Cordoba, Granada, Seville

Seville could use the most amount of time for most visitors. Even 5-6 nights in Seville would not be too many. A daytrip to one or two of the Andalusian pueblos blancos or “white towns” such as Ronda or Arcos de la Frontera outside of Seville could be included. Cordoba has the next highest number of attractions with the historic architecture from its Moorish past. Two or three nights in Cordoba should be optimal.
Granada’s big attraction is the Alhambra followed by the historic Albaicin neighborhood.

Where are you flying in and out of?
Granada needs a minimum of two nights and you may want to add a third night. What’s missing from your itinerary is Ronda.
As already mentioned Cordoba is a doable day trip from Seville. Another good day trip from Seville is Tavira, PT by direct bus, 2h.

MaryPat, we plan to make a big loop: Madrid-Salamanca-Caceres-Merida-Seville-Cadiz-Granada-Cordoba-Toledo-Madrid (2 nights, to visit the Prado again before we return). We had thought of seeing Ronda as a day trip from Cadiz, assuming we could find a driver. Would you trade Cadiz for Ronda? If so, what do you think about 3 nights there?

I think the Cadiz-Ronda tradeoff is worth a separate post. Will do so.

Have you bought your plane tickets yet? It would be easier to fly into Granada and out of Madrid. If you have and cannot change your tickets you can still fly from Madrid to Granada on a separate ticket.
Are you traveling by train or renting a car? Salamanca should be a day trip from Madrid by direct train (1h 45m) since it’s in the opposite direction of Cáceres. The same with Córdoba, it should be a day trip from Seville (1h).
Since you’re flying round-trip, sleep in Madrid at the end of your stay and add two nights for day trips to Salamanca and Toledo.
As far as choosing between Cadiz or Ronda, go to the place that’s easiest to visit. If visiting Ronda requires connections then maybe Cadiz is easier. If driving, Cadiz may be a hassle because it’s bigger and harder to navigate through. To learn more check: https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Main_Page.

MaryPat, yes, we have the tickets. We like to start a European trip with a longish stay to get over jet lag; in this case 4 nights in Madrid, also so we can see the Prado, which I've looked forward to for several decades. We'll be traveling by train everywhere, with one possible exception, and are staying multiple nights everywhere; we're retired, don't like to hurry (sounds better than "we are lazy"), and want to stay out of winter in Ohio :-) As I posted elsewhere, it looks as though we're going to see Ronda for one night, while traveling from Cadiz to Granada--this is one connection that would be easier with a rental car, so we might do that.

Kenko and MaryPat, thanks for the information, and for that cool link.

I’m perplexed as to why you’d be wary of Sevilla because it has a bullring. A large number of cities and towns have them. Bulls don’t run loose in the streets except in certain towns during certain festivals. There are no matadors with swords and capes, picadors, or banderilleros walking around, so there’s nothing to be wary of.

If you’re wary of Sevilla you should also be wary of Granada, Córdoba, Ronda, Madrid, etc. As an FYI, I couldn’t any bullfights in Sevilla city in February and none in Granada or Córdoba regions either.

jaimeelsabio, I'm not even sure what I meant by the bull fighting thing. Just thought the ring and the museum were a bit creepy, I guess. It is good to know that Seville is not "worse" (in whatever respect) than anywhere else, and that I won't have to be dodging bulls, or crazed matadors :-)

We went in Dec/Jan. Our itinerary was:

Sevilla 4 nights w/day trip to Ronda and hill towns
Granada 3 nights
Cordoba 1 night
Madrid 1 night (to catch plane home)

Adjustments I would make if doing again … allow more time for Sevilla, if possible. Allow more time for Cordoba. Take train in evening from Cordoba to Madrid and skip doing anything in Madrid. Just straight to hotel.

With 12 days, and a desire for slower pace, I wouldn’t add more cities — I would take more time to enjoy the main ones.

We prefer slower pace travel.

If you rent a car, I recommend your spending at least 2 nights in Ronda. From Cadiz, stop for a few hours in Arcos (the RS guide has a good walking tour), and get to Ronda before dark. The next day you can spend in Ronda. I found the bull ring and museum to be very interesting. I believe there haven't been bull fights there in decades. There are several other "quirky" museums. My favorite is the wine interpretation center/museum. When I was there, they had barrel tastings, a regular "bottle" tasting, and an interesting folk museum as well. BTW ask for local restaurant recommendations - the ones in the center are very tourist-oriented. There are lots that are within a 10-15 minute walk that the locals favor, for lunch and dinners. If you have a very sunny day, you may want to spend part or all of it driving the highway and stopping at one or more of the pueblos blancos. For me, the roads are very scenic with frequent pull-outs to enjoy the views and take photos. Some of the towns are interesting, some are very challenging to drive into. You may also want to stop at the base of Antequera to see the prehistoric dolmens on the way to Granada. I was really sorry to miss them - it was Monday and that was their closure day.

