An Efficient Itinerary: Barcelona 1st or Last?

Your plan makes perfect sense, and I would head to Madrid first and return to Barcelona--though I would consider a stop in Zaragoza in between if you decide you want one more stop.
I would make your list of day trip preferences for each and then choose the allotment of days. I am more familiar with the Madrid day trips but I am sure there are several from Barcelona and I always say tailor to your specific interests, have a great trip!

Thank you Valadelphia. I'm curious, what's the best way to get from the cruise port to the train station where the high speeds get you to Madrid? Taxi? How much time should I allot to make that trip and get to my platform with waiting time to spare?

I don't know that offhand but I am sure it's just an easy transport hop--you can find any tiny detail on google these days

I assume you dock in Moll Adossat, right? We have several ports in Barcelona, two of them receiving cruises.

The best way?... a taxi, from this cruise port to that station you mention (Estació de Sants), with a price of merely 12-15€ (approx, traffic permitting of course). It's under 4 miles away. You take a taxi at the taxi ranks outside the terminals; no need to pre-book

Reflection:

I totally understand the urge to see as much as possible, especially for travelers from large countries where going abroad can feel like a major journey. Also, everyone has their own travel style and pace—some prefer the "arrive, see, next!" approach, while others enjoy slow travel, taking the time to truly soak in the experience.

That said, and this is just my personal take, many places in Europe—Barcelona included—are packed with history, culture, and things to see and do to keep you busy for weeks without having to fly or take long-distance rides.

Take my home city, Barcelona, for example. Not only could you spend weeks exploring without ever repeating an activity, but the surrounding areas are also full of charming villages, each with its traditions, customs, and sights, all just a short trip away, even if you don't rent a car. There's no need to waste hours in airport lounges or on long-distance trains—everything is right at your fingertips.

On top of that, we’re lucky to live in a corner of the world blessed with an incredibly diverse and breathtaking landscape, all within a short distance from the city. In under two or three hours in most cases, you can go from Barcelona to the towering Pyrenees mountains in the north, with peaks over 10,000 feet, to the golden beaches of the Costa Dorada in the south. Head northeast, and you'll find the stunning cliffs and postcard-perfect villages of the Costa Brava, or travel west to Lleida's vast, colorful plains. And all of this is sprinkled with nearly a thousand small towns -actually, 947 to be exact :)-, each with its own charm, medieval churches, castles, and fortresses.

So, if you love slow travel and savoring every little detail, pick a destination and take the time to explore the region around it—you might be surprised by what you find!

The proof is in the pudding: https://www.catalunya.com/en

I say depart for Madrid ASAP (and don't miss a day trip to Toledo). then return to Barcelona.

Thank you Enric. Docking at Moll, World Trade Center, South Terminal.

Thanks geovagrifith. I appreciate the opinion and suggestion!

Madrid has a large number of really great side-trip possibilities. One of them, Cuenca, is an expensive day trip if you buy the ticket at the last minute. It can be affordable if you are able to score a low-cost ticket well ahead of time. Therefore, I'd recommend doing a bit of research on Cuenca to see whether it's a place you'd want to go. If the answer is "Yes", check to see whether a low-priced ticket is available for one of the days you'll be in Madrid. (This is assuming you care about costs.) Early purchase can save you a bit on a ticket to Segovia as well. Toledo ticket prices are fixed, but that's a popular trip and trains do sometimes sell out, so keep an eye on ticket availability to Toledo as your trip approaches.

One of the most popular side trips from Barcelona is Girona. That's another ticket for which prices will be lower if you buy well ahead of time. Incidentally, the Flower Festival in Girona runs from May 10 to May 18 this year. I enjoyed that a few years ago, but I don't think it's necessary to split your time in Barcelona in order to make it happen unless you're particularly interested in flowers.

If you want to see the Dali Theatre-Museum in Figureres, it's really worth considering at least one night in Girona in order to see that city and Figueres without making two separate day trips from Barcelona.

Thank you acraven.

Perhaps it makes sense to purchase a train pass if I plan to buy a half dozen or more tickets? I'll have to check that out. And my plans may have changed, freeing up more time to be in and traveling around Spain. Or, I know so many couple Portugal with Spain, yet I have this pull towards visiting the south of France instead.

We'll see where the cards land!

Rail passes often don't save money, especially if the traveler can plan ahead, as you are doing. However, you're correct that you need to look at your own plans and crunch some numbers. Be sure you understand the details of any pass before buying it. I think there's one that requires you to wait until you get to Spain before acquiring tickets. At least a couple of folks have reported here that it was a problem for them.

if you want to travel all the way down to Andalucia, be aware that it is usually getting hot down there in early May, so it would proabl be best to head straight south (Seville, Cordoba, Granada, etc.) and then move northward.

Looking at a map, it is tempting to combine Spain and Portugal on a single trip. Looking at rail schedules (which barely exist) will suggest the reverse. Ground transportation options between those to countries are limited. Many people who commit to that combination of countries (via purchase of airline tickets) before looking at transportation end up flying between them.

That's not to say it's impossible to make connection on the ground. There are buses from Seville to Faro on the Algarve, and I think also buses to Lisbon. But that would be a lot of time on buses. You can fairly readily cross the border from Galicia in NW Spain to northern Portugal (as you might if you wanted to head to Porto), but that assumes you're already visiting the area around Santiago de Compostela--very attractive, but not a typical destination on a first visit to Spain.

One would assume existence of some decent Madrid-Lisbon trains, but one would be mistaken. The quickest rail trip takes 16 hours, involves three transfers, and takes a highly circuitous route through the aforementioned Galicia and Porto. One can only clutch one's head and moan. There are surely faster connections by bus.

That’s amazing. Yes I would’ve thought differently. Of course, flying is always an option if I really want to do Portugal. Although I could be anywhere in Europe in an hour to two hours flying, I’ll have to consider my options and I greatly appreciate the insight. It’s opened my mind to many possibilities. Thank you so much!

I've remembered (vaguely) that someone reported here on a way to get between the two capitals by cobbling together one leg on Spanish trains and one leg on Portuguese trains, possibly with a bus or taxi connection across the border. I don't remember the details. Neither TheTrainline nor Renfe produces such an option, so I looked at Rome2Rio. I do not trust Rome2Rio, which is often wildly inaccurate, but there's no harm in looking at it as long as you verify everything you see there (travel times, frequencies, fares). In this case, it may have been useful:

https://www.rome2rio.com/map/Madrid/Lisbon#r/Train

I really wouldn't venture into Portugal on this trip, though. There is so very much to see in Spain. I'd say the same thing if you were arriving in Lisbon or Porto and departing from there 2 weeks later--I'd say there's plenty to occupy your time just in Portugal.