Southern Spain's Andalucia region excites New York with its 8th Annual Flamenco Festival during February with theater performances by stellar flamenco singers, dancers and musicians.


Coinciding with the Festival, delegates of the Andalucia Tourist Board (Turismo Andaluz) www.andalucia.org together with hotel and resort representatives will visit New York to promote their multi-faceted destination with emphasis on Delta Air Line's new nonstop flights between New York-JFK and Andalucia's Malaga airport starting June 4.


Also increasing air accessibility, Iberia Airlines of Spain has added Washington DC and Boston to its Miami, Chicago and New York gateways, all with nonstop flights to Madrid and convenient connections to Andalusian cities.


Malaga's Pablo Ruiz Picasso Airport (named for its native son) is a welcoming hub for inbound passengers to this Mediterranean city on the Costa del Sol, ideal for touring Andalucia's eight provinces and their respective capitals -- Almeria, Cadiz, Cordoba, Granada, Huelva, Jaen, Malaga, and Sevilla -- by car, bus, train, and even bicycle.


Another transportation milestone for Andalucia is the new high-speed AVE (Alta Velocidad Espanola) passenger train between Madrid and Malaga inaugurated December 23, 2007 with up to 13 scheduled departures throughout the day in each direction. The scenic 513-kilometer/319-mile trip takes just 2-1/4 hours with velocity up to 350 kph/215 mph. (Take a morning swim in the Mediterranean, then a luxury train ride to Madrid for lunch and a visit to the Prado Museum, returning to Malaga in time for tapas and dinner.)


This Madrid-Malaga route complements Spain's first AVE bullet-train service between Madrid and Seville (a 2-1/2-hour trip) inaugurated with extraordinary success in 1992 for Seville's Universal Exposition.


The New York Festival includes, among many performances on different stages, the enrapturing Ballet Flamenco Eva Yerbabuena which debuts a new show on February 16 and 17 at the New York City Center Theater. The Flamenco Festival tours North America with February performances in Washington, Miami, Los Angeles, Boston and Montreal, then on to London in March at Sadler's Wells.