Payment of bespoke trip to Southern Spain | 22nd – 27th of April 2024 | 2 pax
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Description and schedule of services
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22nd of April: morning high-speed train from Madrid to Málaga and day at leisure in Málaga to explore its vibrant scene of art museums
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9am: be at Madrid train station to take your high-speed train to Málaga.
9:35am: departure of your high-speed train from Madrid to Málaga (1st class seats).
12:31pm: upon arrival of your train to Málaga, collect your luggage, walk to the arrivals hall and meet your personal driver there. He will be holding a sign saying “Gil and JoEllen – Genuine Andalusia”. Then be transferred in a modern and comfortable Mercedes vehicle to your hotel in Málaga.
1:30pm (estimated): arrival to your hotel in Málaga and rest of the day at leisure to explore the fascinating scene of art museums in the city: Picasso Museum, Thyssen Museum and Pompidou Centre. We will give you recommendations of other things to do and see in Málaga and also of places to eat in the city.
Overnight in Málaga: deluxe palacio room with breakfast included and TV with international channels at hotel Palacio Solecio (4*)
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23rd of April: day trip from Málaga to Granada and the Alhambra
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8:45am: be met by your personal driver at your hotel in Málaga and be transferred in a modern and comfortable Mercedes vehicle to the Alhambra in Granada.
10:30am: upon arrival to the Alhambra, be met by your personal local host to start a private walking tour of this palatial city which is the most exquisite example of the Hispanic-Muslim architecture. The Alhambra was the city where the Hispanic-Muslim sultans used to live with their army, their court and some selected artisans. Because of this, it has several parts, all of which you will get to visit during your tour while you understand the role that each of them had. Later you will visit the summer palace or Generalife. This is the place where the sultans would go to escape from the hustle and bustle of the Alhambra. It was a place designed for relaxation and contemplation and because of this, it has the most beautiful gardens and some of the nicest views that the city of Granada has to offer.
1:30pm: after your tour of the Alhambra and El Generalife, enjoy some free time for lunch at leisure and maybe for some self-guided exploration of Granada city. We will give you recommendations of other things to do and see in Granada and also of places to eat in the city.
4:30pm: reconnect with your driver at a previously agreed meeting point and be transferred back to your hotel in Málaga.
Overnight in Málaga: deluxe palacio room with breakfast included and TV with international channels at hotel Palacio Solecio (4*)
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24th of April: from Málaga to Seville and introductory culture, gastronomy and wine tour of Seville old town.
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9am: meet your personal driver at your accommodation in Málaga and be transferred in a modern and comfortable Mercedes vehicle to your accommodation in Seville.
11:30am: upon arrival to your accommodation in Seville, check-in (subject to your room being ready. Otherwise the hotel will store your luggage for you) and freshen up before your introductory culture, gastronomy and wine tour of Seville old town.
12:30pm: meet your personal local host by the reception desk of your hotel to start a culture, gastronomy and wine tour of Seville old town.
Your tour will start with an introduction to the tapas and wine scene of the city. Understanding how Seville works when it comes to celebrating food and wine can be one of the most revealing experiences of the local culture. Sevillanos love their excellent food and they like to make a celebration out of every meal, together with family and friends. Food, conversation, wine, laughter and a magical common feeling of thankfulness combine in perfect harmony around Seville tables to make meals memorable.
Tapas play a key role in the wide variety of options that the city has to offer gastronomy-wise. They are small portions of food that people usually have as an appetizer before a meal. However, especially when eating out, a meal can consist of several different tapas and this is exactly what this tour is about.
Your local Spanish foodie host will take you on a tapas journey through 2 – 3 selected tapas bars of the city, during which you’ll be able to taste a selection of 6 – 9 different local tapas dishes, combined with the corresponding Southern Spanish wines. Along the tour, you’ll be explained about the origins of different recipes, about the influences that have shaped the present Southern Spanish gastronomy and about the wines that are produced in South West Spain.
The Andalusian capital can be overwhelming when it comes to choosing a place to eat so this tour will allow you to relax and to enjoy the magnificent food and wine scene of the city, while you also learn about its particular character and identity, together with your local host.
After your tapas and wines journey, you will be taken to the river banks of the city. It will be there where you will learn how much the Guadalquivir river has influenced the history of Seville. The river banks once hosted the thriving commercial activity of the port city that Seville used to be and it is also there where the city has its bullring.
