Andalucia Spain vs. Prague in 8 day trip in April?

I've been to all the places that you mentioned - Sevilla / Granada (also Cordoba), Spain, Prague and Budapest. I agree that eight days in Prague would be too long. Budapest is a logical other city. They have a number of similarities, but also (obviously) cultural differences and different activities in the two cities. Or you could spend time in the rural Czech Republic, visiting the large number of castles in the countryside. Whether to choose Spain or central Europe, in the end, depends on your likes and interests. Between the two, I would probably pick Spain. We loved the food and dining traditions (tapas!), and Sevilla is a gorgeous city with a variety of things to see and do. Granada has the Alhambra, which is very different from anything you'll see in the rest of Europe; I would have the same comment re sites in Cordoba, in terms of the remains of Moorish Spain. If you like "church art," there's a lot of that there, too. Pragus is also gorgeous, in a fairy-tale way. A number of things to see and do there, too. The food was not in the top 10 things we liked about anywhere in Central Europe, so that's a factor if you're into what you eat on vacation. Budapest is bigger and more cosmopolitan than Prague, not as cute, but has some very nice areas. And then there are the weather considerations, as has already been pointed out. You will love either itinerary!

I did a slightly longer trip, flew to Budapest (net 4.5 days), then trained to Vienna (net 2.5 days), then trained to Prague (net 4 days, one of which was a day trip to Terezin). I loved Vienna, thought there was much more to see in Budapest than the other cities. If you only have 8-9 days, you could see two of the three. If you choose Budapest and Prague, look into flights. The train is about 8 hours between the two. I'm now planning a trip to Andalusia in February. I think you could easily spend 8-9 days there, adding Cordoba and/or Cadiz. Weather will almost surely be better in Spain. April in Prague. . . well, Prague is farther north than any US state except Alaska.

Both are wonderful destinations, so you can't go wrong with either. Ultimately it is about deciding which one captures your imagination and passion more. I will add that 8 days in Prague is a little long. I'd guess most people spend up to 3 days typically. There are a couple of daytrips you can take, but you might find yourself bored with 8 days. A couple of options are to add Vienna and/or Salzburg or Munich. All are within a day's train ride or short flight. Vienna would be a good 4-5 day trip. Munich is worth of about 3 days. The weather is likely to be better in Andalusia in April.

In April, going south will most likely get you better weather. Even thought April is high season in Spain, prices are very reasonable (but can vary widely based on your preferences). We tend toward budget eating and lodging and found plenty of good choices. Half of our hostals were under 50 euro pernight, another third were under 65. If you like more upscale, there are plenty of really nice hotels/Paradores and restaurants.

If you decide for Prague and have 8 days then that can be long as Douglas says. It depends on your personality. Rick Steves used to have 7 days stay in Prague. If 8 days seem to be too long, you can do easy day trips from Prague. I would suggest Castles Karlstejn, Krivoklat, Konopiste. You can visit medieval town Kutna Hora. Or Terezin. Or the most picturesque town in the Czech Republic Cesky Krumlov. For C.K. I would recommend overnight stay. All these sights are in the Rick Steves book Prague and the Czech republic.

Would a trip split between Prague and Budapest be reasonable? Or maybe 5 days in Prague and 3 days in Budapest or vice versa? Or would one week not be enough time for both Prague and Budapest?

Adding Budapest would certainly work, with similar logistics to those I mentioned with adding Vienna. Budapest is often ranked as one of the more underrated cities in Europe. I haven't been there in many years, but I'd guess it's worth at least 3 days. So if you split Prague and Budapest and have a couple daytrips, you'd easily fill 8 days. I would look to fly open jaw - into one city and out of the other.

If your dates overlap 16 to 21 April you could see the Sevilla Feria (April Fair) which is a pretty amazing party, well worth including in a trip. We were there in 2011 and loved it. Yes, the lodging prices are higher, but if you look around you can find something. Two nights and a full day are sufficient to get a good feel for both the city and the party, although of course you won't see everything. If you are not there for Feria, make it 3 nights since the lodging will not be so expensive. We spent 3 nights in Granada on that trip and that was about right, although we could have stayed longer. Loved the Alhambra and the city in general. Add a night or two in Cordoba and you'll have a great trip.

They are both wonderful locations as already noted and I have been to them all. I love Budapest and Prague so I would pair those two, or the Czech countryside, but April could be a bit chilly. I have only been to the south of Spain once but it was amazing. At that time of year I would probably choose Spain, simply because the weather is more likely to be nice.

