Rick Steves' Europe

08/23/2024

We’re excited to share the cover of Rick Steves new book — “On the Hippie Trail: Istanbul to Kathmandu and the Making of a Travel Writer” — which hits the shelves in February!

Stow away with Rick for a glimpse into the unforgettable moments, misadventures, and memories of his 1978 journey on the legendary Hippie Trail from Istanbul to Kathmandu — the ultimate trip for any backpacker in the 1970s. Rick was 23 years old when he made the trek, and like a travel writer in training, he documented everything along the way. From taking wild bus rides through Turkey to enduring monsoons in India, the experience ignited his love of travel and forever broadened his perspective on the world.

“On the Hippie Trail” contains Rick's journals from 1978 — the last year the trip was possible — and full-color travel photos from this trek of a lifetime through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Nepal, plus a brand-new preface and afterword reflecting on the historical context of the moment and how the journey changed his life.

Stay tuned for information about preordering the book — and how to get a signed copy!

08/23/2024

When you see a “bar” in Poland, it doesn’t mean alcohol--it means cheap grub. Eating at a bar mleczny (bar MLECH-neh) or "Milk Bar" is an essential Polish sightseeing experience. These cafeterias, which you’ll see all over the country, are a remarkably affordable way to get a good meal...and, with the right attitude, a fun cultural experience.

In the communist era, the government subsidized milk bars, allowing workers to enjoy a meal out. The name comes from the cheese cutlets that were sold here, back in a time when good meat was rare. The tradition (and name) continues today, as milk-bar prices remain astoundingly low. And, while communist-era fare wasn't very good, today’s milk-bar cuisine is typically great.

Milk bars usually offer traditional tastes. Common items are soups (such as żurek and barszcz), a variety of cabbage-based salads, kotlet (fried pork chops), pierogi (similar to ravioli, with various fillings), and naleśniki (pancakes). You’ll also see juice, water, and soda.

There are two broad categories of milk bars: updated, modern cafeterias catering to tourists (English menus), add some modern twists to their traditional fare, and charge about 50 percent more; and time-machine dives that haven’t changed for decades. At truly traditional milk bars, the service is aimed at locals, which means limited English and a confusing ordering system.

Every milk bar is a little different, but here’s the general procedure: Head to the counter, wait to be acknowledged, and point to what you want.

If the milk-bar server asks you any questions, you have three options: Nod stupidly until they just give you something, repeat one of the things they just said (assuming they’ve asked you to choose between two options, like meat or cheese in your pierogi), or hope that a kindly English-speaking Pole in line will leap to your rescue. If nothing else, ordering at a milk bar is an adventure in gestures. Smiling seems to slightly extend the patience of milk-bar staffers.

Once your tray is all loaded up, pay the cashier, do a double-take when you realize how cheap your bill is, then find a table. After the meal, bus your own dishes to the little window.

Read more: https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/read/articles/nostalgia-in-a-polish-milk-bar

08/23/2024

We wanted to share some personal news about Rick, who was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. He's working with excellent doctors, who are hopeful for a full recovery. Rick and all of us at Rick Steves' Europe have been touched by your outpouring of support, advice, and well-wishes. We are more grateful than ever to be a part of this community of travelers. And this fall, as Rick turns his attention to getting better, we're not skipping a beat as we continue to pursue our mission— leading tours, updating books, and creating great travel content.
Keep on Travelin'

Dear Facebook friends,

I’d like to take a moment to share some important news. I have been diagnosed with prostate cancer. My doctor assures me that, if you’re going to get cancer, this is a good kind to get, and careful scans show no sign of it having spread. There is a clear path forward to getting healthy, and this fall, I’ll be in the hospital for a few days having prostate surgery.

My doctor’s fine with me filming two new TV shows in France for the next three weeks, returning home to Edmonds by mid-September. I’ll likely get my surgery in late September, be laid up for a month, and—God willing—be cancer-free and back at it by the end of October.

I have great trust in my doctor and in Seattle’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. And I have lots more to be thankful for…including the support of friends and loved ones and a strong faith that I’m in good hands.

While the statistics tell me I should be just fine, I’ve been fortunate to have never spent a night in a hospital — and I find myself going into this adventure almost like it’s some amazing, really important trip. I feel good about my positive attitude — and I expect to take home some delightful, if intangible, souvenirs like: appreciating and seeing a vibrancy in the little things; appreciating the goodness in people and the treasure of friends and family; being wowed by modern medicine and the army of amazing, smart, and dedicated people that make it possible; appreciating what a blessing life, health, and this world to enjoy is; and — just in general — being more thankful.

