Flights from Cardiff to Spain

Flights to Spain from Cardiff

Vueling flies direct from Cardiff to 2 Spanish destinations: Alicante and Malaga. Both sit on the Mediterranean coast, and the flight takes around 2 and a half hours.

Sunshine is the common thread, which makes the choice easier. Alicante opens up the Costa Blanca and the hills behind it. Malaga is the gateway to the Costa del Sol and the whole of Andalusia, with Granada, Seville and Córdoba a couple of hours away by road or rail.

What documents you need to travel to Spain

The UK is no longer part of the European Union or the Schengen Area, so British citizens must travel with a passport. No other form of ID is accepted for entry into Spain.

British citizens can stay in the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any 180-day period without a visa. Make sure your passport is valid for the whole of your stay. EU entry requirements are changing, so check the latest conditions on the travel documents page before you book.

As you are flying in from outside the Schengen Area, you will go through passport control on arrival. Allow some extra time for it.

What to know when you land in Spain

From the airport into town. Alicante-Elche Airport is about 10 km from the city, and a direct bus gets you to the centre in under half an hour. From there, connections run to Benidorm and along the coast. In Malaga, the local commuter train links the terminal with the city centre and with Torremolinos, Benalmádena and Fuengirola, which takes care of the transfer if you are staying on the coast.

Plug sockets. Spain uses round two-pin plugs, types C and F, at 230V.

Mealtimes. This is the biggest change from the UK. Lunch in Spain runs from 14:00 to 16:00 and dinner starts at 21:00, with many kitchens closed until then. Eating at 18:00 simply is not on the cards, so plan your first day around it.

Heat in the south. In July and August, Alicante and Malaga climb well above 35°C, and nights rarely drop below 25. That is a good deal hotter than you might expect coming from Wales, and it shapes when people go out: life moves to the early morning and to the hours after sunset.

Spain uses the euro, and cards are accepted almost everywhere.

What to do in Spain

Alicante and the Costa Blanca

In Alicante, Santa Bárbara Castle looks down on the city from Mount Benacantil, with the Santa Cruz quarter at its feet and the Explanada de España running along the harbour. To the north, Altea, Calpe with the Peñón de Ifach, and Jávea mix small coves with whitewashed villages. To the south, Santa Pola and Torrevieja add salt flats and long beaches.

Inland Alicante

Less than an hour from the airport, the scenery changes completely. Guadalest, perched above a turquoise reservoir, the Canelobre Caves and the Sierra de Aitana offer hiking and mountain villages. Elche, with its World Heritage palm grove, is just 15 minutes away.

Malaga and the Costa del Sol

Malaga is far more than the way in to the coast. It has the Picasso Museum, the Alcazaba, the Roman theatre and a restaurant scene on the rise, plus sardine espetos grilled on the beaches of Pedregalejo. Nerja and its caves, Marbella, and Ronda with its gorge are all within an hour and a half.

Andalusia from Malaga

This is what turns the trip into more than a beach holiday. Granada and the Alhambra are an hour and a half away by road. Córdoba, with its Mosque-Cathedral, and Seville, with the Real Alcázar and the Giralda, are reachable by high-speed train. All three monuments are World Heritage Sites.

Luggage for your flight to Spain

What you can take depends on the fare you choose when booking. The simplest fare includes a personal item that fits under the seat in front, and from there you can add cabin or checked luggage.

A week on the beach or a family trip usually calls for checked luggage, while a short break works fine with cabin bags. Deciding when you book avoids surprises at the check-in desk. Check the current conditions in Vueling’s luggage policy.