🇪🇸Spain

Health

• Tap water is safe to drink in all major cities, though some travellers prefer bottled water in smaller towns.
• Ask your doctor about Hepatitis A and routine vaccines; sunstroke and dehydration are real risks in summer, especially in southern cities like Seville and Córdoba where temperatures soar.
• Carry a basic medicine kit including rehydration salts, as the dry heat can be draining if you are not used to it.

Watch for

• The 'petition scam' — people approach you with a clipboard to sign, then demand money — is common around major landmarks in Madrid and Barcelona.
• Overcharging in restaurants near tourist hotspots, especially on menus with no displayed prices, is a well-known hustle.
• Bag snatching and distraction theft (someone spilling something on you) on the metro and in busy areas like La Rambla in Barcelona and Atocha station in Madrid.

Solo / women

• Spain is generally comfortable for solo women travellers, especially in cities, but modest dress is appreciated when visiting churches and religious sites.
• Night-time safety is good in most central areas, though the same caution about unlit streets and rowdy bar districts after dark applies as in any major city.