I’m looking forward to many more years of happy travels, exciting collaborations, and beautiful friendships. Thank you for your love and support (and any “travel tips” you may have for me as I set off on this journey).

Rick

PS: I’ll keep you posted.

08/22/2024

Every year, we take more than 30,000 travelers to Europe's most thrilling destinations. We're passionate about tapping into the efficiency that comes with a smartly designed bus tour — a finely crafted, low-stress, maximum-experience trip. We also understand that taking a tour is a big commitment of both time and money. So, if you've ever thought about joining a Rick Steves' Europe tour (or maybe you've already booked your first trip with us and want to learn more about what to expect), tonight we're hosting a live (streamed) tour information session to help you better understand the Rick Steves style of travel and answer your questions. This special presentation brings together people from different corners of our tour program to help you decide if a Rick Steves tour is right for you.

In this Rick Steves' Europe Tours 101 session, tour guide Lisa Friend and tour program manager Robyn Stencil dissect the Rick Steves travel style, give behind-the-scenes glimpses into how our tours are designed, and paint a picture of a typical day on a Rick Steves tour. Along the way, we'll hear from our European vendors, tour alumni, and Rick to celebrate the people-to-people connections that make our tours dazzle and to help you determine if your next adventure might be on a Rick Steves tour. So, grab a spritz to sip and a notepad to scribble on, and join us for a fun and informative evening!

This virtual event will be hosted on Zoom tonight at 6pm PST. It's free to attend, but you need to sign up: https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/tours-101. If you're unable to join the presentation live, a recording of the session will be posted on our tours page a week after the show.

08/21/2024

Escape the crowds and embrace understated elegance on our Best of Poland in 10 Days tour. In this land of surprises — so trendy and hip, yet steeped in history — there's much to discover.

Starting with royal Gdańsk, take a walking tour of the beautiful city once called "Danzig" — Poland's historic main port and gateway to the Baltic, still slathered in handsome Hanseatic architecture. Then, drive through Pomerania to tour the Teutonic Knights' Malbork Castle, one of Poland's Gothic jewels and the largest brick castle on Earth.

The tour then continues to vibrant Warsaw, dedicating time to understanding the resilient spirit of a city that was, by the end of World War II, destroyed to its foundations. We'll tour the world-class Museum of the History of Polish Jews, spanning the complex and fascinating Jewish experience from the Middle Ages through today.

Then we'll set our sights on colorful, charming Kraków — Poland's finest city — where we'll get our first look at the majestic main square (one of Europe's best), explore Old Town, and St. Mary's Church.

Along the way, we’ll sample the staples of Poland’s resolve—vodka, Chopin, pierogis and more—converse with proud locals, and feel the pulse of today’s emerging culture in this land of surprises.

Ready to explore Poland? Click the link below to check dates, view the full itinerary, and read reviews. Learn more: ricksteves.com/tours/poland/best-poland-tour

08/20/2024

Kraków is easily Poland’s best destination: a beautiful, user-friendly, old-fashioned city buzzing with history, enjoyable sights, tourists, and college students. Even though the country’s capital moved from here to Warsaw more than 400 years ago, Kraków remains Poland’s cultural and intellectual center. Increasingly (and justifiably) popular, Kraków is giving Prague a run for its money on the “must visit” tourist route.

What’s so special about it? First off, Kraków is simply charming; more than any town in Europe, it seems made for aimless strolling. And its historic walls and former moat corral an unusually full range of activities and interests: bustling university life, thought-provoking museums, breathtaking churches that evoke a powerful faith (and include many sights relating to Poland’s favorite son, St. John Paul II), sprawling parks that invite you to relax, vivid artifacts of Poland’s Jewish heritage, and a burgeoning foodie and nightlife scene. Nearby, there are compelling side trips to the most notorious Holocaust site anywhere (Auschwitz-Birkenau), a communist planned workers town (Nowa Huta), and a mine filled with salty statues (Wieliczka).

With so many opportunities to learn, to have fun, or to do both at once, it’s no surprise that Kraków has become a world-class destination.

