Escorted & Package Tours

Packages for the Independent Traveler

Before you start your search for the lowest airfare, you may want to consider booking your flight as part of a travel package. Package tours are not the same thing as escorted tours. Package tours are simply a way to buy the airfare, accommodations, and other elements of your trip (such as car rentals, airport transfers, and sometimes even activities) at the same time and often at discounted prices -- kind of like one-stop shopping. Packages are sold in bulk to tour operators -- who resell them to the public at a cost that usually undercuts standard rates.

One good source of package deals is the airlines themselves. Most major airlines offer air/land packages, including American Airlines Vacations (tel. 800/321-2121; www.aavacations.com), Delta Vacations (tel. 800/221-6666; www.deltavacations.com), Continental Airlines Vacations (tel. 800/301-3800; www.covacations.com), and United Vacations (tel. 888/854-3899; www.unitedvacations.com). Among the airline packagers, Iberia Airlines (tel. 800/772-4642, or 90-240-05-00 in Spain; www.iberia.com) leads the way.

Several big online travel agencies -- Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz, Site59, and Lastminute.com -- also do a brisk business in packages. If you're unsure about the pedigree of a smaller packager, check with the Better Business Bureau in the city where the company is based, or go online at www.bbb.org. If a packager won't tell you where it's based, don't fly with them.

Solar Tours (tel. 800/388-7652; www.solartours.com) is a wholesaler that offers a number of package tours to Córdoba, Granada, Seville, and Andalusia, as well as to major beach resorts. Self-drive packages through Andalusia and other areas are also featured. Spanish Heritage Tours (tel. 973/337-4012; www.shtours.com) is known for searching for low-cost airfare deals to Spain. It is especially good in putting together packages for the Costa del Sol, including 7-night deals that feature Córdoba, Seville, and Granada beginning at $729 per person. Homeric Tours (tel. 800/223-5570 or 212/753-1100; www.homerictours.com), the marketing arm of Iberia, is the most reliable tour operator and the agency used for air and land packages to some of Spain's highlights, including Córdoba, Seville, Granada, and the Costa del Sol. Naturally, round-trip airfares on Iberia are included in the deal. A recent offering (subject to change, of course) featured Madrid and the Costa del Sol in 8 days and 6 nights, including not only the transatlantic fare but 3 nights in a Madrid hotel, followed by 3 nights in a Costa del Sol hotel. Prices began at $1,279 per person. Several fly/drive packages are also offered.

Escorted General-Interest Tours

Escorted tours are structured group tours with a group leader. The price usually includes everything from airfare to hotels, meals, tours, admission costs, and local transportation.

There are many escorted-tour companies to choose from, each offering transportation to and within Spain, prearranged hotel space, and such extras as bilingual tour guides and lectures. Many Andalusian tours include excursions to Morocco.

Abercrombie & Kent International (tel. 800/554-7106; www.abercrombiekent.com) runs some of Spain's most expensive and luxurious tours, including deluxe 9- or 12-day tours of the Iberian Peninsula by train. Guests stay in fine hotels, ranging from a late medieval palace to the exquisite Alfonso XIII in Seville.

American Express Vacations (tel. 800/941-2639 in the U.S. and Canada; www.travelimpressions.com) is one of the biggest tour operators in the world. Its offerings are comprehensive, and unescorted customized package tours to Andalusia are available, too.

Spanish Heritage Tours (tel. 800/456-5050; www.shtours.com) is a new tour operator featuring trips to Andalusia. Its packages include nonstop charter flights to Málaga, departing from New York's Kennedy Airport every Friday. Eight-night packages run from $729 to $1,479 per person, based on double occupancy at first-class hotels. There are several optional trips available, taking in the cities of Granada, Seville, and Córdoba, even a trip across the straits to Morocco. A bus tour of Andalusia is also a feature.

Trafalgar Tours (tel. 800/854-0103; www.trafalgartours.com) is cheaper, offering a number of tours of Spain. One of the most popular offerings is a 14-day trip, "Highlights of Spain and Portugal," costing from $1,650 per person and featuring such destinations as Córdoba, Granada, Seville, and the Costa del Sol, and even the self-governing British colony at Gibraltar.

Alternative Travel Group Ltd. (tel. 01865/315-678; www.atg-oxford.co.uk) is a British firm that organizes walking and cycling vacations, plus wine tours in Spain. One of its tours is devoted to Andalusia, an 8-day trip that includes 4 days of walking. Highlights include Seville, the Pueblos Blancos (White Villages) -- some in the heart of nature reserves -- and lofty Ronda. Some of Andalusia's most charming villages or towns are featured on this trip, including Arcos de la Frontera, Zahara, and Grazalema.

Petrabax Tours (tel. 800/634-1188; www.petrabax.com) attracts those who prefer to see Spain by bus, although fly/drive packages featuring stays in paradors are also offered. A number of city packages are also available, plus an 8- or 9-day trip that tries to capture the essence of Spain, with visits to places ranging from Madrid to Granada, with stops in Córdoba and Seville.

Isramworld (tel. 800/223-7460; www.isram.com) sells both escorted and package tours to Spain. It can book you on bus tours as well as land and air packages. Devotees of southern Spain book its "Spanish Calvacade" tour, beginning in Madrid and journeying on to Seville and the Costa del Sol. Round-trip air transportation and 6 nights in hotel accommodations, along with six dinners, are included.