Your tour will continue with a visit to this essential local landmark and along which, you will learn about the origins and evolution of bullfighting in Spain, while you see the different sections of the bullring, from the pens where the bulls are kept before the fight, to the arena where the actual fight takes place, from the chapel where the matadors say their prayers before the fight, to the areas where the audience and the bullring authorities sit. You will also be explained about brave bull breeding and about how different bullrings choose different bulls with different characteristics for their fights. Then, you will be escorted back to your hotel.
5:30pm: arrival to your hotel and end of services for the day. We will give you recommendations of things to do and see in Seville (interesting art museums amongst them) and also of places to eat.
Overnight in Seville: superior double room with breakfast included and TV with international channels at hotel Casas del Rey de Baeza (4*)
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25th of April: morning walking tour of Seville World Heritage Sites and rest of the day at leisure to explore the local art museums
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9am: be met by your personal local guide at your accommodation in Seville to start a private walking tour that will take you to the most impressive World Heritages Sites of the city (the Alcazar and the Cathedral with its Giralda tower) and to the quarter of Santa Cruz.
You will start your discovery journey by visiting the Alcazar, which is a massive complex of palaces erected in different periods and of breath-taking gardens of different styles. The Alcazar has stunning historical constructions featuring a very particular crossover between Hispanic-Muslim and Christian architecture styles, called Mudejar. This style became very fashionable in Spain in the 14th and 15th centuries amongst the Christian nobility and it reached its maximum splendor in Seville. Another essential part of the Alcazar is the famous house of Trade, which once hosted the offices from where all the commerce with the new world was managed. After enjoying these inner areas, you will be taken to the gardens, which are an exquisite sample of European landscaping from the 16th until the 20th centuries.
Then you will be taken to visit the Cathedral, which is the largest gothic temple in the World and where Christopher Columbus is buried. The Cathedral of Seville was built on a vast extension of land where previously a Mosque had been erected. An important part of the Mosque was preserved and it is now a part of the Cathedral. This makes it a unique construction featuring styles as diverse as Hispanic-Muslim, Gothic, Renaissance, Neoclassical and Baroque. A most important part of the Cathedral is its bell tower known as la Giralda. During your tour you will be taken to the top in order to enjoy the wonderful views of Seville that one can admire from there.
To finish you will visit the quarter of Santa Cruz, with its countless quaint corners, narrow streets, cozy squares, houses of traditional Southern Spanish architecture and Moorish urban planning. It is in this quarter where an important part of the Jewish Sephardic community of Seville lived in the medieval times and you will learn about what life in the quarter was like then and how it has evolved until becoming what it is today.
12:30pm: after your tour, enjoy the rest of the day at leisure.
Overnight in Seville: superior double room with breakfast included and TV with international channels at hotel Casas del Rey de Baeza (4*)
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26th of April: day trip from Seville to the sherry capital of Jerez de la Frontera and to the colonial city of Cadiz
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8:45am: meet your personal driver at your accommodation and be transferred in a modern and comfortable minibus with a dedicated driver to the city of Jerez.
10am: upon arrival to Jerez, meet your personal local host for the day and start a private walking tour of the old town aimed at understanding the Hispanic-Muslim origins of the city and the transformations that it suffered (architecture, urban planning, social composition and overall character) in the 13th century with the Christian conquest and later in the 18th and 19th centuries when the local wines (sherries) became probably the most fashionable drinks in the world.
11am: end of the walking tour in a selected sherry bodega and private visit aimed at understanding the aging process of the different types of sherry. This will be followed by the corresponding tastings and by some basic notions about the art of pairing food and sherry.
12:30pm: end of the visit to the sherry bodega and short walk to a selected local tapas and sherries bar for lunch.
12:45pm: arrival to the bar and tapas and sherries lunch including a selection of 6 – 9 local specialties to share and up to 4 sherries per person.
2:30pm: end of lunch and private transfer to the city of Cadiz.
3:05pm: arrival to Cadiz and panoramic tour of the old town to understand its geography and its location in the legendary bay of Cadiz that faces the Atlantic Ocean.
3:25pm: end of the panoramic tour and private walking tour of the old town with a special focus on the Phoenician origins of the city and on the period when the city held the monopoly of all trade with America (18th century). Visit of selected buildings representative of the splendor and prosperity of these two periods.
5:15pm: end of the tour in Cadiz and of the services of your local host and private transfer back to Seville.
6:45pm: arrival to Seville and end of services for the day.
Overnight in Seville: superior double room with breakfast included and TV with international channels at hotel Casas del Rey de Baeza (4*)
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27th of April: from Seville to Madrid with a discovery journey of the city of Cordoba along the way
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8am: be met by your personal driver at your hotel and be transferred in a modern and comfortable Mercedes vehicle to Córdoba.
