cordoba or Granada?

Granada is the best! the Alhambra is beyond words in interest and beauty. You can and must get tickets online to secure your visit for a certain time. Also in the cathedral are the tombs of Ferdinand and Isabel. There is also the statue of them with Columbus. We took the train from Madrid to Granada and the bus from the station following Rick's directions to our hotel near the cathedral. They have great bus service around town. We had a sunset drink at a place opposite the Alhambra, it is a fond memory! Cordoba was interesting, the cathedral was a mosque, but it gave me the creeps, maybe because it was the headquarters of the Spanish Inquisition! Granada and Alhambra, si!

I like Cordoba, but the Alhambra is not just a Moorish castle. To quote from my souvenir guide book, it's "one of the most important architectural structures of the Middle Ages and the finest example of Islamic art left to us in the western world." 'Therefore, if you can only do one of the cities, I'd have to recommend Granada. However, I found the rest of Granada only mildly interesting. If you have 3 or 4 days, you could spend 1 or 2 in Cordoba.

Thank you both! I guess my dilema is if Codorba is worth a night. I will be taking a bus to seville from Algarve and at that point was going to take a train to Granada and spend 3 nights there before heading back to Madrid for flight home. I guess I could go to cordoba first and then spend only 2 nights in Granada? Too much travelling? Thanks

You can see the important sights in Cordoba easily in half a day. There's no need to spend the night there if your time is tight. Granada needs 2 nights and a full day at an absolute minimum. Cordoba is well connected by high speed rail, it's on the line between Sevilla and Madrid. Granada is well connected by rail to Sevilla, but IIRC is not easily connected by train to Madrid (but the bus does work).

If you can at least squeeze in a half day or so, Cordoba and the Mezquita is amazing. The city is also very charming and great for wandering and strolling. And while I recommend at least one night, it can certainly be covered as a daytrip. Granada's Alhambra is a must. It could be described as the Moorish version of Versailles. It certainaly takes a half day or more to properly tour. As noted, reserve in advance. Granada requires a two night stay but personally I got bored with a third night. The city is nice, but lacks the charm of Sevilla or even Cordoba. But there will be those that strongly disagree.

I don't think you should skip Cordoba, since you seem to have enough time. The mosque Sara refers to is the Mezquita, a fabulous, enormous building begun in the mid-eighth century. If you go, I recommend getting the audio tour so you know what you are seeing. Cordoba also has a small synagogue, and a city museum which outlines the unique culture created during the period of the "convivencia," a time when Jews, Muslims, and Christians lived together, more or less peacefully. The historic center is fun to amble through, as many of the houses have beautiful patio gardens, which can be seen from the sidewalks.
I can't remember for sure, but I think we were able to get an inexpensive flight from Granada to Madrid. Might be worth looking into.

Thank you all for your responses. I am wondering now if I should go SEVILLE to Cordoba for a night, then Granada for 2 nights... Or go straight from SEVILLE to Granada, spend 2 nights, then go to Cordoba for a night? We ultimately need to get to MAD.

The sequence actually works best if you begin this string of cities in Granada. Spend 2 nights and a day there. Then you can easily train to Sevilla. Spend how ever many days there you want (tastes vary, I thought 2-3 was plenty), then grab the train to madrid, but stop in Cordoba for half a day, then continue on to Madrid. This sequence works great if you can get to Granada.

We spent two nights in Granada, then several in Sevilla and stopped in Cordoba for half a day on the trip back to Madrid. Timing worked well for us.

I will be coming from Algarve, Port. So I can't start in Granada. Maybe I should stop there on the way to Granada?

Granada is the better of the two. We particularly liked the Alhambra and Sambra dance performances in a cave in Sacramonte. The Mezquita, and surrounding area, in Cordoba is nice but not worth much more than a day.

Maybe try Cordoba as a day trip from Sevilla and then head back via Granada?

Thanks, I really appreciate the response. It is really hard not to stop in Cordoba, but I think three nights in Granada will be a great trip.

The Mezquita in Cordoba is a unique and amazing building, truly a "must see." I went on a day trip from Seville, very easy, 45 min. on the AVE high speed train. I took a bus from Granada to Madrid, a relatively easy trip of 6 hours, but you can probably find a cheap flight if you want to get there faster.