Another 12-night trip to Southern Spain - like Tracy but a little different

I've not yet made a comprehensive visit to Andalucía, but I will just mention that I've been to Ronda twice (always via public transportation) and liked it very much. It's dramatically situated along a gorge. Ronda does not have a train link to Seville, and I think it's a bit far from Seville to be a daytrip, but it does have train service to Granada--though only three times a day.

For figuring out transportation between cities that don't have good train service, you can start with Rome2Rio.com. I find that the trip durations and fares can be imprecise (that's being polite), but if you keep drilling down you'll normally come to a link to the appropriate bus company's webpage, where--with luck--you'll be able to find a schedule. It may well be faster just to Google "bus Seville to Ronda", etc.

To see multiple smaller white towns, your best bet will be a bus tour, I think. I'm not sure what's available from which cities, though.

I wonder if we could take a train from Granada to Ronda, then a bus to Arcos, and the the train to Seville. Thanks for the Rio2Rome.com link. I'll take a look at that. I also have been reading and seeing nice things about Ronda.

After fiddling around with Rome2Rio.com, I believe you'd need to take a bus from Ronda to Arcos, then a fairly short bus ride from Arcos to Jerez (which I think may have some points of interest itself, but I've never been there). There is train service from Jerez back to Seville.

Buses serving small towns can be pretty infrequent, and it's critical to understand how the schedules vary on holidays and weekends. Sometimes there's no service at all on Sundays and holidays. I find it something of an adventure to set out on such a trip, but when you're on a fairly short vacation, it can be stressful.

Although you can usually find 100% reliable train schedules online, bus schedules are more iffy. It's critical to verify bus schedules on site, once you arrive in each city/town. That's usually the first thing I do upon arrival--plan my departure. If it's clear what bus I want to take, I go ahead and buy the ticket right then. Every now and then you run into a bit of a line at a ticket window, and I've seen signs at Spanish bus stations, indicating that they stop selling tickets 5 minutes before the bus is due to depart. Larger bus stations may have ticket machines for one or more major bus companies like ALSA, and I found them easy to use, but on one occasion the system was down and the lines for the staffed counters reminded me of an airport check-in counter.

If you don't speak Spanish, I recommend writing down the your destination in all capitals and the time of the bus you want to take (also the date if you're not traveling the same day). That should assure no mix-up on the tickets. The good news is that all the (many) Spanish buses I rode this summer were really comfortable. Your ticket will probable show a seat number. Sometimes passengers seem to sit just anywhere, but I suggest sitting in the specified seats if they are vacant when you get on the bus.

Cm,

Granada - 3 nights (is this enough?) - But we have to be sure to be there when the Alhambra is open for visits--I understand Sunday and Monday it is closed. (Friday, Saturday, Sunday, with visits to Alhambra on Friday and Saturday)

The Alhambra is open everyday, except on December 25th & January 1st.

You can read about the Alhambra tickets here.

Basically, you need to choose when you want to visit the Alhambra complex which is very large. You can choose morning ( 8:30 am-2 pm) or afternoon ( 2 pm- 6 or 8 pm), then you will choose a time to visit the Nasrid Palace.
You will have to enter the Nasrid Palace, at the time stamped on your ticket, or within 30 minutes after such time.
If you arrive 30 minutes after the time stamped on your ticket, you will not be allowed to enter the Nasrid Palace.

You will also need to get to the Generalife palace before your time period expires; 2pm if you've chosen a morning ticket, or 6-8pm, if you've chosen an afternoon ticket. Once you enter the ticket area, you can linger as long as you wish.

Keep in mind the you can visit the Carlos V Palace at any time, as it's free. We visited it on a different day.

My mom & I were in Granada in October (2015), & we chose an afternoon time for our visit to the Alhambra, because I'd read that the mornings are more crowded due to all the tour groups.

Having said this, I believe the Alhambra is always crowded, since it's the highlight of Granada!

