The Spanish city of Barcelona is a truly beautiful city. The main gay and lesbian area of Barcelona is called L'Eixample (it's pronounced eye-sham-play), located in the north west of the city. L'Eixample has many gay and lesbian bars and clubs to suit all tastes.
Everything seems to happen later in Spain than in other European countries. Spaniards usually eat late (around 9pm or 10pm). The bars don't get busy until around midnight and stay open until about 3am, when the gay clubs (or discos as they are locally called) open. The clubs stay open until around 5am or 6am. I would recommend having a sleep before you go out so you can party all night, if you want to.
Opened in 2007, Barcelona has a fast, efficient and modern Metro system to transport you around the city.
The coastal resort of Sitges is located about half an hour away on the train and well worth a visit while you are in Barcelona.
Barcelona is located in the Spanish region of Catalonia. This region has two native languages, Spanish and Catalan. This often means that the locals of Barcelona are not fluent in English, therefore I recommend taking a Spanish phrase book.
Overall, I would definitely recommend a vacation in Barcelona during the summer months.
Read all Spain Gay Holiday Reviews and Spain Lesbian Holiday Reviews
Showing posts with label Spain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spain. Show all posts
Sunday
Los Almendros, Gran Canaria, Spain
Los Almendros is a gated holiday complex in Playa Del Ingles, Gran Canaria. The complex is run by gay travel company Respect for gay men only. These are my pluses and minuses of Los Almendros.
Pluses:
1. The complex is entirely gated from the outside world.
2. Only gay men stay at Los Almendros so there are no noisy families.
3. There is an on site bar, restaurant and swimming pool.
4. Satellite Television is available in each chalet.
5. Nudity is allowed, if you want to.
6. There is a welcome meeting when you arrive to meet others staying in the complex.
7. The staff are mostly friendly.
Minuses:
1. Los Almendros is not right next to the main gay/lesbian entertainment center (Jumbo). But a taxi only costs about 2 euro and there are many taxis available.
2. The cooking equipment in the chalets is fairly basic. Two hot plates, a kettle, pots, pans, plates and cutlery. No microwave or oven.
3. The manager of Los Almendros seems to be in a permanent bad mood, though the rest of the staff are friendly and helpful.
4. The pool side can get very busy so sometimes there is no space left for sunbathing.
5. A deposit is required for access to the air conditioning in the chalets.
6. There is an extra charge of a few euro per day to access the satellite television.
Overall, I would recommend Los Almendros as place to stay whilst in Gran Canaria. It is convenient, clean and well organised.
Read all Spain Gay Holiday Reviews and Spain Lesbian Holiday Reviews
Pluses:
1. The complex is entirely gated from the outside world.
2. Only gay men stay at Los Almendros so there are no noisy families.
3. There is an on site bar, restaurant and swimming pool.
4. Satellite Television is available in each chalet.
5. Nudity is allowed, if you want to.
6. There is a welcome meeting when you arrive to meet others staying in the complex.
7. The staff are mostly friendly.
Minuses:
1. Los Almendros is not right next to the main gay/lesbian entertainment center (Jumbo). But a taxi only costs about 2 euro and there are many taxis available.
2. The cooking equipment in the chalets is fairly basic. Two hot plates, a kettle, pots, pans, plates and cutlery. No microwave or oven.
3. The manager of Los Almendros seems to be in a permanent bad mood, though the rest of the staff are friendly and helpful.
4. The pool side can get very busy so sometimes there is no space left for sunbathing.
5. A deposit is required for access to the air conditioning in the chalets.
6. There is an extra charge of a few euro per day to access the satellite television.
Overall, I would recommend Los Almendros as place to stay whilst in Gran Canaria. It is convenient, clean and well organised.
