| Whatever your means of transport,
you are likely to find that the main problem when moving around
Spain in particular is centralization. There is an improbable
bureaucratic streak in the Iberian personality which tries
to create order out of chaos, and usually fails, but is quite
likely to succeed in making life more difficult for everyone.
This is evident in the road system, the railway system, bus
routes and many more things affecting travellers.
Roads
A road map of Spain looks a bit like a misshapen spider's
web, misshapen because the strands going out from Madrid in
the centre are all in place, but most of the ones which should
encircle the centre are missing. Look at a road map of any
province and you will see a similar pattern. Road planners
have traditionally supposed that Madrid is the centre of Spain,
therefore everyone wants to go there, and that the capital
of each province is the centre of that province and so everyone
will want to go there as well. This can mean that to get from
A in one province to B only a few kilometres into the next
province, you have to travel to both provincial capitals,
which can be frustrating and time-consuming.
Many of the main intercity routes are covered by toll roads,
which are avoided by most drivers, leading to overcrowding
on the main roads parallel to them. While Spanish roads are
generally quite good, Portuguese ones are much less so, and
in both countries, they are much narrower than you are probably
used to, though extra lanes for overtaking, especially on
uphill stretches, are now the norm rather than the exception.
Great care should be taken in both Spain and Portugal, neither
nationality being considerate drivers. The combination of
poor roads and reckless drivers can make motoring in Portugal,
especially, a really hair-raising experience. It is a good
idea to familiarize yourself with traffic norms, which may
be different from what you are used to: overtaking more than
one vehicle at a time, for example, is illegal, and you are
obliged by law to carry certain things such as a red warning
triangle to be placed a few metres behind your vehicle in
case of breakdown. Traffic police theoretically have the right
to impose on-the-spot fines: fortunately for you, they often
prefer to overlook offences committed by foreigners to avoid
the paperwork, but it would be silly of you to depend on that.
Car Rental
If you are renting a car in, say, Lisbon and want to leave
it in Barcelona, be very sure that your car rental agreement
allows this, because it is more likely than not that the car
hire company does not allow cross-border drop-off. Also, if
your pick-up is not going to be at the airport and your hire
company says that they will be glad to deliver to your doorstep,
for the second week of your holiday for example, do not take
their word for it. Doorstep delivery is the exception rather
than the rule.
Railways
The same overcentralization problem applies to railways as
to roads, with the added difficulty that the railway system
has never really been well developed in either Spain or Portugal,
and it is only recently that train travel over any distance
has become bearable. The new AVE high-speed trains being progressively
introduced will make a difference, but this is not happening
quickly, and for long-distance journeys within Spain and Portugal
you may find flying more acceptable - after all, if you only
have ten days, it is frustrating to have to spend one of them
on the train to Barcelona.
Buses
A much better choice than railways for most long-distance
travel, intercity buses are frequent, comfortable and in most
cases a lot faster than the train. In addition, long-distance
buses still operate overnight, so you can often save on a
night's hotel stay. However, the bus sector is extremely fragmented,
some operators only being active in a single province. So
if your starting point and destination are not capital cities,
you may find the centralization problem to be even worse than
with the railway.
Cycling
An enticing option in many parts of Spain and Portugal, particularly
for travelling one of the great routes such as the Camino
de Santiago, cycling is also becoming steadily more popular
with Spaniards and the Portuguese themselves. Cycle lanes
and paths, for example, are still rare, but much less so.
Unfortunately, cycling in Spain and Portugal has a couple
of big drawbacks. The most serious is that it is frankly more
dangerous than in most of the rest of Europe, due to Iberian
drivers' complete insensitivity towards cyclists. The Portuguese
and Spaniards are extremely discorteous when behind the wheel,
and this lack of consideration leads them to overtake cyclists
at breathtakingly narrow distances, close in on them when
pulling back over, nuzzle up to their rear wheels, and so
on. If cycling, avoid travelling after dark altogether, and
take every precaution possible. Use a helmet and reflective
or fluorescent acessories, and do not be aggressive: you will
not force cars to give you more space by refusing to budge.
SPV Pages
Accessible Spain
Facilities for the disabled and elderly and others with mobility
problems are not always as good as they should be in Spain,
so it is sensible to find out what to expect before you go.
