19 full days in spain

Spain has some very fast trains serving, among other routes, the Barcelona-Madrid-Cordoba-Seville line. Toledo is well-connected to Madrid. Granada has service to Cordoba, but it's infrequent enough that many visitors use one of the very comfortable buses to and/or from Granada.

Folks wanting to see Ronda and perhaps one or more of the white villages frequently rent a car to get from Seville to Granada or vice versa. If no interest in those smaller places, I'd opt for a bus if the rail scheduie didn't suit me. Spanish buses tend to be very nice.

The drive through the Pyrennes does call for a car. I've never rented a car in Europe, so I've seen little of that area. Obviously, weather could be an issue there, given the timing of your trip. Even down at sea level, the entire northern coast of Spain is known for cool, cloudy weather. You can't count on beach weather in San Sebastian even in July.

I think nineteen days is going to be tight for all the places you've mentioned, even with no time in Madrid. Still, I liked Bilbao more than very tourisry San Sebastian, so I hope you'll consider at least a day trip to Bilbao if the Basque Country remains part of your itinerary. The historic center is very atmospheric. Public buses connect the two cities frequently. The train route is very dcenic but also extremely slow.

Pamplona really doesn't have a lot to see (if you're not there for the running of the bulls), but it gets rather a lot of tourists for such a comparativey minor destination.

If digging into the details of what to see and do at each destination ultimately convinces you that some cuts are necessary, I'll point out that the northern coast and the Pyrennes make great destinations in the summer, when most of Spain is perishingly hot.

I suggest flying into Barcelona, then fly south to Malaga, to take in Rhonda and Granada. Next train to Seville, then Cordoba and Toledo (can do a day trip from Mardid). Also, Segovia and Avila on day trip from Madrid. Next train to Basque country, San Sebastian, Pamplona and Bilbao.

By train you’ll need to go through Madrid to get to and from Toledo and if you go to Córdoba then you may as well visit Sevilla since they are close to each other.

As acraven stated, a car would be best for travel through the Pyrenees. There are fewer roads so picking a route shouldn’t be too terrible. It depends on what you want to see while passing through. If you want off the beaten path experiences you won’t find them going to the popular destinations. For those you really need a car and visit smaller cities, towns, villages, and hamlets that few tourists visit..

The places you’ve selected to visit are all over the country so take travel time, whether it is driving or waiting at airports or train stations, and actual travel time, into consideration. You may decide to trim your itinerary. Many sites take longer to see than you might initially think, so factor that into your plans.

I always have a rental car so can’t speak to public transportation. Having visited the major destinations we gravitate to the small cities and villages as well as visiting smaller geographic areas on each trip.

As a Basque local, backing all the information provided by @acraven, regarding the northern coast. Bilbao should be a must in your trip. Donostia -San Sebastián is quite touristy but not a beach resort as in the Mediterranean, weather here tends to be rainy and cloudy. And much cooler, generally, than in central or southern Spain.

Also, a "cathedral" is a church where a Bishop "seats", his "headquarters", not to be mistaken with a basilica or a church.

This information is all very valuable. I think we will not go to San Sebastian. Or Pampalona. Will add Bilbao. Leaning to renting a car for the entire trip as it will also allow us some flexibility to change directions based on weather?

Why go to Bilbao an skip San Sebastián where the tapas scene is to die for?

The pintxos (not to be mistaken with "tapas", it´s a different concept) scene in Bilbao and practically in any town in the Basque Country is very similar to that of Donostia-San Sebastian...and cheaper! And less touristy, too.

Don't decide on the mode of transportation until you have a decent idea of your itinerary. As I posted earlier, the trains are much faster than a car for some travel legs in Spain. Here are some approximate travel times:

Madrid-Toledo
Car - from 0:54
Train - 0:34

Madrid-Cordoba
Car - about 4:00
Train - from 1:47

Cordoba-Seville
Car - from 1:32
Train - from 0:52

Cars are a problem in major cities, where parking is likely to be limited and costly.

All very helpful. Will hold on mode of in country transportation at this time. Any thoughts on where to go in Pyrenees in late April? I am hoping snow would be gone at lower elevations? Also, went to Ronda years ago for business and took a day and drove up to the white towns and it was beautiful. Could we skip Ronda and still do that? Ronda was nice but very overloaded with tourists. Putting the entire itinerary aside for a second are there any thoughts on any out-of-the-way places that would be fantastic to visit on our journey?

any thoughts on any out-of-the-way places that would be fantastic to visit on our journey

Yes, but you’d need a car. For suggestions, the route you intend to take would be helpful as would what you’d like to see, e.g., civil war ruins, nature/walks, architecture and really old buildings, etc.

We like to include a few castles and monasteries into our trips as well as an outdoors activity. Many places that come to mind are in the La Rioja and Aragón provinces.

For example, in the general Pamplona area and further east are Alto de Perdón, Church of Saint Mary of Eunate, Olite, Estella, Artajona, Foz de Lumbier, Los Bañales, Castillo de Javier, Loarre Castle, Monasterio Nuevo de San Juan de la Peña, and the list goes on and on. If you wanted to spend a night in a castle, there are the Paradors at Alarcón and Olite.

I know there have been a few posts in the past about rural Catalunya. I don't know how much help the Search function will provide; suggestions about out-of-the-way spots may be swamped by Barcelona commentary. Here's my effort, searching for Spain and Pyrenees: [https://search.ricksteves.com/?button=&date_range=2y&filter=Travel+Forum&query=Spain+pyrenees[1]

A few years ago I jumped through a lot of public-transportation hoops to visit Albarracin, an atmospheric, hard-to-access spot near the interesting but ignored-by-foreigners provincial capital of Teruel. This is in Aragon, basically between Madrid and Valencia, not the Pyrenees. If you had a car in that area, you could also efficiently see picturesque Cuenca. Cuenca itself is on the high-speed rail line between Madrid and Valencia, but the AVE station is well outside Cuenca, so you need a bus or taxi to get into town.

I should mention that I know nothing about spring weather in that part of Spain.

In 2019 I found April a fabulous time of year to visit Andalucia, weather-wise. The transit-accessible places I enjoyed that aren't on the standard US itinerary included Ubeda, Baeza, Carmona (from Seville), Priego de Cordoba (from Granada) and Vejer de la Frontera (from Cadiz, I think). Those destinations were all by bus; the train station serving the area around Ubeda and Baeza isn't conveniently located.

If you wish to go from the Spanish Basque region to Barcelona, consider going through southern France. Spend a couple of days in the Bordeaux region, then a day or two at Carcassone, France, then back to Spain, visit Girona end in Barcelona.

Thank you all so much for your comments. I have more homework to do.

Hi there! Your 19-day itinerary spans a wonderful selection of Spain’s highlights—it looks like a dream trip. With that much time, you're in a great position to explore deeply without rushing. A few thoughts from experienced travelers that might help fine-tune your route:
https://ispyspain.com/

The post above (I Spy Spain) is a travel agency in Canada selling tours.