Travel
¡Bienvenida a Spain Buddy!
Whether you are visiting this beautiful country for the first time, or are seeking information about your favourite resorts, towns or cities such as Barcelona, Málaga, or the capital (Madrid)… or if you are considering moving here in the future and joining those of us that are happy to call this place home – we have something for you.
Use the menu at the top to navigate the website, or click straight through to any of the recent articles displayed on this page.
Enjoy browsing – and do drop us a line with any questions. If we can help, then we will!
This website contains thousands of pages and articles, all geared towards those who are visiting, moving to, or living in this vast and colourful country.
We include the glossy stuff of course – we love it here and hope that we can do a little to help promote this wonderful place. But we also include articles that show the darker side of life here – after all, no country is perfect. There are also overheads relating to moving to another country such as finding local assistance, a property to reside in, and perhaps the most meaningful overhead – international money transfers from your bank to here (finding a cheap money transfer is absolutely crucial for those emigrating to a different country).
We love to hear from our readers – so you can either comment underneath a particular article you’ve enjoyed (or haven’t) or you can drop us an email to info@spainbuddy.com too.
Above all – enjoy the website and we look forward to seeing you return time and again.
Spain | About Spain information
Spain is located in southeast Europe. Its mainland is bordered by Portugal to the west and France to the north.
To the east, in the Mediterranean sea, are Spain’s Balearic Islands and just off the northwest coast of Africa are its Canary Islands.
It enjoys an extremely varied landscape with everything from the deserts in Almería and Gran Canaria to the lush forests of northern Spain. Snowcapped mountains, white and golden and black beaches, moauntainous regions and spectacular plains – all of this and more make this a country that keeps on giving to its residents and visitors.
Whether you are looking for a quaint hillside village or a modern bustling city – Spain has it for you.
Its history is varied and colourful with many monuments and castles still dotting the landscape.
Southern Spain is known for its pueblos blancos, the whitewashed towns and villages of Andalucia.
Northern Spain is famous for its amazing stark coastlines which produce some of the worlds finest seafood.
One of the world’s most popular destinations for travellers, it has something to suit most budgets and groups.
Fiercely proud of its history, it is am amazing place to visit at any time of the year. Sevilla, for example, is THE place to visit in the spring to enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of this beautiful area’s heritage.
Everything from crazy stag/hen dos to chilled beach vibes to the buzz of modern cities – it has it all!
Quick Facts (Current as of 2023)
Madrid (capital)
Barcelona
Málaga
Sevilla
505,983 square km
506k
Castellano (Main)
Catalan
Basque
Gallego
Aranese
Euro
(Formerly peseta)
Click HERE to find out how much you know about this amazing country
Gandy-Draper: The team behind Spain Buddy
We are Alan Gandy and Elle Draper, the team behind this website. This page will tell you a little about us but you can find out more by clicking HERE.
Honesty and integrity are vital to our business, and so we do not hide behind cartoons and memes as so many others in this industry do.
We are exactly who you see – warts an’ all. Sorry about that!
Alan Gandy
Alan has taken early retirement but we have left his information here – just so you know who he is!
Alan has a wealth of IT, PR and marketing, and general management experience having worked previously in the web design and multimedia, marketing and electronics industries, mostly at Director level.
Previously Alan provided consultancy across a number of industries around the globe, enabling businesses to make the best use of their budgets, whilst raising their profiles professionally and effectively. He is now enjoying his return to professional photography and fine art.
His heart resides in Spain where he enjoys spending quality time with Elle, reminiscing about their former three doggies and getting out to explore / photograph Spain’s diverse and beautiful scenery. You can view some of his art HERE.
In 2012 he published his first book, “Walking the Canary Islands“, detailing his walk for charity across the seven largest Canary Islands.
Elle Draper
Elle is now the sole proprietor of Spain Buddy. This is because Alan has kicked off his “work boots” early.
Elle’s background lies predominantly in sales and marketing as well as recruitment, administration, operations and customer service. Elle reached senior managerial level before leaving the UK in 2006 for a new life in the sun.
Since moving to Spain, Elle has written for several news and travel publications – bringing her wealth of knowledge and reasearch skills right to your computer or news stand. She has also been busy building hundreds of websites for businesses all over the world with Gandy-Draper: Spain Web Design.
Elle enjoys spending time with Alan, as well as cooking, walking and the occasional (cough) dry white wine. She is also well known among her friends and clients for her obsession with Doctor Who and La Casa de Papel.
She is the author of The Spain Buddy Recipe book which makes Spanish cooking easy, even for novices.