10 days in Spain. Where to go.

I would head to Seville next to get a real feel for Spanish culture. From there you could easily take the train to Cordoba for the day.
Barcelona’s roots are Catalan.

Spain is a big country so if you’re starting Barcelona then I’d stay in the North. If food is important then you might want to go to San Sebastian for the tapas, although that’s quite a long way. Or you could head down the coast to Valencia where Paella was created.

From Barcelona you can visit Girona, Tarragona and Sitges easily by train.

Spain is a big country and well if you like hiking, biking, walking and not moving around too much, then may I suggest visiting Barcelona and then exploring the surrounding Catalonia region?

With 10 days there is so much to see in Catalonia and mid-late May is a perfect time to visit. You can start in Barcelona for 4 nights, then head south to the Costa Dorada (Golden Coast), south of Barcelona. It's a land full of ancient olive trees, citrus groves, sandy beaches, lazy beach towns, time-warped castles, and Roman Ruins. Tarragona makes a perfect base to explore southern Catalonia.

Some of my favourite points of interests in Southern Catalonia:

Garraf - laid back beach community just south of Barcelona. Popular with locals and with good seafood restaurants. There is also here a beach house designed by none other than Antoni Gaudí!

Poblet Royal Monastery - a UNESCO World Heritage Site and still active 12th-century Cistercian monastery. It was a fortified medieval royal residence and contains the unique hanging tombs of the old Kings of Aragon.

Tarragona - ancient seaside town with very good Roman ruins, including an amphitheater, intact aqueduct, and Praetorium Tower, was once the capital of Roman Hispania (modern-day Spain). Tarragona's medieval old town is a delight to explore too.

Les Ferreres Aqueduct - Roman Aqueduct you can walk on top of, a few km hike from Tarragona.

Sitges - the quintessential posh beach town, 30 min south from Barcelona. Has multiple small sandy beaches. Sitges also has nice historic centre lined with boutique restaurants and shops.

Castillo de Miravet - A large riverside stronghold built by the Knights Templar with commanding views of the countryside. The adjacent medieval village spills down the cliff towards the rivers. A great place to bicycle, kayak, or take a leisurely boat down the Ebro river.

Then head to northern Catalonia, a land dotted with bucolic farmland and old stone medieval towns with the mighty Pyrenees in one side and the turquoise waters of the Costa Brava on the other side. Girona makes for a great base to explore Northern Catalonia.

Some of my favourite points of interests in Northern Catalonia:

Girona - An ancient city in northern Catatonia. Has an impressive Cathedral, towering medieval walls, narrow winding streets, and one of the best preserved Jewish Quarters in Europe. Some of the Game of Thrones T.V. series was shot here.

Besalú - Well preserved medieval town showcasing Romanesque and Gothic architecture. The centerpiece is the impressive medieval bridge.

Dalí Museum in Figueres - Extensive collection of Dalí's artwork, from paintings to sculpters and everything in between.

Empúries - which is the site of the ancient ruins of a Greek colony from the 6th–3rd century BC. It's quite unique as the ruins sit right on the Costa Brava overlooking the sea.

Vall de Núria - is a sacred valley in the high Pyrenees, there is a holy sanctuary and old 1930s hotel at the top, plus a small lake and plenty of hiking trails for all aptitudes. Very picturesque and popular with local Catalans.

Vic - they have a nice farmers' market day on the Placa Major. Vic is known for it's amazing Fuet sausages and the unique Vic Cathedral, a mix of Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque and Neoclassic styles. You can stop by Xarcuteria Solà S.c.p in the center of town to pick up some delicatessen supplies for sandwiches.

Barcelona (4 nights) + Tarragona (3 nights) + Girona (3 nights) = lots of fun!

If you want to keep your lodging count to a minimum, I would suggest staying in Cordoba. Then these are all reasonable day trips:

Seville - less than an hour train
Granada - 1.5 hr. train
Malaga - 1 hr. train

Update: wow, Carlos’ ideas sound wonderful! And then you could go to the places I mentioned on a subsequent trip.

Carlos’ ideas sound wonderful! And then you could go to the places I mentioned on a subsequent trip.

Thank you Jean! Yes Spain's regions are comparatively quite large, and pack a lot of sites and culture in them too. As you say, it's almost best to see each region on it's own. Catalonia is roughly the size of Switzerland, Castilla slightly larger than Ireland, and Andalucía the size of Portugal!

Good news: Rick Steves has personally answered your question! All you need to do is click, click, click, like so...

Starting right here, click Explore Europe at upper left...
On the Explore Europe page, in the "Countries" column, click Spain
On the "Spain" page, scroll down and click on "Plan" to expand that section
Under "Plan" click on "Spain: Recommended Itinerary > "

You're now on the "Spain Itinerary" page, which begins with Rick's suggested itinerary, based on how many days you have. That's his recommendation. You don't have to follow it exactly, but you can if you want, and even if you don't it's a good starting point you can further customize.

Many experienced travelers here would say that Rick's itineraries move a bit too fast (especially for inexperienced travelers who may not always be completely efficient), but that is intentional, since he (correctly) assumes that most Americans have very short vacations, and typically want to squeeze in as much as they can on our short trips (so his itineraries are fast-paced, trying to maximize your time). It's great if you can slow down a bit, you will probably enjoy your trip more. Definitely do not try to squeeze in more than he suggests in your allotted time. Many first-time travelers make the mistake of trying to hit too many places for too short a time (the most common mistake is failing to account for all the time you will spend getting from place to place and simply doing the basic daily life chores necessary for survival, leaving you with little time to actually see and enjoy the places you've come to).

Or, you could just follow the excellent advice above from Carlos (who knows his stuff). 😎

With only 10 days, stay in the Catalonia area and get a good feel for it. One could easily spend a month in that region and still not experience everything it has to offer. The same could be said for most of Spain’s regions.