I am getting very very tempted to add 5 days of Lisbon to our existing 3-week itinerary of Spain.
I would like to know which Spain City has the best travel connection from Lisbon? In Spain we plan to visit (Barcelona, Madrid, Seville and Granda). Any preference to fly or take the train?
Also, we are flexible to add Lisbon either at the start or at the end of our Spain travel? any suggestions on that?
thanks as always for all the replies
Even though they border each other, it is difficult to travel from one to the other.
For historical reasons there have been very limited land border crossings between Spain and Portugal, the best is to fly, both Madrid or Barcelona connect to Lisboa.
Combining the two countries, due to their perceived closeness, seems like a no-brainer but actually it's a lot more difficult than it appears.
You can fly from Seville to Lisbon via TAP Airlines.
So, a suggested routing would be: Barcelona, Madrid, Granada, and Seville. Then fly from Seville to Lisbon.
Regarding whether you should visit Lisbon before or after Spain, that would depend on airline schedules and prices. What works the best for you.
Via air would be the most convenient way (we booked TAP Air from Lisbon to Seville for early Oct, just one hour flight time). Also It may be better to add Lisbon at the start for Covid testing reason, as you might still need it even fly in from Spain.
There is a rail option from Madrid, but it’s kind of an epic, 11 hour journey over three trains. I think there’s an all day option and another that would have you spend the night in Badajoz before the two Portuguese trains in the morning.
I agree with the suggestion to fly, but before branching out to an additional country--especially one that probably means the hassle of adding a flight in the middle of your trip, I'd want to include some additional places in Spain that are easy to reach from one of the four major cities you list: Toledo, Segovia and Cordoba. I could go on, because Spain is a huge country with many very interesting and varied destinations, but those three are both spectacular and convenient.
I agree with acraven about spending all your time in Spain. Cordoba for 2 nights and Toledo for 2 nights would be excellent options.
But I also understand the desire to visit Lisbon. I personally don't mind adding a flight in the middle of our trips. We have done that in the past, most recently was in May when we flew from Naxos to Athens.
I think it's really a personal choice, and you would have an awesome itinerary either way.
