Spain & Lisbon - Wine & Contemporary Art 11 Days

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BARCELONA

Upon arrival, you will visit the main parts of the city with a panoramic view as well as the main monuments.

We will then go out for a stroll in the area, allowing for a discussion of its history and discovery of some of the sites, cafes, shops, and neighborhood life under the guidance of a seasoned local. This is a good opportunity to also learn how the public transportation works and even have assistance purchasing tickets, if desired. We’ll leave you with maps and certainly a better sense of how best to navigate Barcelona.

After visit you will go directly to the hotel for check in

BARCELONA

After breakfast your guide will be waiting for you at the hotel to take you on a full day tour of Barcelona (8 hours). We will organize this tour tailor made for you depending on what you saw the day before.

Enjoy a morning of sightseeing and discover the wild and wonderful world of Antoni Gaudi and the artis best-known buildings. With an expert guide, learn all about the Modernist maestro who stamped his mark on the city with outlandish architecture, and visit 2 of the most important creations: Casa Batllo and the UNESCO-listed La Sagrada Familia catherdral. You will also discover the Gothic Quarter, Picasso Museum as well as the amazing culinary market La Boqueria..

OUTSKIRTS OF BARCELONA

After breakfast your driver will be waiting for you at the hotel to take you to the Codorniu Cava Visit in the outskirts of Barcelona. An exciting journey into the origins of cava with an exclusive guide:

Codorniu is synonymous to the history of a family of wingrowers which dates back to XVI century. It is the oldest family company in Spain and one of the oldest in the world, with more than 450 years of history to the date.

For over a century, Codorniu has always done its second fermentation and aging in an underground cellars labyringth at just the right tempretature. In 1872, Josep Raventos Fatjo made cava for the first time in Spain following the “Methode Traditionelle” and using autchthonous grape varietals of the Penedes.

After the wine visit you will be taken Montserrat – the Natural reserve where the patron saint of Catalonia is venerates in the heart of Catalonia. You will find a mountain with an unusual shape and huge slabs of grey rock. It is a spectacular massif and at the top you will find the statue of the virgin of Montserrat, patron saint of Catalonia. This nature reserve is covered with pine and holm-oak woods and is home to squirrels, boars and gents amongst other.

At the peak is the majestic sanctuary dedicates to “La Moreneta” the 12th century Romanesque style statue of the Virgin Mary. The architectural site is made up of varios different squares and areas along qith the basilica that was originally buld in the 16th century and rebuilt in the 19th century. Close by you will visit the Benedictine Monastery, with its beautiful chapterhouse and neo-Romanesque cloister and refectory refurbishes in 1925 by the architect Puig I Cadafalch it is also home to works by artis like Picasso, Dali and El Greco.

BARCELONA / MADRID

After breakfast and check out you will be transferred to the train station for your trip to Madrid. (2.5hr)

After you have had time to refresh and some lunch, your private guide and transport will take you on a panoramic visit of Madrid:

You’ll begin the experience in your hotel lobby where our docent will explain the layout of the city and the neighborhood where you are staying. We’ll provide advice on local customs, recommendations for dining, shopping, and insider events and concerts, a basic language lesson, and open the floor to any specific questions. If you have other walks booked with us, we will examine your itinerary and go over any questions.

We will then head outside for a stroll, allowing for a dialogue on the area’s history and an opportunity to absorb the neighborhood ambiance under the guidance of a seasoned madrileño. We’ll pause from time to time to talk about historic buildings and monuments, or maybe to review how the subway and buses work. We’ll point out colorful markets or the café where the best tortilla in the area can be found.

TOLEDO (75KM from MADRID)

Your private guide will take you to the most important places in Toledo as well as enjoy a magnificent local lunch. It is especially important to visit Toledo this year as it is the Year of El Greco. . This year –2014– Spain marks the fourth centenary of El Greco's death with a wide-ranging programme of exhibitions and cultural activities to highlight the painting and the person of Doménikos Theotokópoulos. Toledo, the city where El Greco spent 37 years of his life, will be at the heart of this major event.

