Paradores de España, Aiguablava, Costa Brava

Queridos Amigos!
Dear Friends!

When travelling in Spain you might have passed some plain signposts with the word "Parador" on it and always wanted to figure out where it leads to. Well, you are advised to give it a try if you have ever had the desire to bed your worn body not in a standard hotel room, but ? for a change - in a former monk´s cell, in an elegant mansion of a proud Andalusian count, in a knight´s chamber of a castle or even in a dormitory of a magnificent moorish palace.

Since 1928 some 82 former palaces, castles and mansions in the most interesting towns all over Spain - from Aiguablava on the Costa Brava to Ayamonte on the Costa de la Luz, from Ferrol in Galicia to the Morroccan enclave Ceuta just across Gibraltar - have been restored and modernized to meet the the high demands of today´s pretentious travellers.

Don´t count to find any parador in the capital cities like Madrid, Barcelona or Valencia, but if you are up let´s say for a plain monk´s cell with small windows, beds wide apart (yes, we are in a Catholic country ), a Latin bible on the bedside table but equipped with a state-of-the-art bath, airconditioning and satellite TV you´ll find the Parador de Chinchon in a former abbey some 60 km south of Madrid.

Or, if you are up for a parador con vista, a room with a view, then don´t hesitate to check in the Parador de Toledo, built on a hill high above the Tajo river, with THE exclusive view of this lovely city with its Alcazar castle, cathedrals with Goya paintings and silversmith shops.

To reside on top of the world is almost anybody´s dream: fulfill it in a number of cities like Cuenca, Jaen, Carmona or Bayona and look down like Don Jaime de Mora y Aragon on the rest of the humble beings. If you ever wanted to take a nightly stroll through the Generalife gardens of the famous Alhambra in Granada all that´s required is a valid reservation for the respective Parador, which is the most luxurious of them all, some EUR 202 for the room, 10 EUR per breakfast and 7% VAT might seem a hefty ticket, but believe me, this unique experience is worth every cent spent. Be warned to book months in advance for scores of Japanese travellers can´t do without any more on their tight schedule for Spain?

Nearly all of the paradores have ****standard with a price range between EUR 70-100, the sumptuous breakfast buffet for a mere EUR 8 includes even Cava, the Spanish Champagne.

During the last couple of years I have visited 20 paradores and my experiences led to the habit of booking a room in a city which offers a parador sojourn rather than staying in a modern impersonal hotel block. The restaurants have always served excellent food and affordable Spanish wines save the one in Salamanca, where the cook did have a terrible day that evening but our complaint was met with an invitation for another dinner for two.

Information on the paradores and Spain in general is obtainable from the Spanish Tourist Board which can be found in any major European city, the website www.parador.es offers online booking but you do need Adobe Acrobat on your computer for their confirmation mail.

Saludos y hasta luego!