08/19/2024

"Rick Steves Iceland," the newest addition to our public TV series, is making its Monday Night Travel debut tonight! With Rick and his co-host Cameron Hewitt as our guides, we explore Reykjavík’s enduring sights and thermal pools, and side-trip to the Golden Circle's gorges, geysers, and waterfalls. Then, after fording rivers in a desolate valley and spotting puffins on volcano-shaped islands, we drive the 800-mile Ring Road — connecting glaciers, fjords, geothermal hotspots, sod-roofed settlements, and majestic Icelandic nature. Along the way, Rick and Cameron share behind-the-camera stories and answer questions about travel in Iceland.

Monday Night Travel is our live, weekly virtual show. It's free to attend, but you need to register at https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_gxhSb5mOSZCX_HpQzQcJSw #/registration.

08/17/2024

This week on the Travel with Rick Steves radio show and podcast: Delve into southern Wales and its evocative landscape of castles, coal mines, and megalithic stones. Then get a rare glimpse into Central Asia's largest country from a former Peace Corps volunteer. And vicariously explore some of our world's remaining desolate places.

Find your local station, subscribe to the podcast, or listen online at https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/audio/radio.

08/16/2024

Get a sneak peek of our new one-hour TV special, "Rick Steves Iceland." We begin in Reykjavík, with endearing sights and thermal pools, plus a side-trip to the Golden Circle's gorges, geysers, and waterfalls. Then, after fording rivers in a desolate valley and spotting puffins on volcano-shaped islands, we drive the 800-mile Ring Road — connecting glaciers, fjords, geothermal hotspots, sod-roofed settlements, and majestic Icelandic nature.

Check your local public television station for airdates and times or watch streaming on PBS Passport.

In many ways, this special is a first: It's the first time we've filmed in Iceland. It's the first new destination-focused show we've done since the pandemic. And it's the first glimpse at our upcoming brand-new season of Rick Steves Europe — with the rest of Season 13, ranging from Poland to France to Italy, arriving next year.

08/14/2024

Reykjavík, the tiny capital of Iceland, is unexpectedly cosmopolitan, with an artistic, bohemian flair. A colorful enclave in a stark landscape: every wall serves as a canvas for a vibrant street-art mural, and each corner is occupied by a cozy, art-strewn, stay-awhile café. What it lacks in world-class sights, it manages to make up with its charm.

Like the rest of the country, Reykjavík has old roots. Viking Age farmers settled here in the ninth century. Until the 1750s, this area remained nothing more than a sprawling farm. As towns started to form in Iceland, Reykjavík emerged as the country’s capital. Today, the city's downtown core is home to creative restaurants, quirky art galleries, rollicking bars, and unique shops where a designer cocktail or local knitwear can easily be found. You can take in the vibe of this pithy city in a leisurely two-hour stroll, and it’s an enjoyable place to simply hang out. While museums aren’t a priority here, those seeking sights can easily fill a day or two.

In the old town center, colorful timber-frame houses clad in corrugated metal sheets huddle together amid a sprinkling of landmarks. The striking Hallgrímskirkja church crowns the town's highest point. A must-see, this iconic Guðjón Samúelsson-designed Lutheran church was made with a crushed volcanic rock exterior. The interior is serene and austere and hosts a bell tower with sweeping views.

Learn about this little nation’s proud history at the National Museum and the Maritime Museum and about the city’s humble Viking Age roots at the Settlement Exhibition--built around the surviving walls of a 10th-century longhouse. Art lovers can visit a half-dozen galleries highlighting Icelandic artists (early-20th-century sculptor Einar Jónsson is tops). Naturalists can go on a whale-watching cruise or ride a ferry to an island. Modern architecture fans can ogle the award-winning Harpa concert hall, then walk along the shoreline to the iconic Sun Voyager sculpture. Ingólfur’s Square isn’t much to look at, but it packs a lot of history and myth--and it’s a central gathering place for local events and festivities.

For an outside-of-town experience, the Blue Lagoon, arguably Iceland’s most famous attraction, is only about a 45-minute drive from downtown Reykjavík and only 15 minutes from Keflavík Airport.

Whether you choose to spend your time slowly exploring the city or use it as a springboard for Iceland’s glorious countryside sights, Reykjavík is a great place for accommodations, restaurants, and lively nightlife.

08/13/2024

Iceland, the land of the midnight sun and the northern lights, is equally famous for its magnificent glaciers and active volcanoes. Magma bubbling up between tectonic plates formed this rugged island, leaving it stranded halfway between North America and Europe. Over the last decade, Iceland has vaulted from obscurity to become a can’t-miss destination for curious travelers.

