Driving from Seville to Granada, through the white hill towns?

Head south from Seville to Arcos de la Frontera before heading east to the celebrated town on Ronda.
Pueblos Blancos (white villages) you may like to explore en route include Zahara, Grazalema, Olivera and Setenil.

thank you for the reply! I guess I should clarify, we are just planning to do this as a day trip, as in, leave Sevilla early morning and reach Granada late evening. In that case what would be realistic?

when I search online, here is what I get
- Drive from Seville - Arcos, via E5.
- Arcos to Zahara via CA339, CA 9104
- Zahara to Granada A384, 92

Is this doable in a day trip such that, we get enough time to explore through these towns, the drive is scenic through white hills town?
Also anyone know how is this drive? I understand even the highways are through the hills:) but trying to get a feel if there are any just one lane or extremely steep roads?

www.viamichelin.com can help estimate driving times. Will you rent a car for just one day? It can be relatively more expensive; might cost the same as three days, depending on the agency.

thanks! Will take a look at the site!
We are renting car on may 13th in Seville and returning on may 14th the next morning. One of my friends is from UK and she found good deal on UK Avis as compared to what I found from here in the US!

A375 & A374 from Sevilla to Ronda (130km / 1hr45min)
A367, A357, A384 & A92 from Ronda to Granada (180km / 2hr 15min)

We did Granada to Cadiz via Ronda in a day in 2004.
Was time for an extended lunch/sightseeing stop in Ronda.
Driving is slow and roads winding.

Thank you so much!

The main roads through the hills are good, mostly two-lane, so if you end up behind a slow truck it may be a good idea to stop at a viewpoint for a few minutes :-) (you'll see signs for "mirador"). The towns themselves vary. Most have some pretty steep streets that can be really narrow with sharp corners and can be tricky to drive in. The towns are off the main roads, so if it looks difficult, you can always go back to the highway. In the hills it is scenic. Then you have a pretty straight drive to Granada through flatlands on multi-lane divided highways. Be sure to have good driving directions from the highway to your hotel in Granada.

Is there any way you can add a night in Ronda on the way? It will be much more enjoyable to take 2 days!

thank you so much for the reply! Good tip to turn around if any of the hills look difficult!
We already have bookings done for hotel in Granada for the night, so not sure if we can cancel that and add a night. But thanks for the tip. Will check if we can change to stay in Ronda.

Drove this area in May 2014, from Seville>Arcos de la Frontera>El Bosque>Ronda. A-384 from Arcos is a fine road with 90K speed limits. A-374 East is similar. A-372 east from Arcos is a fine road until you get to El Bosque. But by far the most scenic route, and the slowest, is A-372 from El Bosque, through Grazalema, back down the mountains to A-374 and into Ronda. You drive through the Parque Natural Sierra de Grazalema. Grazalema and that whole area is spectacular. Don't miss it. You can easily get into Ronda for a late lunch. From Ronda on to Granada, you can make up time.

Thank you! Did rental car GPS work fine for the routes suggested or a Michelin map is necessary?

I didn't have GPS and I have a poor sense of direction. I had no trouble on the roads, using the Michelin Andalusia map. The hard part was getting in and out of the cities (Seville, Granada).

Our rental car did not have GPS so we were able to use a map quite well. You will see an occasional sign saying "Ruta de Pueblos Blancos" which is reassuring. Parking in Ronda is problematic. As you enter from A-374, there is a municipal lot (Plaza del Socorro?) on your left just after you enter town. If you get to the Puente Nuevo Bridge, you have missed it. From the lot it is an easy walk across the bridge and El Tajo Canyon into the old town. The Nuevo Bridge was completed in 1793. Below it is the 16th century bridge and below that is the 12th century Moorish bridge near the Arab Baths. The further down into the canyon you walk, the further back into the history of Ronda you go. We stayed two nights at the Hotel Ronda and really enjoyed the town's uniqueness. Hope you will too.

Thank you both for replies! definitely very useful.
so really I am seeing we can easily leave around 8.30 am, go to Arcos, then to Ronda for late lunch, spend some time there and leave around 4-5 pm to go to Granada, so we can still enjoy the drive during day time, and reach Granada not too late? (and avoid drive in Granada going to the hotel late at night)

so really I am seeing we can easily leave around 8.30 am, go to Arcos, then to Ronda for late lunch, spend some time there and leave around 4-5 pm to go to Granada, so we can still enjoy the drive during day time, and reach Granada not too late? (and avoid drive in Granada going to the hotel late at night)

I think you are underestimating the times and will be rushing too much. First, are you planning to rent the car that morning or will you already have it? Most rental companies only open at 8.30 or 9.00 and it can take awhile to do the paperwork and check out the car. In Arcos, the best advice is to park at the bottom of the town and walk or ride (bus, taxi) into town. In Ronda, you either find the underground parking garage in the center or park a 10-20 minute walk away. If you are seeing sights in Arcos and Ronda, you'll need at least 2 hours each for those (otherwise, what's really the point of stopping)? Add the time for parking, walking, and lunch . . . Anyway, try to get a tourist map for Ronda before you get there so you can find your way around. Otherwise you may spend a lot of time looking for the TI. The good restaurants in the old center usually close between lunch and dinner, the touristy ones aren't so good. There's a very popular (with the locals) tapas place on a square just outside the old city wall Bodega San Francisco where you can eat and drink any time. You're also likely to find parking around there.

We went the other way, Granada to Sevilla, via: brief stop Antequera to see the passage tombs, night in Ronda, day in Gibraltar, night in Tarifa (didn't take ferry to Tangiers but enjoyed Tarifa), Costa de la Luz beaches and Claudio Baela Roman ruins, Cadiz, Jerez, then into Sevilla.

We skipped Arcos because we chose Ronda. If you're focus is on white towns, you might want to see both.

Chani, Brad, e2dbg - Thank you all so much!

chani- you are right, we cannot do both towns and "see" both of them. Our rental car is at 8 am(at least they say so), so what I had in mind was really from Seville go to Arcos, spend couple of hours there. And then from Arcos, instead of going straight to Granada, drive through the route e2dbg mentioned. but yes, I cannot "see" Ronda.
will definitely get tourist map and the Michelin map than just checkin online to get full perspective. thanks again.

Given the choice between Arcos and Ronda, I would choose Ronda. Arcos is a lovely town, but Ronda has a bridge over the gorge that is unlike anything else. The bullring has an excellent museum.

Using google maps, the driving time from Seville to Ronda to Granada is about 4 hours. Add Arcos and it's another 1/2 hour. I'd plan to drive via Arcos, but stop in Bornos instead. It's a pretty little town, worth a short walk around. Peek in the doorways to see the beautiful tiles (azulejos) and wrought iron doorways. Then you'll have a nice view of El Bosque along the way, then you'll pass (or stop to see) Grazalema, before arriving in Ronda for lunch and some sightseeing. From there it's about 2 hours to Granada, mostly on a modern divided highway.

thanks a lot Chani! this helps!