Hello! I am coming to Spain for a birthday party in Ibiza. We will be there for four nights. (any must do's or tips for this would be great as well :) ! ) After Ibiza, we are flying straight to Seville. We plan on taking a train from Seville to Madrid, which is where we will fly out. This gives us around 4.5 days on the mainland. I am looking for help with an as inclusive Spain itinerary as possible for only being in Spain for a short time. Our thoughts so far from the research we have done are a day and a half in Seville, potential for a day in Granada or a day trip to Ronda, then a day or two in Madrid. If there are any other must do's along the way/in that area, or little towns or villages we should see other than these places, please let us know. Thank you so much in advanced! Any information would be helpful.
Posted by
Colorado Mountains, USA
7942 posts
Just checking- are you planning on visiting one or more of the outstanding art museums in Madrid? A Day Trip to Segovia from Madrid is very worthwhile, but may not be a possibility with just 2 days or less overall in that part of Spain. And you’re taking a train between Seville and Madrid—would you be renting a car to go to Ronda or Granada, or hiring a tour with a driver, or looking at trains there, too?
Posted by
OP
USA
3 posts
Thank you for your reply!! We will most likely be seeing at least one museum in Madrid. If it is suggested we do one day in Madrid and one day in Segovia that is definitely something we can consider! We are still up in the air regarding a tour or renting a car for Ronda or Granada. We are leaning towards renting a car.
Posted by
Washington DC
28090 posts
When is this trip? There are potential weather concerns, plus the fact that the Alhambra tickets often sell out 60 to 90 days in advance,
Although I like Ronda (was just there for the third time), to me it can't compete with Seville, Granada, Cordoba, Toledo, Segovia or Madrid. And with 4.5 days on the mainland you have far too little time just for Seville (needs minimum of 3 nights for me), Granada (needs 2 nights for me) and Madrid (1 night is really nothing in a city of its size). You may not be adequately accounting for the travel time between your destinations.
I'd definitely stick to no more than two destinations with just 4.5 days. If you're flying home from Madrid, it needs to be one of the two destinations. You could even spend all your nights in Madrid and take day-trips from there.
Ibiza is reportedly the party capital of Europe if not the world. If you anticipate participating in the all-night party scene, consider that you might not exactly be raring to go when you hit mainland Spain.
Posted by
Colorado Mountains, USA
7942 posts
The Alhambra in Granada is truly one of the most fantastic places on the planet. Ronda’s great, and is one of Rick Steves’ European “backdoors,” but if it’s between Ronda or Granada with limited time, I’d say Granada, no contest.
Segovia’s amazing old Roman aqueduct, the Alcazar palace where Princess Isabella grew up before becoming queen and setting up Columbus with his 3-ship expedition, and offering a smaller-city contrast to Seville, Granada, and Madrid would be great if you could fit in a visit for most of one day.
Madrid’s Prado Museum is huge, and rivals Paris’ Louvre and Orsay as having the best collection of masterful paintings at any single museum. The Reina Sophia has Picasso’s Guernica, arguably the most significant painting in the world. But the surprising Thyssen-Bornemisza museum has outstanding art, is more compact than the Prado, and might be the museum to squeeze into a quickie visit in Madrid.
Posted by
OP
USA
3 posts
Thank you all! I am going to print this thread and really take the recommendations to heart. Appreciate your time!
Posted by
Sevilla
1305 posts
With 4.5 days you're in danger of the ratio of your "travelling time" becoming very high compared to your "seeing time". Since you arrive in Sevilla and depart from Madrid, I'd stick to just those two cities and take no day-trips. Sure, you'll miss the Alhambra or Toledo, but both Sevilla & Madrid have more than enough variety to occupy two or so days each (Sevilla is Spain's best city, so you could spend all that time and more just there). I know it's tempting to add places in case you never return, but I think less is more in this case. Ronda, for example, is very pleasant - but very touristy during the day - however there is nothing there that would be worth taking a day from Sevilla or Madrid given the short time you have.
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA
360 posts
These types of posts always show how subjective travel choices can be and where to prioritize your time. We were just there a few weeks ago, and our favorite places were Ronda (or the surrounding area in the hill towns) and Granada. But I would say the former for us was more about the scenery and getting away from crowds, which is a far different priority than if you're looking for a city with more activity (like Seville). Interestingly, our cab driver told us that Granada is a big place for bachelor/bachelorette parties in Spain, which I'm guessing may be due to it being a college town with a younger vibe/night life (though we wouldn't know the latter part!). For us, the Alhambra was more interesting than our Seville experience (and also loved the Mezquita in Cordoba).