Reykjavík is the natural jumping-off point for exploring Iceland’s dramatic countryside. It’s an easy hop from Reykjavík to the inland Golden Circle route, studded with natural and historic attractions (from geysers to thundering waterfalls), or south to the famous Blue Lagoon thermal baths.

Two hours away, the South Coast offers glaciers, black sand beaches, little farms, and soaring mountains. An hour’s drive north of Reykjavík is the fjord-wrapped town of Borgarnes and the pastoral Reykholt Valley (with premium thermal baths and a tourable volcanic lava tube). Just beyond that, Snæfellsnes offers a representative sample of Icelandic landscapes—fjords, scree slopes, lava rock, waterfalls, and a glacier—in a compact, easy-to-navigate peninsula. And out at Iceland’s northwest fringe are the Westfjords: a chain of jagged, sparsely populated inlets with far fewer tourists.

But the ultimate Icelandic thrill is an 800-mile road trip, circling the entire island on the Ring Road. Give the Ring Road enough time, and it’ll give you charming waterfront towns, a pint-sized second city (Akureyri), simmering volcanic landscapes, jagged fjords, and glaciers and glacier lagoons.

Iceland’s natural splendors are what attract most visitors, but Icelanders are also worth getting to know. They have a gentle spirit and a can-do frontier attitude. They’re also whip-smart. Enjoy meeting the easygoing Icelanders; in this little country, everyone’s on a first-name basis.

With its stunning natural wonders, down-to-earth people, and unique attractions, this little island exceeds the lofty expectations of its many visitors.

If Iceland is in your travel dreams, pick up a copy of our recently updated Iceland guidebook at RickSteves.com (or anywhere books are sold).

08/12/2024

Tonight on Monday Night Travel: Andrew Mortensen just biked around the world — from the Pacific Northwest to Patagonia and from Spain to Singapore — and he did it with a purpose: to raise money for su***de prevention. Fresh off his 27,000-mile cycle, Andrew joins Monday Night Travel to share vivid stories from the journey — zipping through the verdant French countryside, visiting whirling dervishes in Turkey, and discovering surprising cities in Uzbekistan. Along the way, Andrew gives tips on how bikers of all abilities can incorporate cycling into their trips and offers insights into how we can all travel more purposefully.

Monday Night Travel is our live, weekly virtual show. It's free to attend, but you need to register at https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_onCylsMFRqOmU8QLPCEQKA #/registration.

08/09/2024

While thousands of traveling Swifties have found themselves in a cruel summer, Vienna can still be an enchanting place to have some extra time to explore. We pulled together our favorite resources to help: https://www.ricksteves.com//watch-read-listen/read/articles/ideas-for-exploring-vienna

As a former imperial capital, Vienna has an enduring grandeur and an inviting livability. And yet, for a big city, Vienna is pleasant and laid-back. There's plenty to do: Anyone with an interest in painting, music, architecture, Habsburg history, beautiful objects, or Sacher torte with whipped cream will feel right at home. Whether you're lingering in a genteel café or enjoying Strauss in a park, Vienna is a class act. Below are suggestions from our Rick Steves' Vienna guidebook.

Get your bearings to the city's opulent architecture on a cheap, circular tram ride around the perimeter of the historic center, following our Ringstrasse Tram Tour (available as an audio tour through our free Rick Steves Audio Europe app).

Then follow our Vienna City Walk — also available as a free audio tour — which weaves through the heart of the city, connecting its major landmarks. You'll begin at the Vienna State Opera, which is one of Europe's finest opera houses, and also worth touring. Then you'll make your way to St. Stephen's Cathedral, one of the greatest churches in Europe, and the Gothic spire around which Vienna spins. The cathedral's interior is covered on yet another free audio tour.

With more time, Vienna has so many wonderful choices. You can tour grand imperial palaces of the Habsburgs; visit some of Europe's top museums (including the world-class Kunsthistorisches Museum); enjoy the city's genteel café culture in some of the most opulent coffee houses on the planet; graze your way through the Naschmarkt open-air food market; or enjoy some (non-TS) live music in the birthplace of what we call "classical music." Dancing stallions, fanciful architecture, and everyone from Mozart to Sigmund Freud — you'll find a sight to suit every interest in Vienna.

If you're a Swiftie in Vienna, we're thinking of you. and keep on making those friendship bracelets.