8 days is too long for Prague but maybe not for Prague and the Czech Republic. So you might consider that. One thing to consider is that Central Europe is still has strong ties back to a previous time. In effect the cold war froze them in time in many ways; and yes, not at all in other ways. My point is that makes Central Europe a see-it-before-it-changes sort of place. Of the three Prague is probably the most heavily hit by tourists and the most favored by those who like to party. Because of the close quarters in the zones that most people are interested in it can look a little like main street in Disney Land. But in April that should be less of a problem. Vienna was in the western zone during the cold war so it will be the most familiar feel. Visiting Vienna is never a mistake but if you only have time for two (and it appears to be the case) I would prefer Prague and Budapest. Budapest is probably the most backward of the three and that's what makes it so attractive to a lot of people. Of the three Vienna and Prague can be somewhat expensive while Budapest is the least expensive. If you liked Paris; they once called Paris the Budapest of the West (or was it the other way around?). In Paris you can see the tower designed by Eiffel, while in Budapest you can see the train station designed by Eiffel. In Paris you have the Champs-Élysées which was modeled after Andrassy ut in Budapest (again, was it the other way around?)

If my best friend had 8 days I would recommend one of two trips. Either evenly divided between Prague and Budapest or evenly divided between Transylvania and Budapest. Either way I would choose Budapest to be the last destination as it's a wonderful place to unwind at the end of a trip. By the way, if you just have to see Vienna, it can be a decent day trip out of Budapest; but I know better ones. Go to the "To the East" forum as Budapest is in the current discussions. Since the three towns are so often considered together i gathered up some impressions of the differences and put posted it here: http://budapestflat.shutterfly.com/fivedaysinbudapest Look for a pdf file called "Prague, Vienna or Budapest??????"
and there is some other info, picture, etc on the site. poke around.

We are just heading back from a family trip to southern Spain. While I can't help you with the Prague question I can give you a thought about southern Spain: stay in the middle of the Grazalema National Park and go hiking for two days. Grazalema itself would make a good base for hiking - its not too small and has a lovely central area. We spent a day driving the loop from Ronda to Grazalema, Arcos, and Zahara. Next time we will spend a few nights in Grazalema itself and use it as a base for hiking the park. The TI there is staffed buy an English speaking guy who knows a lot about the trails. There is a published tourist / hiking map for the area that you can surely get on the web. There seem to be many five hour hikes that connect with bus service to get you back to Grazalema or to one of the other towns where you could get a bus to Ronda. The drive through the park was a lot of fun, but I wish that instead of being behind the wheel of a Mercedes Vito van I had been walking through the mountains and pastures. Here are some pictures from the area: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jcgannon/sets/72157632428341763/ Send me a personal message if you would like more details. If you end up in Barcelona then plan for a day at Montserrat and go hiking there. The chapels and religious sites are gorgeous. You could spend a quick two hours looking them over and then grab a detailed trail map and spend a day hiking the area. The trail network looks extensive.

>"Adding Budapest would certainly work, with similar logistics to those I mentioned with adding Vienna. Budapest is often ranked as one of the more underrated cities in Europe." Strangely on this forum Vienna is much more underrated than Budapest. Which always puzzles me, since Vienna offers so much more than Budapest. The city was the capital of a huge empire after all, while Budapest was quite irelevant for a very long time. Someone for instance once said on this forum that the cuisine of Budapest is better, which sounds very odd to me, since Vienna was the culinary melting pot of the Habsburg Empire. No other German-speaking city has a more diverse and influential cuisine than Vienna. I would never spend more time in Budapest than in Vienna, and if I had to choose it would be Vienna.... although I like Budapest too.

I've semi-recently been to both, and fell in love with them. I think 8 days would be a bit long for just Prague, and the weather that time of year could be a bit dreary. But Prague and Budapest could be a dynamite combination - When I went to Prague, It was like a fairytale! And it wasn't as expensive as a lot of Europe. However, I think based on your original question, I would recommend southern Spain. The only downside would be if you went during Holy Week (the week leading up to Easter - Called Semana Santa in Spanish) it would be insane and extremely expensive.
But southern Spain is fabulous, with lovely weather and beautiful Moorish architecture, fabulous food, just enough (okay, maybe too much) tourist kitcsh, and some stunning scenery. We spent two weeks in Madrid and Southern Spain including Seville, Granada and Cordoba. I would say to do the three latter cities for a truly remarkable trip. Don't drive - the train was super easy. Happy travels!

first i would go back and do florence and siena for a week or so. florence my favorite city. i would do prague and budapest. just got back from 2 weeks in spain after 2 weeks last year. the south of spain is great. but i think it is thin compared to prague and budapest. i spent 3 weeks in february of 2008 going from amsterdam to budapest. all in the snow. my favorite day a cold snow in the jewish quarter of prague. crying in the synagogue and the graveyard behind covered in white snow. the names of all of those lost and the multimedia displays of the horror. i maybe never cried as much since my mother died at 46. but awesome. getting $5 pork and potato meals in budapest are still cool. hot springs? well lets stop. you cannot miss either way. have fun, be safe.