Chani, thanks for the info; I am a sucker for dolmens and hill towns. We are very tempted. I had not imagined driving a rental car, but that seems to be the way to go; even a convenient way to get to Cadiz from Seville, in case I can't rent for just 2 days from Cadiz to Granada. We are not scheduled to leave until late January, so there is plenty of time to figure it out.

Jolie NC, thank you, my bad for not making clear that we have more than 12 nights; I was just asking how people would allot 12 nights among the three cities. We actually have 31 nights, making a big loop: Madrid, Salamanca, Caceres, Merida, Seville, Cadiz, Ronda, Granada, Cordoba, Toledo, Madrid again (for one day before the flight, to see the Prado again).

Sevilla has the most "sights" to see, so you would probably want to allocate more nights there. Granada is my favorite of the 3; I love it for its vibrancy, in-your-face mix of cultures, walkability, mix of parks/greenspace and old city plazas, tapas, mountain views, and of course the Alhambra. Other people have similar strong likes for Sevilla or Cordoba -- you won't know your feelings until you get there!

For a first-time visitor with 12 nights, just based on number of things to see, I would suggest:
Sevilla -- 6
Granada -- 4
Cordoba -- 2

... but you may see something in your research that grabs your attention and drives you to re-allocate those nights. You really can't go wrong.

I'll also add that since you're planning to go from Sevilla to Cadiz (which is a short, direct train ride), you might think about stopping at Jerez de la Frontera on the way and visit a couple of sherry bodegas and/or the horse show. It's right on the train line and an easy stop.

Have fun!

We are also going in February of 2025. Our itinerary is;
Fly into Malaga, get to Seville
5 nts Seville
3 nts Cordoba
4 nts Granada
2 nts Ronda
Fly out of Malaga
We are taking the train and then may rent a car for the Granada to Ronda portion.

Deb and Tammy, thanks for the input. One more thing about Seville is the Roman site at Italica, just outside of the city.

Nick, thank you, good to know. I'm a Roman Ruin obsessive, so it's probably still a go. But we'll plan more for that day.

Excellent! Thanks so much.

Previous statements about Italica are correct, but I liked it anyway. Very exposed to sun and heat. Nearby Carmona is a nice visit from Sevill. Years ago, the "chamber of commerce" promoted a weekly Tapas Crawl there. You may find smaller crowds in the winter.

I would not spend four nights in Cordoba. We enjoyed three nights of daytrips (by car) from Ronda. The Parador de Ronda, expensive and pay-parking, was well worth it. Some white towns, like Zahara, are very tedious to get to. So pick carefully. Arcos is a Rick Steves favorite for good reason. Don't skimp on time in Madrid. It is a very rich destination. For example, there are two convents (Descalces? ... ) by tour only, advance booking only, that are quite interesting and seldom seen. The Palacio des Bellas Artes is the most OVERLOOKED museum in Madrid, and a strong competitor for the Big Three. But at Bellas Artes, you are alone with the guard and the art!

I don't "care" about bullfighting, but did you read Rick's philosophical comments in his Spain books? Because of history, Hemingway, and Bizet, (and the unique, imprecise pitch of the band), I was glad to go, once. Do you boycott Gladiator movies? "The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there,” wrote L.P. Hartley in his 1953 novel “The Go-Between.” That doesn't excuse what they did. I often meet people today who won't travel to Germany. My grandparents (lucky for me) left Poland in a hurry in 1925. But I've never met anyone in Germany old enough to have been in the Nazi party.

Tim, we're giving Madrid 4 nights at the beginning and 2 at the end; but I've never even heard of the Palacio des Bellas Artes, so thanks a lot. I will definitely work that in.

Yeah, I've read Rick's comments about bullfights; I wonder to what extent he is governed by diplomatic considerations. Germany is to me an interesting place, among other reasons, for its serious efforts to make amends for a disgraceful past. I do wonder about the experiences of really old people I see walking around there, or in places like Poland.