08/07/2024

When you step into Paris’s Sainte-Chappelle, your voice instinctively drops to a whisper. Draped in stained-glass robes of purple and blue, this regal Gothic chapel evokes the reverence of a fragile ornament; parents hold their children extra close, and guides speak in hushed tones, careful not to shatter its aura. And when the sunbeams shine through the windows and hit the high golden arches and Beauty-and-the-Beast chandeliers, your mouth falls open…and that whisper reduces to silent awe.

Jaw-dropping “wow” moments like this are scattered across Paris, and you’ll lose count of them on our Best of Paris tour. This 7-day trip is a promenade through the finest things culture can offer — in art, architecture, fashion, food, literature, and ideas — each of which is synonymous with the City of Light.

Your home base for the week is a charming neighborhood hotel with a typically tiny breakfast (and typically tinier elevator) that’s minutes from some of Europe’s grandest sights. With the help of your Paris-savvy Rick Steves guide, you’ll visit the masterpiece-packed Louvre and Orsay museums, explore the extravagant Palace of Versailles, browse among the artists of bohemian Montmartre — and become a temporary Parisian. Chat with your crêpe-maker; sniff “ze feet of angels” at the corner fromagerie; and sip a café au lait at one of the city’s thousands of cafés — whether grand or intimate.

And of course, you’ll eat — very well. This is the world capital of cuisine, after all, and popular Parisian plates like escargots, (local) onion soup, and steak tartare are on the menu. After dinner, you might be tempted to walk home instead of hailing a cab or hopping on the Métro…eager to take in as much of Paris as possible (and to burn off some of that decadent food).

Plan your trip to the City of Light by clicking the link to check dates, view the full itinerary, and read traveler reviews. After 7-days of “wow”, you’ll understand why Paris is our most popular city tour destination.

https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/france/paris

08/06/2024

Paris is no stranger to grand expositions. It has literally been built for them. From 1855 to 1947, Paris hosted seven major international expos that yielded many of the city’s iconic sights--the Eiffel Tower, Champs de Mars, the Arc de Triomphe. To make the Games more sustainable and affordable, Paris has built the 2024 Olympics on the shoulders of these past expos. Bridges are becoming starting lines, gardens are landscaped into racecourses, and exhibition halls trade art for sport.

As you enjoy a few more days of Olympic competition or rewind to relive earlier events, here is some history behind the venues of this year’s Games to enrich your viewing:

A popular topic at the Paris Games has been the Seine’s dubious water quality, with triathletes anxious to see if their races will start—and how much E. coli they’ll ingest along the way. What’s not up for debate is the beauty of the start line. The Pont Alexandre III was built for the 1900 World Expo and is considered the most beautiful bridge in Paris with a flurry cherubs and winged horses throwing an Art Nouveau party. It was named for Russian Tsar Alexander III, who signed the Franco-Russian Alliance of 1892, and the first stone was laid by Alexander’s son Nicholas II. You won’t see much Franco-Russian friendship at these Games, though; Russia was notably not invited.

The Pont Alexandre III connects two other 1900 World Expo venues that have been repurposed for the Paris Games. To the north glimmers the Grand Palais, famous for its enormous nave laced with 6,000 tons of steel holding up the largest glass ceiling in Europe. The Grand Palais has hosted an astounding array of exhibits over the past century: showcases from Chagall and Warhol, collections from Cartier, and carefully curated propaganda during N**i occupation. But this month, the Grand Palais is exhibiting something different: fencing and taekwondo!

On the opposite bank of the Seine, Olympic archers nock their arrows on the broad, green esplanade below the imposing Hôtel des Invalides. Inside, Europe’s greatest military museum covers several wars, particularly World Wars I and II. At the center of the complex, Napoleon lies majestically dead inside several coffins under a grand dome--a goosebump-inducing pilgrimage for historians.

A pilgrimage for all Paris visitors is the sturdy-yet-delicate Eiffel Tower, which currently overlooks the beach volleyball competition. Built on the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution (and in the spirit of the Industrial Revolution), the tower was the centerpiece of a World Expo designed simply to show off what people could build in 1889. For decades it was the tallest structure the world had ever known, and it remains one of the most-visited monuments in the world.

As another layer of history dries on these storied monuments and as we prepare to say “au revoir” to the Paris Games, it’s worth celebrating Europe’s knack for integrating the past and present and asking how our communities can invest in infrastructure that will serve and wow society for centuries to come.