Read all Spain Gay Holiday Reviews and Spain Lesbian Holiday Reviews
Gran Canaria, Spain
Although it's located off the coast of Africa, Gran Canaria is part of Spain and is very Spanish in culture and character. The main gay resort in Gran Canaria is Playa Del Ingles. There is a large shopping/clubbing centre called Jumbo, where around 100 gay bars and clubs are located.
Gran Canaria - Top Seven Tips:
1. Go to Gran Canaria during the winter time. Gran Canaria is hot and sunny during the winter, whilst the rest of Europe is cold.
2. Taxis are relatively cheap, a taxi ride within Playa Del Ingles will cost around 2 to 3 Euro.
3. Drinks are around the same price as countries such as France, the UK or the Netherlands.
4. Get hold of gay map to Gran Canaria (widely available) as after a few drinks it's easy to get lost.
5. Cash machines are widely available in Gran Canaria, so no need to worry about taking lots of cash or travellers cheques. The local currency is the Euro.
6. English is not widely spoken, so it's worth taking a Spanish phrase book.
7. Most bars get going from around 11 to midnight onwards.
Read all Spain Gay Holiday Reviews and Spain Lesbian Holiday Reviews
Gran Canaria - Top Seven Tips:
1. Go to Gran Canaria during the winter time. Gran Canaria is hot and sunny during the winter, whilst the rest of Europe is cold.
2. Taxis are relatively cheap, a taxi ride within Playa Del Ingles will cost around 2 to 3 Euro.
3. Drinks are around the same price as countries such as France, the UK or the Netherlands.
4. Get hold of gay map to Gran Canaria (widely available) as after a few drinks it's easy to get lost.
5. Cash machines are widely available in Gran Canaria, so no need to worry about taking lots of cash or travellers cheques. The local currency is the Euro.
6. English is not widely spoken, so it's worth taking a Spanish phrase book.
7. Most bars get going from around 11 to midnight onwards.
Read all Spain Gay Holiday Reviews and Spain Lesbian Holiday Reviews
Sitges, Spain
Located about 35 km south of Barcelona, Sitges is a small but very popular summer gay holiday destination. With a long and beautiful sandy beach and many gay bars and clubs, Sitges should be on the list of any gay or lesbian person's holiday destinations.
Sitges - Top Seven Tips:
1. Go in the Summer time, Sitges is at it's best during the summer.
2. Travelling from Barcelona Airport to Sitges can be tricky. The train system is not brilliant and you have to change stations. The bus takes about an hour. A taxi transfer will cost anywhere between 50 and 70 Euro.
3. Most bars get busy everyday from about midnight onwards.
4. Because of it's small size you can walk anywhere in Sitges. No need to worry about transport within the town.
5. Drinks can be expensive. Many bars have happy hours where you buy one drink and get one 'free'.
6. Most restaurants in Sitges stop serving food by 10pm, therefore make sure you go out for food before 10pm as it is difficult to find anywhere selling food after this time.
7. Although there is a 'circuit' where people go from bar to bar, in our experience it is just as good to find a bar you like and wait for it to get busy.
Have you been to Sitges? Why not share your tips by adding a comment?
Sitges - Top Seven Tips:
1. Go in the Summer time, Sitges is at it's best during the summer.
2. Travelling from Barcelona Airport to Sitges can be tricky. The train system is not brilliant and you have to change stations. The bus takes about an hour. A taxi transfer will cost anywhere between 50 and 70 Euro.
3. Most bars get busy everyday from about midnight onwards.
4. Because of it's small size you can walk anywhere in Sitges. No need to worry about transport within the town.
5. Drinks can be expensive. Many bars have happy hours where you buy one drink and get one 'free'.
6. Most restaurants in Sitges stop serving food by 10pm, therefore make sure you go out for food before 10pm as it is difficult to find anywhere selling food after this time.
7. Although there is a 'circuit' where people go from bar to bar, in our experience it is just as good to find a bar you like and wait for it to get busy.
Have you been to Sitges? Why not share your tips by adding a comment?
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