Babymoon In Spain - Itinerary Help Appreciated!

I thinks Spain is two trips, one in the North, San Sebastian, Barcelona etc , and another in the South. Based on what you indicate you like, I suggest Granada, Seville, Cordoba, Andalusia and the White Hill towns. Nerja is nice for half a day. Seville has the food and Flamenco, Seville need at least two days. You can fly the RJ back to Madrid from Granada.

Forget the travel agent, read Rick’s travel guide.

Save the North for when the Babe is ready to travel.

I think your concerns are spot on. Great food and wine are everywhere in Spain. May 1 is Labor Day in most (all?) of Europe. I don't think there's much in the way of "celebrations." It's more of a day off for workers, maybe a low-key parade. If you want to spend hours and hours at the great art museums, Madrid needs 2-3 days. If not, it pales in comparison with Andalucia. You'll be there during some of the big Andalucian spring festivals. Use this website to learn more about them, but verify dates at official city websites. Feria is about the biggest week in Sevilla - super-crowded, super-expensive, great opportunity to see something special. Cordoba also has a patio festival around then, and there's the Horse Fair in Jerez.

If you want to be in Andalucia then, you should book hotels as soon as you can to get the best deals. If you choose this option, then spend your first night (or two) in Cordoba, ending your trip in Madrid. If you want to avoid it, by all means go to Barcelona. Beaches may not be crowded since the water will be pretty cold, even on the Med (Cadiz's lovely beaches are on the Atlantic). There's plenty of variety in Barcelona, and several very good day trips. Instead of Madrid spending a lot of time in Madrid, you could spend your first 2 nights in Toledo, then train to Barcelona, then train back to Madrid.

We lived in BCN for 4 months and LOVED it there compared to all other places in Spain and my family is Spanish. I think BCN will compliment the history and art you can find in Madrid to add in some beach time, relaxing, amazing food, flamenco, tours of amazing food markets and wine, beautiful spas. BCN has amazing art and culture as well, but I find it to be the relaxed and chilled out cousin of Madrid, the one who likes to drink cava and people watch by day, party long into the night. For us as a family, we prefer to travel less in between hubs to experience the culture and place we are more than a few hours here and there. There is less big art in BCN, bit you still have an array of museums to choose from and the greats are there. BCN is awesome for rambling down sandy beaches, Gothic streets with nooks and crannies to explore, food tours, parks and gardens, soaring new wave architecture and a church that thumbs it's nose at all others, Gaudi's crown jewel of La Sagrada Familia. There are many tour companies there that will guide you, we LOVE Kids and Cats.

Madrid is the older sister and fashionista for sure... broad roads, shopping, incredible art by the masters, a hugs park in the city, food to die for in style. The museums are amazing and not to be missed, sad to miss Reina Sofia for sure. The city is more of a city for sure, more NY than LA.

I am happy to share my experiences if you want to PM me. We are slower travelers and like to suck on the bones of a place we visit, to breathe it in.

Cheers for your travels, enjoy!!

Stacy

I agree with John, above, that Spain is two trips - north and south. Saying that, I am preparing to depart in a few weeks for my 10th trip to Spain in the past 15 years. But for most folks it is best to group cities geographically in order to avoid spending too much of your valuable vacation time on planes, trains or busses. I think you have too many destinations for only eight nights on the ground - no matter how you travel between the cities. I would eliminate (since you are already committed to arriving and departing from Madrid) either Barcelona or Sevilla from your itinerary. These are very different cities with decidedly different sights. Choose the one which aligns most with your personal interests and put off the other until your next visit.

I just wanted to follow-up with everybody by first off saying thank you for all of your pointed advice. It resonated with us greatly and we ended up punting Barcelona for another trip. ("When my babe is ready to travel" as John put it). Being that it's Feria season in Andalucia and we truly enjoy embracing the local culture and vibe we felt we will have a better cultural experience spending our time in Seville and the surrounding cities.

I bought Rick's book and I'm working on a new itinerary right now as plan to head straight to Seville on Day 1 to maximize our time in Andalucian region (Cordoba, Granada, etc.) and then spend maybe the last day or two in Madrid/Toledo.

Open to "Must See/Do's" for the first go round. We're attempting to keep in mind that this won't be our last trip to Spain as we've committed to raising our future family in a global environment and exposing them to the wonders of this world that we all love so much. Thanks again everyone for your support and I'll post my next itinerary attempt once I get it made up and as previously mentioned, open to suggestions. Thanks!

Andrew & Nicole

I would start now to look for hotels and make reservations (as long as you can cancel them). The best deals go quickly and it's only 3 months away. Find the exact dates of the festivals in Cordoba, Sevilla and maybe Jerez and plan it out.

I think you'd get more from your time by omitting Barcelona. It's a perfect time for Sevilla.

4/28 Arrive Madrid. Train to Córdoba - 1 night
4/29 Mezquita, then train to Sevilla - 3 nights
4/30 Sevilla sights
5/01 More Sevilla, or day to Jerez
5/02 Train to Madrid - 4 nights
5/03 Madrid sights
5/04 Day trip to Toledo
5/05 Day trip to Segovia
5/06 Depart Madrid

You didn't mention what city was your point of origin. I think you have too much spread out. If you are coming from the West Coast, you will be jet lagged when you arrive in Madrid. I would allow 2 nights in Madrid. I actually LOVE Madrid and Seville! My daughter came over to visit me last year and we did: Madrid, Toledo, San Lorenza El Escorial, Cordoba, Seville, and back to Madrid as her flight was round trip to Madrid. Coming from LAX. 7 or 8 nights total in Spain. She was exhausted! She loved every minute of it, her favorite city was Cordoda and would have loved more time there. (I think we had 1 day) at 5 months, she should be feeling great, but may also tire a little faster.

Another option would be to take the AVE train from Madrid to Barcelona - it is a fairly short train ride and really nice. Unfortunately you can't take the train from Seville to Barcelona, but you could do Madrid-Barcelona-Madrid-Seville-Madrid.

I would pick - leave off Barcelona for another trip and do Madrid, Toledo, Cordoba, Seville, and maybe Granada. That would be awesome!

All the cities you mentioned are fantastic, just not enough time :(