Cordoba or Salamanca?

I definitely would not do both! You are right, that is crazy.

I would spend the time in Cordoba, we really liked it there (though I have not been to Salamanca). What about Toledo?

Hello "C" -

I would second the only do one suggestion. My recommendation would be Salamanca. It is a wonderful city to simply relax in. Just so that you know, EL ESCORIAL IS CLOSED ON MONDAYS!

Cordoba makes more sense logistically. To get to Salamanca from Seville...would you need to take the train to Madrid and switch to the Salamanca train? If so, I'm guessing that is 5 hours of transit time. Meanwhile, Cordoba is between the two, giving you more time to visit and less in transit.

Of course, if your heart is set on Salamanca it would work just fine, but if you can't decide...Cordoba is easier.

Spend Friday in Córdoba with the Mezquita and other sights. On Saturday check out the ruins at Madinat al-Zahra, just outside town, before heading to Madrid in the late afternoon.
http://www.andalucia.com/magazine/english/ed4/madinat.htm

The Mezquita is the most wonderful thing we saw in Spain on a trip a few years ago and we saw the Prado (also fabulous), the Alhambra and the Seville Alcazar (both wonderful).

https://janettravels.wordpress.com/2013/09/27/the-mezquita-at-least-the-catholics-had-the-good-sense-not-to-destroy-it-when-they-desecrated-it/
The Mezquita though was the most amazing. I would definitely spend an afternoon in Cordoba at the very least.

Thank you, everybody, for your replies. It seems the clear favorite is Cordoba and, just yesterday, I happened upon a Learning Company series featuring a lecture about Al-Andalus. The historian just kept going on and on about Cordoba and marveling about the Mezquita. Fate, I guess.

I am having little twinges about skipping Salamanca, since it looks so beautiful and just "seems" like a city I would love. I am going to play it by ear. I've found I'm not always the best predictor of what places I'll love most. Last year, when before visiting Scandinavia, I was giddy with excitement about Copenhagen, happily anticipating Stockholm, and thinking, "Norway's on the tour too? Oh, okay, cool." Copenhagen turned out to my least favorite. Go figure.

Caroline

LOL. I went to Copenhagen 55 years ago as a teen with a German family and the only memory I have of the city is that we were cheated at a restaurant. The waiter suggested 'why don't I just bring a little roast and some vegetables' as the father of the family struggled with the menu and then the bill was about 3 times what anything on the menu would have cost. That and the little mermaid are absolutely all I remember of the city. I did remember this restaurant ploy and have avoided it myself; never accept anything without a price on the menu (there is a restaurant in Paris where if they ask you if you want a little extra something on the salad, suddenly raises the price of the salad two fold -- or so I have read on line)

Both are awesome, but Mezquita is a must see and since you are in southern Spain recommend Cordaba

C, I very much enjoyed Córdoba, the Mesquita and much more, just last month. By the way, the Mesquita garden, inside the walls but outside the mosque/church, is open and free, at least throughout the day. The mosque/church is also free when it opens at 8:30 until 9:30, when they usher visitors out so the mass can begin. So, a good time to arrive is right at 8:30, and you can enjoy most of the extraordinary building in an hour. I also enjoyed the museum in the tower just across the river and bridge from the Mesquita. It endeavors, and succeeds well I found, to give a sense of what Córdoba was like, back when the three faiths lived in harmony centuries ago. I also liked the time I spent in Jerez de la Frontera. Your tour will include a horse experience and a sherry visit in Jerez, both great, but NOT really a visit to the town. I found it a very livable locals town, with a great market, a nice quiet Alcazar, some very nice churches and an excellent archeology museum, and some very good restaurants, among other features.

I really like Cordoba and it is very convenient from Seville. Salamanca, on the other hand, gets a fraction of the tourists and has one of the best cathedrals I visited in Spain. With limited time, I'd probably visit Cordoba then plan another visit that picks up Salamanca, Zamora, Valladolid (and the three major castles around there), plus Burgos - I consider those (along with Toledo) the best of "classic Spain".