In terms of which way to tour the Alhambra complex, RS recommends going through the Justice Gate (pick up your tickets day before), visiting the Alcazaba, then the Nasrid Palaces, and lastly the Generalife. We skipped the Alcazaba & concentrated our time in the Nasrid Palace & Generalife, mainly because I was traveling with my (then) 88 year old mom & wanted to limit walking too much.

We spent 4 nights (3.5 days) in Granada & therefore didn't feel rushed to see the main sights, but you can see them in 2 days, I suppose.

In terms of Sevilla... We stayed in Barrio Santa Cruz, which is where the Royal Alcazár & the cathedral are located.

I'm confused by your itinerary...
You write that you have "12 nights ", but when I add all the nights on your itinerary, they add up to 13 or 14.

I agree with going straight to Córdoba upon your arrival, then taking the train or bus to Granada.

You can visit a hill town en-route to Sevilla (from Granada), if you choose to.
We considered visiting Ronda, but we ended up skipping it due to my mom's energy level.

Enjoy your trip!

Edit to add...
We took the ALSA bus from Córdoba to Granada, but you can easily take the train which is presently via AVE-Bus; meaning that you will travel via train from Córdoba to Antequera, then transfer to a bus (provided by Renfe) and travel the rest of the journey to Granada.

If you take the ALSA bus, you will need to take a taxi, or a city bus, to take you to the historic center of Granada (since the bus station is located on the outskirts of the city as oppose to the train station which is closer) We paid around €10 for a taxi.

Very helpful! Thank you. We arrive on 29 March and leave on 10 April. I just need to determine how many nights we really want to spend in Cordoba, Granada, and any other places along the way back to Seville.... and the balance goes to Seville.

I'm feeling pretty comfortable with the idea of 2 nights in Cordoba and 3 in Granada. I don't have a good feel for how much time we need or would want or WHICH of the white hill towns to spend time. Seems to be a toss up between Arcos and Ronda. Maybe one night in each (2 total), and then settle in somewhere in Seville for the last 5 nights?

I'll do some searching on this forum for discussion/thoughts/passion about the white hill towns.

Cm,

Did you change your dates of travel?
Your original post says that you'll be arriving May 29th, I presume it's a typo.

Anyway... How many nights to spend in each of these amazing cities?

The answer to this question is very personal, but I'd want more than one full day in Córdoba (my favorite), so I'd spend three, (we spent 5, but we were traveling at a slower pace)

Keep I mind that 2 nights translates to one full day, 3 nights = 2 full days, etc, etc.
Also each time you relocate from one place to the next, you will lose at least half of that day.

We didnt visit any hill towns, so can't help you there, although as aforementioned, we considered going to Ronda.

If you do plan to visit a hill town en-route to Sevilla, you will end up having less days in Sevilla.

When you visit Sevilla, make sure you visit Triana; there's an amazing food market (Mercado de Triana), at the end of the bridge (Puente Isabel II), and great ceramic shops for souvenirs. My favorite was Cerámica Santa Ana.

Enjoy!

Alhambra:

tickets go on sale somewhere around 3 months ahead of time and sell out so book early.

The Alhambra is not one building or even a walled complex. It is a large collection of areas.

Main areas : Nasrid Palace (the most famous part), Alcazaba fort (oldest, partly in ruins military structure), Generalife Gardens (beautiful gardens and smaller palace inside), and Charles V palace (built by Christian king after Moors expelled). There's also a bath, a church, the parador hotel, etc in the area

The Nasrid, Alcazaba, and Generalife require a ticket. You can walk around some of the grounds, Charles V, and Parador with no ticket - there are nice views and smaller gardens and buildings that require no ticket.

When booking you select a time for the Nasrid Palace. You HAVE to be at that palace in your timeslot (if your ticket is for 10AM you enter between 10 and 10:30. Don't push it or be late - they are strict). Once in there is no time limit on how long you can stay.
This is for the palace only.

Your ticket also covers the rest of the complex.

If you have a morning time slot at the Palace you have from opening at 8 until 2PM to see the ticket areas. An afternoon appointment means you can't enter the ticket areas until afternoon but can stay until closing.

