville was home of famous and infamous figures of history, the legendary "Don Juan" started from here to conquer the hearts of women across all Europe, while Columbus started from a port close to Seville to discover a new world. Prosper Merimée's "Carmen", who couldn't make her decision between the officer Don José and the bullfighter Escamillo, can still be watched today in opera houses. Seville is the very heart of Andalusian culture and the center of bullfighting and Flamenco music. Take it easy and interrupt sightseeing from time to time to have a few "tapas", those typical "small spanish dishes", and a glass of Sherry wine in one of the many bars in this city.
    Destination Guide
    Granada

    Granada

    Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Andalusia, Spain. Granada has been inhabited by many empires for 2,500 years from the Greeks, Romans, Visigoths and the Moors. Remainder of each reigning era is prominent in Granada’s cultural and architectural influences. Imprints of the past can be found in Albaicin, an old Arabic quarter paved with cobble stoned streets, ogee arches, voussoirs, and decorative tile work. When the sun sets, Alhambra is at its most beautiful and radiant complimenting Byzantine courtyards and muqarna details. Homes also reflect the Mediterranean and Renaissance elegance long past. Present-day Granada attracts visitors by recapturing the past and evoking the co-existence of different cultures.
    Destination Guide
    Madrid

    Madrid

    The capital of Spain since 1562, Madrid is located on the geographic center of the Iberian Peninsula. Because of its central location and high altitude, the climate of Madrid is characterized by warm dry summers and cool winters. Madrid is a city of great monuments. Among its highlights are the medieval center dating back to the Habsburg Empire and the Prado Museum. Madrid is not just a cultural destination. It is also a lively metropolis with many pubs, cafes, discotheques and nightclubs open late into the night.
    Destination Guide

    View Full Itinerary

    Valid Date Ranges

    April 2024
    04/13/2024 04/21/2024 $2,593 per person
    04/20/2024 04/28/2024 $2,593 per person
    May 2024
    05/11/2024 05/19/2024 $3,050 per person
    05/18/2024 05/26/2024 $3,050 per person
    05/25/2024 06/02/2024 $3,050 per person
    June 2024
    06/01/2024 06/09/2024 $2,593 per person
    06/08/2024 06/16/2024 $2,593 per person
    06/15/2024 06/23/2024 $3,050 per person
    06/29/2024 07/07/2024 $2,995 per person
    July 2024
    07/06/2024 07/14/2024 $2,546 per person
    07/20/2024 07/28/2024 $2,696 per person
    August 2024
    08/03/2024 08/11/2024 $2,696 per person
    08/24/2024 09/01/2024 $2,696 per person
    08/31/2024 09/08/2024 $3,025 per person
    September 2024
    09/21/2024 09/29/2024 $3,075 per person
    09/28/2024 10/06/2024 $3,075 per person
    October 2024
    10/19/2024 10/27/2024 $3,025 per person
    10/26/2024 11/03/2024 $2,655 per person
    Prices are per person, based on double occupancy, and subject to availability and change without notice. Prices reflect land only accommodations, airfare is additional. Blackout dates/seasonal supplements may apply. Itinerary and map subject to change. Tour prices and dates are correct at the time of the website going live, however are subject to confirmation at the time of booking. Prices displayed reflect available discounted rates such Early Payment Discount or Red Hot Deal (discounts are not combinable). Discounts may be withdrawn at anytime, book early to confirm space.

    All fares are quoted in US Dollars.