A dedicated page of selected, annotated links.
Caravanning
and Motorhoming
One of the best ways to see Spain and Portugal is touring
in a motor home, camping van or similar, perhaps alternating
a night or two on campsites (camping grounds to Americans)
with the odd stay at a parador or country hotel. A page of
selected, annotated links.
Route, Journey and Distance
Calculators
This may not be the longest page on the site, but you may
find it one of the most useful. My selection of links to route,
journey and distance calculators, with annotations to help
you decide between them.
SPV
Getting Around Links Pages:
Airlines
Car Rental
Cycling
Ferries
Intercity Buses
Links
Railways
Routes
Selected Links
ALSA (ENATCAR)
Having absorbed Enatcar, Alsa is the most important Spanish
bus company. This site is confusing, but tremendously useful,
and allows you to buy tickets on-line. To find international
routes, click on "Routes and Destinations" on the menu bar
along the top, not the one in the middle of the page. Or "Alsa
World," followed by "Travel with Us," which lets you see route
maps.
Caminos
de Ferro Portugueses
The main Portuguese railway company, usually referred to as
CP. Though it is not as unbearably centralized as its Spanish
equivalent, Renfe, while it is a good choice for travel within
the Algarve or north-south between important towns and cities,
it is less useful when you want to reach smaller populations
or move east-west.
Cycling
Spain
Trip reports by an American who has cycled practically the
whole Spanish Med and a good bit of the Pyrenees.
Denia-Alicante
Tram
The extremely useful Denia-Alicante railway (called "tram")
runs along the coast, stopping frequently and connecting Calpe
and Benidorm, among other places.
DGT
Spanish-only website of the Spanish Traffic Department.
FEVE
The FEVE is a narrow-gauge railway which runs nearly all the
way along the northern coast of Spain, often providing travellers
with much better views than they could get from the road.
The site is in Spanish only: click "Mapa de la Red" to get
a route map.
Fred
Olsen
The shipping and ferry operator Fred Olsen runs a number of
lines between the Canary Islands. A rather odd site, with
heterogeneous information on the Pyramids of Güimar, a hotel
and a restaurant, but full details of the ferry lines and
appealing animated graphics.
Lisbon
Metro
Now in English, with an awful lot of information I cannot
imagine anyone ever wanting to know. However, "Art in
the Metro" leads you to an inexplicably fascinating section
describing the tiles (designed by reputable Portuguese artists)
of the different stations, in unbelievable detail.
Lisbon
Trams
I don't know what it is about trams that brings out the child
in fully grown men, though women seem immune to it. You just
have to use the trams in Lisbon - even if you have
brought your Porsche with you. Lots of attractive photos here.
Madrid
Commuter Trains
If you are staying in Madrid, the train is a good way to visit
Aranjuez, El Escorial or Alcalá de Henares.
Madrid
Metro
A few years ago, the slogan of the Madrid Metro was, "To Know
the Metro is to Know Madrid." This is a jolly site, with lots
of simple but effective animations.
Madrid
Transport Consortium
The Consorcio de Transportes de Madrid oversees public
transport in the whole province of Madrid, not just the capital.
Its site has been given a facelift and now has lots of cheerful
cartoons, many animated.
RENFE
RENFE is the main Spanish railway company, which you will
find useful, if not cheap, for long hauls, and some local
journeys. The relatively new high-speed train, the AVE, is
very comfortable indeed, which is more can be said for this
site. All the information you might want, but close all other
windows first: it is painfully slow.
Tráfico
Surprisingly attractive but Spanish-only bimonthly magazine
published by the DGT, Spanish Traffic Department.
El
Transcantábrico
El Transcantábrico is an Orient-Express style luxury
train running along the north coast of Spain from Santiago
de Compostela to Bilbao, taking in Vivero, Oviedo, Ribadesella,
Llanes, Santillana del Mar, and Santander, then looping back
to take you to the heights of León (or the other way
around), at a cost of €3,000, or €4,000 for two.
Or you can book through SPV's partner, Viator.
Trasmediterránea
Trasmediterránea is the main Spanish ferry company,
connecting the Spanish mainland and the Balearic Islands,
Canary Islands and Morocco. The site can be painfully slow,
but has good information, on-line booking, and is even entertaining
in parts.
|
