Driving time to Ronda

Google maps tend to be rather optimistic regarding driving time.

Although the big question is why you're planning to drive to Ronda from Madrid, why not just take the train?

Hi! I'm driving because I've rented a small manual transmission car. I want to visit Malaga and Seville at my leisure while in Ronda

That sounds like a circular argument. You can of course drive if you want to, but it's a 7-8 hour trip on mostly monotonous motorways. Compared to 4 hours by train, time that can be spent doing other things. One of those options sound a lot more tedious in my opinion.

There is also the hybrid option of taking the train to Malaga or Seville and renting a car there.

That amount of time is pretty accurate, but add some time for stopping. Most of the trip is interstate type roads, but once you get to Antequera the roads will be very rural and you’ll be driving probably no more than 60kph/42mph. The scenery on the drive south from Madrid isn’t spectacular and you won’t be passing many small towns.

To me, there are few places along that route to stop and see for a short period of time to take a break from driving. The couple that come to mind are Consuegra and Canpo de Criptana. Both are close together, close to the interstate, and between 1.75-2 hours from Madrid’s Airport. The other stop is Córdoba but it’s worth a couple night stop.

I'd take a look at the itinerary and see how you might rework this--it's a pretty boring drive. Drive times in this part of Spain just felt very long to me--the terrain, the long diversion to get to a gas station. I would try to avoid a drive that long while solo if at all possible.

Thank you! I'm so used to driving everywhere in the states without even blinking an eye, England too! I just thought it might be nice to have my own car

You should definitely have a car for the rural areas around Ronda, I just would not personally enjoy a 7 hour drive when the train is faster. If you don't think it will affect you, then go for it. If you were stopping for any overnights, my advice would be different.
You might want to share your itinerary, as a car can be a hindrance in the cities of the region. Most often it is recommended to pick one up as leaving one city, and dropping it in another--to best take advantage of the village and hiking opportunities. Good luck!

Thanks everyone for the tips or advice! I plan to fly into Madrid on my 3rd day leave out for Ronda. I'm staying there 6 days whereby I'll visit a few wineries and Malaga and Seville and then head back to Madrid, turn my car in and stay 3 mare days! I'm sure I'll be fine!I drive 9 hours to see my family every 3 months and never think anything about it.

I'm so used to driving everywhere in the states without even blinking
an eye

I can understand, given the deplorable state of passenger trains in North America. But I really can't see any point in driving when there is a 300 km/h train as an option.

I just thought it might be nice to have my own car

A car certainly has advantages in rural areas. But you don't need to rent it in Madrid.

Ok. Thanks so much! I guess I'll just see how it goes and learn from it

Parking will not be free in Malaga and Seville.

Seville, especially, has a lot of sights to see. It's not a one-day-trip destination. Ronda's the sort of place you might hop into one time when staying elsewhere (though I thought it was worth an overnight stay); Seville isn't. Ronda's not a bad base for seeing some of the white villages; they're all quite small, so popping in for an hour or three is adequate. That's a very logical use of a car. Less than a day in Seville (the round-trip drive will take over 4 hours) is, frankly, nuts.

I don't drive in Europe, but I think ViaMichelin.com is a good source of driving-time estimates.

Parking probably won’t be free in Ronda unless the hotel is just outside of town.

In Sevilla, there is a supposedly free parking lot by Cartuja Center CITE Sevilla. Another, larger, free lot is PARKING Estación Blas Infante. Walking time from it to the cathedral or Plaza de España is 30 minutes. Last time we were in Sevilla we parked at Interparking Cano y Cueto since it was by our hotel. It is convenient to the cathedral, Alcázar, and Plaza de España. It has a rate of about 2€ an hour with a 25€ daily maximum.

Sevilla is about a 1.75 hours drive from Ronda excluding any traffic once you get closer in to Sevilla.

I'm staying there 6 days whereby I'll visit a few wineries and Malaga
and Seville and then head back to Madrid, turn my car in and stay 3
mare days!

Are you really sure about that plan? I'd suggest a different option. Take the train to Malaga, spend a night or two there. Rent a car to Ronda and spend a few nights there. Drive to Seville, return the car, and spend one or two nights there. Then take the train back to Madrid.