08/05/2024

Tonight on Monday Night Travel: For the first time post-pandemic, our European guides are back in Edmonds, WA for the Rick Steves’ Europe Guide Summit. And on this Monday Night Travel special, you’re invited to the guide happy hour! Join Rick as he catches up with guides fresh off the plane from Europe, who are ready to share insights on their region of expertise. They recommend a hands-on experience and reveal a back door in their country of origin, then gush about their favorite summer treats. So, mix up your aperitif of choice and get ready to rendezvous with our glorious guides!

Monday Night Travel is our live, weekly virtual show. It's free to attend, but you need to register at https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_60X-0MIeQ4mvrRZMs0zyGA #/

08/03/2024

This week on the Travel with Rick Steves radio show and podcast: Tour guides from Athens recommend easy day trips from the capital into the historic Greek countryside, then let us in on some lesser-known island getaways in the Aegean and Ionian seas. Plus, British actress Dame Joanna Lumley shares her favorite highlights from exploring northern Greece for a TV special she filmed there.

Find your local station, subscribe to the podcast, or listen online at https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/audio/radio

08/01/2024

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. No — seriously. Join the locals in the evening ritual of a “passeggiata” and stroll just to see, be seen, and socialize. When in England, do as the English do: Even if you don't usually drink tea, have a "cuppa" at breakfast. You may not be much of a napper — but when in Spain, enjoy taking a restorative siesta in the blazing heat of the early afternoon.

When you become a "temporary local," not only will you connect with more authentic experiences; you'll also be a better traveler, fitting into each place you visit like a cultural chameleon. The less we feel like outside observers, the more we appreciate — and enjoy — each culture on its own terms.

Here are a few more strategies for traveling as a temporary local:

Hit the back streets. Why jockey yourself into the most crowded square of the most crowded city in the most crowded month? If you’re in Venice, don’t add to the July swarm in front of St. Mark’s…walk six blocks behind the basilica, step into a café, and be greeted by Venetians who act as though they’ve never seen a tourist.

Be an early bird. Local culture thrives while the tourists sleep. Crack-of-dawn joggers and walkers are rewarded with tranquil, unobstructed moments in marquee towns, cities, and sights. Get there before the tourist busses arrive…among travelers, the early bird gets the memories.

Play where the locals play. Forego the touristy boulevards and head to the parks and green spaces, which have a knack for attracting locals who want to enjoy a cheap afternoon or evening out.

Root for the home team. Pop into a pub and join the rowdy crowd squinting at a grainy television, screaming as if their lives depend on the outcome of the match.

Go to church (if this is your thing). Many regular churchgoers never even consider an overseas service…but any church, mosque, or synagogue will not only welcome a traveling American — it will provide you with an unbeatable peek into the community.

Finally: Get more than a photo. Get dirty. Don’t just watch that game of backgammon at the Greek taverna…say “I’ve got winner!” and become part of the culture. It might just become a new part of you.

07/31/2024

Standing in front of Pablo Picasso's "Guernica" is an all-consuming moment. The painting is big — size-of-a-wall big. And every inch is covered with grotesque, screaming, scrunched-up faces that howl in silent horror at the tragedy of war, captured Picasso-style in his trademark jumble of limbs, faces, and I-don’t-know-what. Dwarfed by brilliance and a dose of unease, you’ll simultaneously feel repulsion and intrigue — a desire to step away…and an inability to look away. Which is to say, you’ve been Piccaso’d.

Get Picasso’d — and Goya’d and Gaudí’d — on our Best of Barcelona & Madrid tour. This 8-day two-step combines Spain’s top cities to create a full-bodied adventure that’s filled with art in its many forms: from painting to architecture to culinary delights.

We start in Barcelona, where you’ll have three days to immerse yourself into the pride and energy of the colorful Catalan capital. Tap into the wine scene, marvel at Gaudí’s fanciful facades, and embrace a new bedtime by staying out late strolling through surprise-filled, people-packed neighborhoods.

Then it’s all aboard one of Europe’s speediest trains, which whisks you to the very heart of Spain: Madrid. Here, you’ll count the chandeliers at the majestic Royal Palace, pop out for a day trip to frozen-in-time Toledo, and weave a tapestry of tapas with your fellow travelers.

Plan your trip by clicking the link to check dates, view the full itinerary, and read traveler reviews. After just 8 days, you might return home with a new bedtime, a more sophisticated palate, and indelible memories of standing before that heart-stopping Picasso.

https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/spain/barcelona-madrid