Arcos, Granada, Ronda, Segovia, El Escorial

Hi Rajesh,

I've been living in Seville for the last 10 years. Granada and Ronda are definitely worth spending one night. Arcos de la frontera is about 1 hour and 15 minutes from Seville by car or 2 hours by bus (bus 714) and is a small town so you may consider the possibility to do it in a day trip.

El escorial and Segovia are interesting places, if it's worth visiting it really depends on the time you have. Once again here, you may want to consider a day trip. Segovia and el escorial are about 30 minutes from Madrid by train. Oh, if you go to Segovia dont' miss the suckling pig.

I hope that helps.
Baptiste

Granada and Sevilla are definitely MUST DOS.
Ronda (as a stop between the 2 above) and Segovia (from Madrid) are worth making the effort for if you can.
El Escorial (from Madrid) and Arcos (from Sevilla) would be only if you had the luxury of time.

We spent two nights in Granada and Ronda each -- two nights was perfect for Ronda and one would have been okay. But two nights was not enough for Granada. You can see some of our snapshots here:
https://janettravels.wordpress.com/category/spain/
On the full day in Ronda we hiked down into the gorge and explored the old town; in Granada we used the full day for the Alhambra; we would have liked a day for the heart of the town. We enjoyed the Albaicin but would have liked to see more.

WE found a week in Seville too long; 5 nights would have been great and we would have added a visit to Toledo from Madrid.

All will take a long time to get to and back from Seville. I'd rent a car on the way out of Seville, stop in Arcos for a few hours, then stay the night in Ronda, spend the next day there, then drive to Granada in the evening or spend another night in Ronda go to Granada in the morning. It's about 2.5 hours by car. I would only go to Granada if you can stay at least 2 nights, to have one full day there, minimum.

El Escorial and Segovia - day trip from Madrid. "Worth it" is a personal decision, depends on your interests, priorities, and overall itinerary.

Rajesh,
I would not recommend visiting Ronda or Granada as day trips from Sevilla because it takes 2.5 - 3 hours each way.
Chain has given you good advise!

Granada definitely deserves more than one day to at least experience it's highlights.
Make sure to book your tickets to the Alhambra way in advance.

If you don't want to rent a car, you can travel via bus or train.

Have you considered visiting Córdoba or Jerez de la Frontera from Sevilla?
Both of these cities are closer & can easily be done as day trips from Sevilla (via train.)

You can check train schedules here:
http://www.renfe.com

You may also find this
website helpful to determine travel distances & transportation options:http://www.rome2rio.com

What is your trip itinerary?

Rajesh,
In my opinion, Toledo makes for a good day trip from Madrid. I'd recommend staying in Toledo for at least one night, to experience it's beauty without the hordes of tourist tour groups that arrive every late morning.

Enjoy your trip!

Hi Priscilla

I land in Seville and depart from Barcelona 14 days later.

I just checked bus schedule between Seville and Ronda. Going takes 1.25 hours and return takes 2.25 hours. So I think day trip to Ronda from Seville is bearable as the total trip time is 3.5 hours. Also I will get to spend 9 hours in Ronda which is good enough to see all the major sights. I will spend 4 nights in Seville. I plan on doing a day trip to Cordoba from Seville.

Then onto Granada where I will spend 2 nights. I just booked my Alhambra tickets. So I am glad to have that taken care of.

Then onto Madrid for 5 nights. I will do day trips to El Escorial, Segovia and Toledo from Madrid.

Then onto Barcelona where I will spend 3 nights.

I just checked hotel rates in Ronda for 13 May for 1 night at www.booking.com

I found only 3 hotels with rates of Euro 1000, 700 and 500!

Does anyone know what is happening in Ronda on 13 May?

Such a high rate rules out spending one night in Ronda.

Hi Rajesh, it's the weekend of Whitsunday. If you can manage to swap day's and go to Ronda on Thursday you will find better prices. I stayed in Ronda last year at Hotel Colon, its basic but very central and lovely owners. Marilyn

Spend the night in Ronda. You will get a chance to get a feel of the place without the horde of daytrippers that bus up from Malaga.
May 12, the Hotel Ronda is available for 70 Euros (currently $77 USD) .
This small hotel is across the bridge in the "old town" of Ronda.
You can't beat the location and Sole and her family are wonderful hosts.

The journey will flow in this order, with Cordoba and Ronda included as overnight stays ...
Seville - 3 nights
Cordoba - 1 night
Ronda - 1 night
Granada - 2 nights
Madrid - 4 nights (day trips to Toledo and Segovia)
Barcelona - 3 nights (get a morning train from Madrid)

Rajesh,

Did you decide to spend one night in Ronda?
If so, it makes sense to continue on to Granada from there.

You could also travel via this route( especially if you decide to overnight in Córdoba):

Sevilla >> Ronda >> Granada >> Córdoba >> Madrid >> Barcelona.

Adios,🌅

Priscilla

Hi Priscilla

I plan on doing day trips to Ronda and Cordoba from Seville. So it is Seville (4 N) - Granada (2N) - Madrid (5N) - Barcelona (3N)

I think 5 N is too much for Madrid. I suggest that you use one of those to overnight in either Toledo or Cordoba.
We spent the night in both during our November Spain trip to Madrid, through Andalusia, and Barcelona and are glad that we did. While interesting and fun to visit during the day, they transform at night when all the day trippers and large tour groups depart.
And if you can be in Cordoba when there is a performance at he Royal Stables you are blessed . Even if you are not into horses the small venue ( 150 seats) outdoor show , with the beautiful horses, lights, music and more will bring great joy. And you can see the riders and horses train up close for free most later afternoons just by walking into the grounds. We still talk about it and want to go back for more! In any case it sounds like you have a great trip ahead of you. Enjoy!

Hi Michael

5 N in Madrid because I plan on doing 3 day trips from Madrid. El Escorial with Valley of the Fallen, Segovia and Toledo.

I prefer to avoid packing and unpacking. So I avoid 1 N stay.

Seville to Ronda is 128km.
Ronda to Granada is 178km.
You are just wasting precious time by returning to Seville, and not pushing on to Granada.

Hi David

I arrive in Seville on 10 May. The only date I can stay in Ronda is 13 May but the hotel rates are super expensive for that date. Euro 1000, 700 and 500 for 1 night stay. So I can't stay in Ronda for 1 night

In my experience spending just one night in a town is a bit of a waste of your valuable vacation time. Moving from one hotel or B&B to another takes time, not only from the actual travel time but also settling in your new room, packing, unpacking. I like to stay in fewer cities, and daytrip to other areas of interest.

I am planning to make 12 -14 day trip to Madrid, Segovia, Toledo, Cordova, Sevilla, Ronda, Granada in June. I will be renting a car, so will not be tied to time schedules. To date, I have not made hotel arrangements and need some recommendations. I have looked at hotels.com/Hotwire/RS recommendations, but am overwhelmed by number of options. Can anyone recommend clean, quiet, centrally located hotels @150 or less per night in noted cities?

Hi there

I do all my hotel bookings through www.booking.com

Seville-Hotel Amadeus
Ronda-Hotel Ronda
Granada-Hotel Palacio de Santa Ines
Cordoba-Hotel Viento10
Nerja-Casa Mercedes
All under $150. Most way under $150 and all in great locations.
Tip-There is free parking under the mall in Cordoba (look for McDonalds to identify the mall). Easy walk from there to Hotel Viento10 in the old Jewish Quarter.