Costa Del Sol itinerary

The big ones are Seville, Granada and Cordoba. In a pinch, Cordoba can be a day-trip from Seville (because of the geography). The other places you list are minor by comparison. I'd dig into a good guidebook and figure out how much time I wanted in the three major cities, then see how many days are left for the others. I wouldn't want to squeeze six cities into 12 days, but I have no interest in beaches.

have you bought your airline tickets? Many travelers find it is not very affordable to fly into Andalucía. They end up having to go to Madrid and then travel onward either by train (it's a quick trip to Cordoba, especially) or via a separate flight. If you end up having to fly in and out of Madrid, you probably will not really have 12 days for Andalucía.

I went to that area in November. We did have to fly in and out of Madrid to get a tolerable airfare, but we set up a circular route of sorts so that we felt we didn't waste much time getting places. We had about the same number of days and spent our time in Sevilla(3N), pueblos blancos(2N), Granada(2N), Cordoba(2N), Toledo(1N) and Madrid/Segovia(2N). It was a great trip. We enjoyed the pueblos blancos which could be an option to escape the heat a bit. Grazelema, in particular, is at a higher elevation and tends to be cooler. In Grazelema, we stayed at a RS recommended B and B with a pool. La Mejorana. I highly recommend. It was very reasonable in price, too. I wouldn't have wanted to add any additional places in our itinerary. We were happy with how the trip went, in reflection, we thought we covered each city well, but it would have been pleasant to have an additional day in Sevilla, Cordoba and Toledo. The trip was extremely reasonable, too, I think my husband has everyone in his office now planning a trip to the area! We rented a car for 2 1/2 days to get us from Sevilla to Granada.

In my opinion, the priorities for Andalusia would be Sevilla, Cordoba and Granada because there is so much history and they are so culturally important. In my research, Malaga and Marbella seemed to be more beach resort type places, but people do enjoy them.

If you really don't want to move around, you can stay in Sevilla and day trip by train to Cadiz and to Cordoba. Personally, I love Cordoba and highly recommend spending a couple of nights there - the evenings are especially pleasant, quiet and romantic. I don't think Cadiz is worth more than a day trip, but if you want a lot of beach time, spend a night. You can also day trip from Granada to Malaga. You need at least 2 nights in Granada. I haven't heard anything that would make me visit Malaga. The reason that led me to consider it was "to see yachts of the super rich" - not really my thing. I believe Marbella is a day trip from Malaga.

If you have 12 nights in Spain and if you can fly open-jaw into Madrid and out of Malaga (there are non-stop flights to/from NYC to both cities) . . . Most flights land early in Madrid, go to Cordoba (2 nights), then Sevilla (3-5N), Granada (3N), Malaga (2-3N). From Sevilla you can also day trip to the white hill town of Arcos and to Jerez (tours/tastings at sherry bodegas, horse show at the Royal Equestrian School).

Let us know how much beach time you want (if any) and what your travel style is - are you okay with more hotel changes?

What is the reason for adding Marbella to the list? Whilst it has an attractive, if not small, old town it's not somewhere I would choose to visit in its own right. I visit the area quite often but that's because we stay at beachside resorts and for us it's a relaxing sun, sea and sand holiday. It's a good base for visiting other areas but not much of an attraction itself. There's the rich playground of Puerto Banús in Marbella but in my opinion it's a bit tired, dated and naff and is nothing more than a marina and shopping district.

I've never really explored Malaga, it's always simply been a place to fly in and out of or drive past however I have heard some good things about it so will probably make the effort to see more of it next time I'm there.

We spent 2 nights in Malaga and really enjoyed it. I think it's an under-rated city. I chose Malaga because we wanted some coastal ambience during our trip to Madrid and Andalucia. Malaga's old city center is beautiful with marble pedestrian walkways. Its cathedral is as nice and beautiful as any we've seen. We loved walking uphill through the Alcazaba with its lush greenery, flowers, small patios, and fountains, and gorgeous views of the Mediterranean. From there we also walked up to the castle, not as lush as the Alcazaba but more stunning views. There are lots of small art museums; we visited the Picasso Museum. And we enjoyed walking along the seaside promenade and having drinks overlooking the harbor while watching the sunset. There were a few people in the water, but it was late September so beach season was winding down.

I agree with everyone else that Seville, Granada, and Cordoba are the 3 most important cities in Andalucia historically, with its Muslim, Christian, and Jewish heritage and influences. I recommend 4 nights in Seville, 2 nights in Granada, and 2 nights in Cordoba. Cordoba was one of our favorite places. I strongly recommend staying overnight in Cordoba instead of seeing it as a day trip. The Mezquita is amazing, but there is a lot more to Cordoba than just the Mezquita, such as the Alcazar gardens, Palacio de Viana, Roman Bridge, and wandering around the beautiful Juderia. You need at least 2 nights in Granada to see the Alhambra.

So you could spend 2 nights in Malaga, too, and that would give you 10 nights. If you have more nights, then perhaps Ronda for a night. One other point: I think staying in Malaga will give you a respite from the heat. It was the coolest place we visited when we were there in September.