I'm sure I'll be fine!I drive 9 hours to see my family every 3 months
and never think anything about it.

Just because you can do it, doesn't mean you should do it. Do you actually enjoy sitting behind the steering wheel for 9 hours?

The train will save you both time and money.

Well, my plans are concrete at this point. I'm driving the same distance from Tennessee to Savanah GA just for a 4 day weekend/concert. I guess we do it here in the US so much, we don't think twice about it. My late husband and I drove from Summerset UK up to Holyhead Wales to catch the ferry and No one in the UK could believe we were going to drive that far! I think it was 9 hours! We are just forced to do it here because we don't have the fantastic set up that Europe has. Thank you so much though, for the advice

We are heading to Spain in May. Our plan is to arrive in Madrid for 5 days, train to Sevilla (5) then rent a car to go to Ronda (4) as a base to explore the Pueblas Blancas. Will drive to Tarifa (3), then Granada (4) and drop the car. Train back to Madrid, then home. I like to drive, but I also love European trains. I can sight see and let the engineer do the work! Have a good trip.

We are just forced to do it here because we don't have the fantastic
set up that Europe has.

But when you are in Europe, you are not forced to do it. I'm just a bit baffled why anyone would choose to drive for 6-7 hours instead of taking a train that gets you there in less than 3 hours. But it's your time and money to waste if you want to.

I just completed my 12 day solo trip to Spain and had absolutely no problem driving my retal car from Madrid to Ronda! I also drove the A-397 all the way to San Pedro Alcantara and thought it was spectacular! The drive to Ronda was a bit boring, but very beautiful, and the roads are very well maintained!!! It took me slightly over 6 hours both going and coming back! I would not trade the experience for anything! I also drove to Maliga from Ronda, and spent about 6 hours there. I just had a few things I wanted to do there such as the Picasso museum and the swe the Cathedral. I have to say that I'm very pleased with how my vacation went in Spain!

Add to this, we are from California (not crazy-traffic Los Angeles area). How is the traffic and road condition in Spain? Would like to rent a car from Seville to Ronda (stop by 1 or 2 villages). How is the road and traffic? Is it a highway? How many lanes? Thanks. Husband is against driving in a foreign country, but I think driving will save some time just renting a car for a daytrip.

Most of the drive from Sevilla to Ronda will be on rural roads that are in good repair. The roads will mostly be two lanes (one each direction) with speeds about 70kph (42mph). When going through the hilly areas there will be twists and turns. One good thing about Spain is that once you’re away from the cities traffic is very light.

Neither of my parents ever owned a car in their entire lives, so I don't reflexively rent a car in Europe. And I don't believe free parking is the reason the Pilgrims left England. But we did drive from Seville to Granada, with three nights in the Parador Ronda. Our first stop was Arcos, and one other brief white-village stop before Ronda. And a (too far ... and disappointing ) daytrip to Gibraltar from Ronda. Because it was summer, and the sunflower and canola fields were in bloom, it was a wonderful drive. It was good to have the car in Ronda, because we got to see the area around, and visit Rick's recommended neolithic cave. Rick used to say, "The pain in Spain is mainly in the Train." No personal experience.

The Parador was expensive (and parking was ... gasp ... extra!), but we had a luxurious room with views for days, and in the summer, we were glad for the fierce air conditioning.

@Tim - Parador pricing varies by location and time of year. Many have free parking, but ones like Ronda, Granada, Santiago de Compostela, and Hondarrbia have a charge. Some have some free parking, but a pay garage. We recently stayed at 7 Paradors, Ávila, Ciudad Rodrigo, Casa de Ínsua, Tui, Baiona, Puebla de Sanabria, and La Granja, and each had at least some free parking.

If you return to Spain, try staying at some of the Paradors in smaller towns where a rental car is a must. Join the Paradors Amigo program and reserve through the Paradors website or app to get the best pricing. We had enough points from our 2022 trip to Spain to cover our nights in Ávila and Ciudad Rodrigo. From our recent trip, we have enough points for another free night.