9:45am: upon arrival to Córdoba, be met by your personal local host to go on a 2’5h discovery journey of the historical center of the city (your driver stays in the van with your luggage).
A UNESCO site since 1994, Córdoba is an inspirational city, which during the Middle Ages, saw a peaceful interaction between the three great Mediterranean cultures. Jews, Muslims and Christians coexisted then in the city turning it into a unique intellectual hub that gave birth to very renowned philosophers, poets, scientists and doctors. This also resulted in the construction of unique buildings of remarkable historical significance.
During your private walking tour, you’ll learn about the period of maximum intellectual splendor of the city and you will see beautiful examples of architecture and urban planning that will allow you to recreate all the grandeur of this era, which has the Great Mosque – Cathedral and the synagogue as its most representative constructions.
The Great Mosque-Cathedral is probably the most thought-provoking building in Spain and your personal local host will uncover all its beauty and complexity for you. You will understand its origins, its different enlargements and the role that the building has played in the culture and social fabric of the city throughout the centuries.
The synagogue will allow you to understand the very important Jewish – Sephardic community that Córdoba once had and how much it embraced Hispanic-Muslim decorative arts in its places of devotion.
12:15pm: after your tour of Córdoba, reconnect with your private driver and be transferred to Córdoba train station.
12:35pm: arrive at Córdoba train station on time to catch your high-speed train to Madrid.
12:50pm: departure of your high-speed train from Córdoba train station to Madrid train station.
2:43pm: arrival to Madrid train station and end of trip.
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Pricing
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The cost of this trip for a private group of 2 people is 7195 Euros.
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This price includes
– 5 nights accommodation with breakfast included as per mentioned above.
– All private transportation services mentioned above in a modern and comfortable Mercedes vehicle with a dedicated driver.
– All guided tours and activities mentioned above with a knowledgeable, personable, kind, flexible and interactive fully licensed guide with a great command of the English language.
– All entrance tickets and admissions for all these guided tours.
– High-speed train tickets (1st class seats) to travel from Madrid to Málaga on the 22nd of April.
– A tapas lunch in Seville on the 24th of April including a selection of 6 – 9 dishes to share and up to 4 drinks per person (beer, wine, refreshments, water).
– A tapas lunch in Jerez on the 26th of April including a selection of 6 – 9 dishes to share and up to 4 drinks per person (beer, wine, refreshments, water)
– High-speed train tickets (1st class seats) to travel from Córdoba to Madrid on the 27th of April.
– 24h guardian angel service throughout your trip for any emergencies you may have.
– A list of recommended things to do and of places to eat in each of the places where you will be based.
– Petrol and parkings.
– All taxes.
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This price excludes
– Your international flights.
– Any meals not mentioned right above.
– Anything else not mentioned right above.
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Confirmation and payments
In order to confirm this bespoke trip at this price we require a 30% deposit of the grand total via credit/debit card no later than the 21st of December 2023 at 12pm (Madrid time). The final 70% must be paid via the same method no later than 30 days prior to the start of the trip.
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Grand total of this bespoke trip: 7195 Euros
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30% deposit needed no later than the 21st of December 2023 at 12pm (Madrid time) to confirm the trip: 2158,5 Euros
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Final 70% needed no later than 30 days prior to the start of the trip to pay it in full: 5036,5 Euros
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Cancellation policy
– If you cancel your trip more than 30 days prior to its scheduled start, we will charge the 30% deposit only.
– If you cancel your trip between 30 and 15 days prior to its scheduled start, we will charge 45% of the full cost of the trip and we will refund the remaining 55%.
– If you cancel your trip between 14 and 8 days prior to its scheduled start, we will charge 60% of the full cost of the trip and we will refund the remaining 40%.
– If you cancel your trip between 7 and 4 days prior to its scheduled start, we will charge 70% of the full cost of the trip and we will refund the remaining 30%.
– If you cancel your trip 3 days or less prior to its scheduled start, we will charge 100% of the full cost of the trip.
(*) If Spain closes its borders due to a national or global emergency and you are not able to enter the country due to this closure, we will give you a full refund.
(**) Please note that partial cancellations won’t result in partial refunds. This applies to the group size and to the duration / activities of the trip.
(***) Genuine Andalusia strongly recommends purchasing travel insurance for any international trip. Most of our US guests buy their travel insurance from Medjet.
