Spain, quietly considered.

Madrid and Barcelona hold the country's most serious string ateliers and the small number of piano showrooms that carry the top European brands. Beyond the capital, there is a strong contemporary lutherie tradition in Catalonia and Andalucia. See Where to buy a cello in Spain.

The Madrid art scene is small, personal and undervalued relative to Paris, London or New York. That is often to the buyer's advantage. See Private art advisor in Madrid and How to buy art for a villa in Spain.

Spanish decorative arts — colonial furniture, Talavera and Manises ceramics, Toledo damascene, ecclesiastical silver — remain quietly underpriced relative to their French and Italian equivalents. See A collector's guide to Spanish antiques.

• Central Madrid — Barrio de Salamanca, Chamberí, Justicia.
• Andalucian countryside — the sierras above Ronda, the Alpujarras, the campiña around Sevilla.
• Coastal — restrained corners of the Costa de la Luz and Menorca rather than obvious postcodes.