So you need to plan what to see when around your palace time slot. See them in any order you like - just be at the palace at your time.

They also sell tickets for the gardens only, and for special nighttime visits, but the main ticket is what I described above.

I would go with something like this ...
45min by AVE Train to Cordoba - 2 nights
2hr45min by ALSA Bus to Granada - 2 nights
2hr40min by direct (evening) train to Ronda - 2 nights
2hr30min by TGComes Bus to Jerez - 3 nights (day trips to Cadiz by train and Arcos de la Frontera by bus)
1hr 05min by direct train to Seville - 3 nights

Depending on your arrival and departure to/from Sevilla, it may be an idea to reverse the itinerary. You could relax in Sevilla on arrival with any jet lag, and travel straight from Cordoba to your departing flight out of Sevilla.

These recent threads can answer some of OP's questions:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/spain/fine-tuning-for-andalucia

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/spain/online-alhambra-ticket-purchase

Current tentative plan is this:

Cordoba - 2 nights (we would stay three if we hadn't already been there before several years ago for a day trip out of Seville)

Granada - 3 nights (I've purchased morning tickets to the Alhambra--that's done--thank you for your help!)

White hill towns - 2-3 nights (I'm still agonizing over where to stay at night. QUESTION: Is it easy/possible to rent a car in Ronda or Arcos for 1-2 days only to see the area and then turn it in before going to Seville.)

Seville - 4-5 nights (I thought I'd want more time in Seville--but we were three for 3 nights several years ago, and maybe we will be quite happy with only 4 nights--allowing us more time in the white hill towns.)

My biggest surprise so far is the time we might plan in the white hill towns. I had NO IDEA we'd want to see that area because I really didn't know about it. QUESTION: Are 3 nights overkill or just right? We are NOT checklist travelers--we'd rather see a fewer things well than to see a lot of things more superficially.

I did make a typo in my original posting (I've edited it now). We are arriving on 29 March. :-)

To pick up a car in Ronda, and drop it in Jerez, should be an easy thing to do.

Days 1-2 - Cordoba - 2 nights
Days 3-5 - Granada - 3 nights
Day 6 - Train to Ronda - 1 night
Day 7 - Pick up car. Drive via Zahara & Grazalema to Arcos - 1 night
Day 8 - Drive to Jerez - 1 night. Return car
Day 9 - Either day trip to Cadiz or train to Seville
Days 9-12 - Seville - 4 nights

Some links ...
Ronda - http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres/ciudades-pueblos/otros-destinos/ronda.html
Grazalema - http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres/ciudades-pueblos/otros-destinos/grazalema.html
Arcos - http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres/ciudades-pueblos/otros-destinos/arcos_de_la_frontera.html
Jerez - http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres/ciudades-pueblos/otros-destinos/jerez_de_la_frontera.html
Cadiz - http://www.spain.info/en/que-quieres/ciudades-pueblos/otros-destinos/cadiz.html

David, you (and the others on this thread) are really so helpful!!! Thank you so much, everyone, for your help.

We finally bit the bullet about how to allocate our time/nights--but transportation is still to be determined and all the links you have provided will be researched.

Cordoba - 2 nights-place to sleep yet to be determined
Granada - 3 nights- Hotel America on the grounds of the Alhambra - I do hope walking from there into town is doable.

Ronda - 2 nights - AirB&B apt found and booked with terrace overlooking the gorge
Seville - 5 nights - AirB&B apt found and booked

cm -

Your itinerary looks to be well set now. A hotel suggestion for Cordoba is the NH Cordoba Califa. It is a wonderful hotel with clean, largish rooms and a fantastic breakfast buffet in a quiet area an easy ten minute walk from the mezquita. There are plenty of "locals mostly " restaurants and bars/cafes in the neighborhood. The Mercado Victoria is also less than a five minute walk away with its myriad dining opportunities. There is a major shopping area within walkinig distance.

