Exploring Spain in a Rental Car
The west of the Costa Del Sol is served with both a bus and train service, as yet the Eastern Costa Del Sol is served only by the buses. It is hoped to have a ninety four kilometre double track fast train service by 2012. Exploring Spain in a rental car has never been easier. The local authorities have placed brown and white traffic signs, which delineate the areas of interest. These signs mark, gardens, sites of historical interest, or natural beauty, National parks etc.
A little attention to common sense will make the driving more enjoyable and less stressful. Thirty years ago, few people had cars and there were no women drivers. Today Spain like anywhere is awash with cars and drivers and the traffic in the high season period between July and August is horrendous.
Spain is at its hottest then and whilst air conditioned cars have made driving a more bearable experience there is still the other cars and the drivers to deal with. There are approximately a million tourists adding to the already congested roads and parking has become a real problem. I am not suggesting that you do not explore during summer, but I am suggesting that you should not plan to drive long distances each day. Winter is the time when exploring is most pleasant driving conditions are not as stressed and parking is easier. If you are contemplating, driving long distances there are toll roads in Spain and whilst they are expensive, they are a lot faster and offer much better driving conditions.
Once you have your car and all that is necessary is to plan the route. Spain has some wonderful tourist offices, which will give you an idea of what is on offer in the area.
The online office at the Nerja branch has no information but the airport Malaga tourist office situated in the arrivals lounge is open twenty-four hours a day.
EMail: turismo@nerja.org
http://www.nerja.org/turismo_ing/tur_oficina.htm
Oficina de Turismo de Nerja
C/ Puerta del Mar, 2
29780 Nerja, Málaga (España)
Tel.- 95 252 15 31
Fax- 95 252 62 87
Michelin make the best maps. They cover a scale of 10 kilometres to each centimetre, which is a reasonably detailed map, and it is Map 446 Spain Southern, which covers Andalucía. They are available in Spain from both bookshops and newsagents.
Spain does not really have any more detailed maps than the Michelin guides and modern detailed walking and hiking maps are not yet available (whilst this may seem absurd it is only in the last ten years that Malaga tourist offices put Street names on the maps of Malaga). If you have to rely on any sort of map for walking then the only option are the often out of date military maps. The military have recently released the information to the public and some of them are very out of date as regards four-wheel drive tracks. The walking tracks of the maps are clearer and more reliable than the vehicular tracks.
The maps are produced by Spain's Instituto Geographico Nacional and the Centro Geografico del Ejercito. The large-scale maps are in a series of sheets with contour lines and a scale of (1: 25.000), each sheet costs 3 euros, but some of them have been grouped together in areas of interest such as National Parks and these are listed below and cost 6 Euros each from bookshops. La Tienda Verde or the green shop has an English web site from which you can purchase the sheets.
http://www.tiendaverde.es/mapasesp/en/mapas.php?lang=en
By Bill Hanning
--------------------------------------------------------
|
Hiring A Car In Spain
Everybody looks forward to his or her holidays. We crave the much needed week off work here and there just to get away from it all and want to make the most of every week off we have. Many individuals...
Making Paella the Spanish Way!
Paella is the quintessentially Spanish dish that everyone has heard of, a rustic one-pot dish originating in Valencia when the area was important for rice production. It dates back to a time when the only...
Retiring to Spain
Spain has become the geriatric home of Northern Europe in recent years. Its gentle climate, proximity to Northern Europe, cheap and plentiful flights home, short flight times, its relaxed way of life,...
|
Get Your Own Article Published On Nerja-Holiday-Rentals.net!
If you are an aspiring writer and would like to share your travel story or article with others, please fill in the form below and submit your article/story.
