Is it easy to solo travel to the EU?

[Bldsaafds]

I'm not well travelled and I want to travel more and see more.

Is it as easy as book flight and hotel and that's it?

Because I have a British passport I can go for tourism for 90 days in a 180 day period?

I have this desire to do Spain AND Portugal this summer. Madrid and Lisbon.

Yes that is exactly what you do

Yes no issues at all. I went to Barcelona recently: just book a flight and hotel and go. Do sort your traveĺ insurance and a Global Health Card first though: https://www.nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/healthcare-abroad/apply-for-a-free-uk-global-health-insurance-card-ghic/

Thank you. I want to do Madrid over Barcelona because I'm scared of getting mugged in Barcelona.

How was your trip?

If you want to book trains or anything, most will have an English option on the website. I took a sleeper train from Lisbon to... i think it was Malaga rather than Madrid, but I've taken the train from Malaga to Madrid before. I found the RENFE site quite easy to navigate.

Museums etc are far better at being multi-lingual than we are in the UK.

Yes, do it. Download Get Your Guide and Citimapa, very easy to get around and join tours if needed. have fun!

You won’t get mugged in Barcelona.

Yes it is very easy. Look at trip advisor and book a walking tour or similar for your first day in a new city so you can get a feel for the place.

I've seen threads here where people say "in Barcelona you apologise to your mugger as the last one fully cleaned you out"

Thank you

If you do decide to get, particularly longish distance, trains in Spain it's worth booking in advance because once a train is sold out of seats you can't get a ticket for it. We've made this error before in Spain and it was a moderately expensive cock up between 3 of us but if I'd been travelling alone it would have been a bigger issue.

Thank you for telling me.

Airlines wise. Are easyJet and Ryanair etc less safe than BA and Virgin?

Nope.

Def not. Neither has ever had a fatal accident (nor has BA Tbf since the mid eighties)

Spanish buses are great and often cheaper/more regular than the trains.

Ta. It's because they are low cost carriers I ask.

All the same. Same airport procedures, same safety checks. It’s just the quality of service differs.

Easyjet gave me better customer service than BA in terms of missed flights, but neither of those were recent, so things could have changed.

Thanks all. I assume because of Schengen I can still interrail across it I want to?

Get an Interrail pass, take the Eurostar to Paris and a train from there to Barcelona.

You will have the time of your life.

(Going to a big city does not mean you will get mugged, btw :) )

So it's just I've heard Barcelona in particular is rife

@Bldsaafds I am sure it happens, but I was there last autumn and saw nothing.

You just have to be streetwise, I think.

Wear a money belt with valuables, have a handbag with a solid strap kept closed and close, keep an eye out, don't use your phone on the street etc etc.

Have fun!

Might it help to ha e a long weekend somewhere like Edinburgh, to get to grips with the airport procedure, flight, etc.

I don't think Barcelona is particularly unsafe. I r been lots of times with DC too and never felt unsafe. As with all cities carry money in belt around your waste and have a top on covering over it.