Madrid – Purple Travel Official Blog

Purple Tips: 7 foods to try on holiday in Spain

Aug 20 2014

Here is one for the foodies amongst you today. Navigating a menu on holiday can be a nightmare sometimes, even when they are translated you don’t really know what something actually is. Purple Travel gives you the lowdown on the top 7 delicious Spanish foods to try on holiday so you don’t miss out! Have you tried any of the dishes mentioned below? Let us know your top tips for eating out in Spain.

Tapas

The number one must-try food is tapas, less a food actually and more of an experience – you can’t go to Spain and not try tapas. The great thing is that you can eat it anytime and anywhere and because there is a little bit of everything on the plate there will be something for everyone to enjoy. Another awesome thing about Tapas is that in most bars in Madrid and Barcelona, you will get tapas for free – whether it be mini sandwiches, almonds, squid (really you can get anything). In other places such as the Basque Country and Andalusia you will have to pay but I’m sure it will be worth every penny.

Image via @Jessica Spengler

Purple Tips: 16 Facts About Spain

Mar 04 2014

Ever wondered where the word ‘Spain’ comes from? Or how about how many miles of beaches there are in Spain? Let us help you out with our 16 excellent holiday facts about Spain.

#1 Let’s start with one of our favourite facts about Spain. It is the most popular holiday destination for Brits, (it was in 2013) with Majorca, Malaga, Tenerife and Costa del Sol holidays ranking highly. Purple Travel’s most popular Spain holidays included Ibiza, Alicante and Palma de Mallorca as well as city breaks in Barcelona.

#2. Some of the most famous names in the world hail from Spanish shores. Actors Javier Bardem (Gran Canaria),Penelope Cruz (Madrid) and Antonio Banderas (Malaga) and sports stars like tennis player Rafael Nadal (Majorca), Andres Iniesta (Castilla-La Mancha) and Fernando Torres (Madrid) are just a selection of the famous faces hailing from Spanish shores.

#3. The word for ‘Spain’ is said to come from ‘Hispania’, which roughly translates to Island of Rabbits. So if you see some bunnies, don’t be too surprised.

A Night Less Ordinary : Hotel Silken Puerta America

Oct 05 2012

In this weekly series, we scour the world in search of the most weird and wonderful hotels. From cave hotels to converted prisons, capsule pods to underwater guestrooms, you can expect only the unexpected. This week, Hotel Silken Puerta América in Madrid.

What’s the gimmick? The Hotel Silken Puerta América is a masterpiece of architecture and design. A 5 Star luxury hotel, Hotel Silken ushers guests into innovative spaces, with each of the floors being designed by one of the 19 world-renowned architects and artists who were chosen to work on the hotel (these include including Norman Foster, Jean Nouvel and Zaha Hadid). The 12 guestroom floors were each created in the vision of the unique international architect they represent, giving the rooms individualized design and décor.

You should read… weird ways to travel on holiday

Why stay? For a truly different experience each time you stay. Guests choose from photos of available room designs on arrival, all of which have 1 queen-size or 2 twin beds, and flat-screen LCD TVs.

The Wow Factor: The Hotel Silken Puerta América Madrid is an eclectic, daring space that does not sell comfort short. Rooms with luxury in their finest detail entice guests to interact with them, to touch, to see, to breathe and smell. In short, Hotel Silken is a unique space that stands out especially for its quality and wide range of service, not just its futuristic design. Think indoor pools, a Turkish bath and a top-floor bar with incredible views of Madrid.

Prices start from £170 a night. Click here for details.

Purple 10: Weird things stolen from hotel rooms

Oct 03 2012

It’s not just bathrobes that are ripe for the picking, people take all sorts from their hotel rooms… You’ve got to wonder, how did they hide some of these?

After a survey of 500 hotels, 95 percent say they’ve had items stolen by guests, and around one in every ten traveller will take at least one thing that doesn’t belong to them.

A piano like this was taken from the reception of a hotel.

Here’s the weirdest:

A grand piano. Yes, a whole piano was carted down the street by three people dressed in overalls who casually strolled by reception.
A stuffed boar’s head. A hotel in Birmingham went without its billiard room’s main feature, until friends of the shamed guest actually bought it from the hotel as a wedding present.
A Vegas Hotel said entire carpets had been cut and take from one of its rooms.
The sofa and a mini-fridge were taken from a five star hotel in Dubai.
A five star hotel in Madrid went without a whole mattress after a stay by one sticky-fingered guest.
Sex Toys, a hotel in Bath which offers kinky accessories as part of its package, says they often go walkabouts after visits from amorous guests.
Televisions. They have a tough time in hotel rooms, what with getting thrashed by rockers, they’re also one of the most stolen items.
One unfortunate hotel owner had their pet dog stolen! Who would do that!?
Every accessory from an Istanbul hotel room was taken, apart from the bed, the desk and TV, basically everything that wasn’t nailed down.
Miscellaneous: according to reports that have surfaced over the years, there are lots of other, hard-to-categories bits taken from rooms, including a medieval sword and a 4ft wooden bear. Sounds a bit Anchorman, doesn’t it?

Tag - Madrid