General

Occupying the greater part of the Iberian Peninsula, Spain is the third-largest country in Europe, with an area of 504,782 sq km (194,897 sq mi).

Comparatively, the area occupied by Spain is slightly more than twice the size of the state of Oregon. This total includes the Balearic Islands (Islas Baleares) in the western Mediterranean Sea and the Canary Islands (Islas Canarias) in the Atlantic Ocean west of Morocco; both island groups are regarded as integral parts of metropolitan Spain.

The Spanish mainland extends 1,085 km (674 mi), east to west, and 950 km (590 mi), north to south. Bordered by the Bay of Biscay, France, and Andorra on the north, by the Mediterranean on the east and south, by Gibraltar and the Strait of Gibraltar on the south, by the Gulf of Cádiz on the southwest, and by Portugal and the Atlantic on the west, Spain has a total land boundary of 1,918 km (1,192 mi) and a coastline of 4,964 km (3,084 mi).

Spain also holds Ceuta, Melilla, and other "places of sovereignty" in the north of Morocco.

Spain has long claimed Gibraltar, a narrow peninsula on the south coast, which was taken by a British-Dutch fleet in 1704 and became a British colony under the Treaty of Utrecht (1713). Spain closed the border with Gibraltar in 1969. In 1980, agreement was reached with Britain to begin negotiations concerning Gibraltar's sovereignty; the border was opened to pedestrian traffic in December 1982 and fully reopened in February 1985. Talks between the United Kingdom and Spain were held in February and December 1985 and January 1987.

Spain's capital city, Madrid, is located in the centre of the country.

Continental Spain is divided into five general topographic regions:

(1) The northern coastal belt is a mountainous region with fertile valleys and large areas under pasture and covered with forests.
(2) The central plateau, or Meseta, with an average altitude of about 670 m (2,200 ft), comprises most of Castilla y León, Castilla-La Mancha and the city of Madrid.
(3) Andalucía, with Sevilla its largest city, covers the whole of southern and southwestern Spain and, except for the flat fertile plain of the Guadalquivir River, is a mountainous region with deep fertile valleys.
(4) The Levante is on the Mediterranean coastal belt, with Valencia its chief city.
(5) Catalonia (Cataluña) and the Ebro Valley comprise the northeastern region.

Spain has six principal mountain ranges – the Pyrenees, the Cordillera Cantábrica, the Montes de Toledo, the Sierra Morena, the Serranías Penibéticas, and the Sistema Ibérico. The principal peaks are Pico de Aneto (3,404 m/11,168 ft) in the Pyrenees and Mulhacén (3,478 m/11,411 ft) in the Penibéticas. The main rivers are the Tagus (Tajo), Duero, Guadiana, and Guadalquivir, which flow to the Atlantic, and the Ebro, which flows to the Mediterranean. The Duero and the Guadalquivir form broad valleys and alluvial plains and at their mouths deposit saline soils, creating deltas and salt marshes. The coastline has few natural harbours except the estuaries (rías) in the northwest, formed by glaciers, and those in the Levante and the south, created by sandbars during the Quaternary period.

The Canary Islands are a group of 13 volcanic islands, of which 6 are barren. They have a ruggedly mountainous terrain interspersed with some fertile valleys. Spain's highest mountain, Pico de Teide (3,718 m/12,198 ft), is on Tenerife. The Balearic Islands are a picturesque group with sharply indented coastlines; they combine steep mountains with rolling, fertile ranges.

The climate of Spain is extremely varied. The northern coastal regions are cool and humid, with an average annual temperature of 14°C (57°F); temperatures at Bilbao range from an average of 10°C (50°F) in