Barcelona, Madrid and San Sebastian Itinerary Help

If you are arriving on the 26th, that itinerary is too tight for 8 nights especially if you have to backtrack to Barcelona. You would spend most of your week checking in/out & travelling between places leaving very little time to experience these places. An open jaw would have given you more leeway. Train from Barcelona to San Sebastian is 5 1/2 to 7+ hrs taking up most of your day, Barcelona to Madrid on the AVE fast train is 2+ 1/2 hrs. Perhaps consider Zaragoza, 1+1/2 hrs on the AVE from Barcelona. Or just base in Barcelona & do a few day trips to make the most of your limited time..

Thanks for your help
How about If I went to granada instead of San Sebastian, would that be better?

Granada is in the south of Spain, again a day of travel both there & back. Spain is fairly large. I suggest you look at its map & check train travel times on renfe.com. Possible day trips from Barcelona include Girona, Monserrat. From Madrid there's Toledo, Segovia. Last year we had 11 nights and split them between Barcelona, Sevilla & Madrid & returned this year to Barcelona for 3 nights so with 7-8 nights IMO I would limit yourself to 2 bases max to make the most of your time.

Hello,
With the amount of time you have, I would only concentrate on Madrid and Barcelona. I believe our family took Ryanair.

If you did want to add St. Sebastian or Granada, how about traveling from Madrid via bus?
I traveled on the bus (Madrid to Granada) and it was a very nice. I had made a reservation a few days prior and it was like traveling on a nice plane. I had a "bus attendant" who served drinks and a lunch too. Received a pair of ear headsets and watched a movie too. All included in my bus fare.
My daughter, who was studying in Spain, helped me get the ticket. I was the only bus company that went to Granada. I don't remember the price, but I remember it being okay.
If you're going to the Alhambra, you should rsvp your ticket via the internet. I stayed there one night at a hotel but the bus station. Then I took a city bus to the center of town and a smaller bus to the Alhambra.

Here is ALSA's website to check schedules: https://www.alsa.es/en.

Have a nice trip!

I would even suggest that Madrid may not be worth it. Madrid, as a city, is not spectacular - nice enough, just not a wow. . . . unless you love painting. Then you can easily spend 2 full days just lapping it up, a day at the Prado and a day split between the Thyssen and the Reina Sofia. The Palace is one of the top ones in Europe too. If that doesn't turn you on, then spend your time in and around Barcelona. There is plenty to do in the city and excellent day trips to Tarragona (Roman ruins), Girona (medieval old town), Figueres (Dali). You could spend a couple of nights in Valencia (3-3.5 hours by train). You could even take a 2-3 day break to the Pyrenees for some skiing.

You land in BCN on 26th?
Four nights in each would be most people's idea I'd suggest. AVE train one way, Vueling flight the other. Schedules days to Toledo and Segovia from Madrid.