My husband and I will be flying from LAX into Zurich at 3pm in which we will have a 15 hour layover. We would like to explore Zurich for a bit. The next morning we fly in to Alicante at 8:30 am on Tuesday. We will pick up our rental car and head to our resort. We would like to
Rest and take a few day trips to explore that area. On Friday the plan is to leave fairly early, drive to Toledo and explore a few of the sights there that interest us. After, we will drive to Madrid trying to be there by 4-5pm. We have a hotel reserved for two nights there. The morning after the second night we will drive to Barcelona stopping for lunch in Zaragoza. We hope to arrive in Barcelona by 5pm. We will spend two nights in Barcelona only seeing 2-3 attractions that most interest us. After the 2nd night the plan is to head back to Alicante stopping in Valencia or any other place that seems interesting. We will have one day left in Alicante before we head home. We will probably make it a beach day.
This trip is planned at the end of September.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15788 posts
Your plan:
Friday - drive to Madrid via Toledo
Sunday - drive to Barcelona via Zaragoza
Tuesday - drive to Alicante via Valencia
According to google maps, you are planning to drive 1000 miles in 5 days. When you add time for city traffic and looking for parking, that really doesn't leave you much time. I find that google often underestimates driving time. They give 5 hours for Friday - that doesn't give you much time in Toledo. 6.5 hours per google on Sunday. Barcelona to Alicante, 5.5 hours.
My advice: forget the car, take the train. Train from Alicante to Madrid (2.5 hours on the train). Spend 2 nights, day trip by train to Toledo. Then train (3 hours) to Barcelona.
Posted by
Washington DC
28085 posts
You're trying to cover way too much ground. Trains will reduce your travel time somewhat, but you'll still be on the move for too many of your precious hours. I'd spend all my time in Alicante/Valencia if I was flying in and out of Alicante and had just a few days. Or at the most Alicante plus Madrid (including daytrips to Toledo and Segovia).
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
Trying to get some context to your plan.
- What is your motivation for travelling to Spain?
- Why the journey via Zurich?
- Why did you choose Alicante?
- What prompted your decision to drive?