On another of your concerns, walking into the center of Granada (Plaza Nueva/Cathedral area) is fairly simple - mostly downhill. I would recommend either public transportation or a taxi for the uphill walk back.

I see you're still searching for a place to stay in Córdoba.

My mom & I stayed at the NH Hotel Hesperia Córdoba which is located right across the ancient Puente Romano (Roman Bridge) in a quiet neighborhood. The hotel is clean, comfortable, with elevator, a small pool & bar on the rooftop terrace, where you can see the beautiful Mezquita illuminated at night.

The staff are friendly, helpful &multi- lingual. The buffet breakfast is hearty & delicious (extra fee).
If you book directly on the hotel's website, make sure you sign up for their rewards program (free) and you'll receive a 5% discount on all your NH bookings.

One warning.... Make sure your room is not on the third floor, as you'll hear the noise from the rooftop terrace bar/restaurant, which will be your ceiling!

We actually spent our first night at the NH Hotel Califa mentioned above (the Hesperia didn't have vacancies), but I preferred the location of the Hotel Hesperia Córdoba much better. It was so pleasant to walk on the bridge (pedestrianized) to/ from the historic center everyday (about a 10 minute walk)

If you want to stay in the historic center, there's another NH hotel, NH Collection Amistad Córdoba , which looked very nice (judging from from the outside patio), but you'll pay a bit more.

Enjoy your trip!

I would rent the car in Granada and return it in Sevilla. On the way to Granada you could stop in Antequera. There's an interesting old town and alcazaba with a great view and prehistoric dolmens just outside the town. Then take a detour to visit a couple of the hill towns, getting to Ronda about an hour before sunset. On your full day in Ronda you could either get up very early and spend the morning driving through the hills to some other towns, then see the bull ring and museum and a couple other sights, or spend the whole day in Ronda. Then head for Arcos, worth 1/2 day to visit and then drive to Sevilla.

Cm,

Granada - 3 nights- Hotel America on the grounds of the Alhambra - I do hope walking from there into town is doable.

To add to Jack's suggestion regarding transportation to/from the Alhambra complex.

Here is the information about the red & white minibuses traveling to/from the Alhambra to the city center.

Here are the minibus routes:

• Line C1: from/to Plaza Nueva (city center) to/from Albaicín
• Line C2: Plaza Nueva <--> Sacromonte
• Line C3: Alhambra <--> Plaza Isabel la Católica (city center)

My mom & I spent 4 nights in Granada, and we took the minibus up & down to the Alhambra & the Albaicín multiple times, so we took advantage of the Granada Travel card which offers reduced fares (€ 0.79 vs €1.20) and you needn't worry about carrying change. You may purchase this pass from the bus driver for €2 & load up with €5. You can use one pass for multiple passengers.
All you have to do is swipe the card on the magnetic reader by the bus driver (once for every passenger).

I kept my card as a souvenir, but you can return it to any bus driver for the €2 refund.

Excellent information! Thanks so much! I wish I didn't have such reticence for driving in Spain--but I'm still contemplating getting a car from Granada to Seville. Everything is easy "once you do it". ;-)

We have had such good luck (knock on wood!) with AirB&B apartments--and really like having the extra space, a kitchen, living area, etc. and usually for the same or less than a hotel room. I've found one for Cordoba now, too.

Latest thought:

Pick up car in Granada and go to Ronda. Spend the night.
Next day, go see Zahara, etc., and come back to Ronda for a second night.
Next day, get up early, leave Ronda, see Arcos, and drop off car in Cadiz. Stow bags at the train station (??can this be done??) and go see Cadiz a little bit. Catch the 17:40 train to Seville.

Is this do-able? Will this give us enough time in Arcos and Cadiz to enjoy the day? Or too much?

Why push yourself with a time limit? Steal a night from Sevilla and stay over in Cadiz. Enjoy the salt baked fish at El Faro restaurant.

Or you could spend the night in Jerez (return the car there). Good train connections to Cadiz and Sevilla (the train stops in Jerez between the two).