MADRID / SEVILLE

After breakfast your private transfer will take you to the train station for your train to Seville. (3hr)

After your quick lunch your guide will be waiting for you at the hotel to start your Monumental visit of Seville. This visit will take you around the city of Seville visiting the famous Alcazar, a stroll around the different palaces and gardens. The visit will continue through the narrow streets of the Santa Cruz Barrio and the old Jewish quarter of the city of Seville. You will finalize our visit in the third largest cathedral in the world which we will admire the famous “patio de los naranjos” and the Seville “giralda”. The guide will then take you to your hotel.

At night you will have organized a Flamenco show and dinner

CORDOBA (140KM from SEVILLE)

After breakfast you will visit the famous city of Cordoba (10hours) from Seville, it takes 1h and 40 minutes to get to this beautiful and amazing city.

Prepare to be amazed on this day trip to Cordoba from Seville! Cordoba is a captivating Andalucian city with many attractive monuments, including its Alcazar fort and gardens, mosque, cathedral, synagogue and Jewish quarter. You'll discover a beautiful network of streets, alleys, squares and whitewashed
courtyards, reflecting the importance of Cordoba in the medieval period.

SEVILLE / LISBON

Day at leisure in Seville, you may go Plaza Encarnación, enjoy a later afternoon retreat of pastry at La Campana. Late afternoon you will take a private transfer to the Seville Airport. You will then take a 1 hour flight to Lisbon.

Upon arrival you will meet your driver who will be waiting outside tha arrivals holding a sign with your name on it. He will take you to your Hotel.

Rest of the day at leisure to discover the city

LISBON

After breakfast you will enjoy a private full day tour of Lisbon. On the morning of this day you will find our driver and our art expert at your hotel. They will then take you to the private tour through the city's most interesting modern and contemporary art sites and you will have the opportunity to visit the most distinguished galleries and ateliers, founders and forerunners of the art in Lisbon, where it borns and reborns at every moment.

Our expert, named Verónica Metello, is graduated in Art History and Masters in History of Contemporary Art. Researcher in the field of contemporary art hybrid forms and languages, knows in detail every gallery, every artist, and every artistic detail.

You will begin your activity with a visit to the Gallery 111. This is a renowned gallery in Portugal, counting with big names of the Portuguese art scene since the 60’s, including for example the Portuguese Artist Paula Rego. Continuing the day we will go to Graça Brandão gallery, with a vast representation of different
Portuguese Contemporary artists, namely the acclaimed young João Maria Gusmão & Pedro Paiva, and also some of the most prominent Brazilian artists as the Concretist Lygia Pape and Fernanda Gomes.

During the afternoon you will be able to do a panoramic tour of the city of Lisbon with our driver. Before the day finishes there will still be time to get to know the old quarters in detail with a tuk tuk actvity. This activity will allow you to unveil all the city's secrets, since you will be taking through the heart of the historical quarters, making some stops along the way for visits.

LISBON

After breakfast you will enjoy a private full day tour of Sintra, Cascais and Estoril.

Today you will have the opportunity to discover the amazing suburbs of Lisbon. Meet our driver in the morning and head towards Sintra. Among the sites you shall not miss in Portugal there’s Sintra, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO for the great beauty of its nature and architecture, with fairy tale palaces and lush vegetation. One of these palaces not to be missed is the Pena Palace, which you will visit on the top of the hill.

After this visit you shall head towards Quinta de Sant’Ana , a truly charming place in the small town of Gradil in the Mafra region. This family owned wine estate, with several centuries of existence, represents the century old tradition of making wine in Portugal, being the absolute passion of its owners James and Ann Frost that together with their family will be there to welcome you.

After a stop for lunch, you will still have time to visit Cascais and the Estoril Coast , bothplaces of charm and aristocratic traditions that you’ll meet along the Atlantic Ocean, thewhite sandy beaches and magnificent fortressesfrom the 17th century, on the way back to Lisbon..

LISBON / HKG

At the appropriate time, transfer to airport for your onward flight.