Family trip to Spain

With only 1.5 days to see Barcelona, you have to decide whether the travel costs to get there will be worth the time. There is a lot to see in Barcelona, and 1.5 days will hardly even scratch the surface. You could take the hop-on, hop-off bus to get an overview of the city, but is that worth the cost to get there (and the cost for the bus)? In my opinion, you could easily use up that 1.5 days in Sevilla and the surrounding area, then you could fly out of Sevilla to go home (I think you change planes in Madrid, anyway).

First trip = reduce scope and reduce stress in order to allow for typical newbie travel glitches.
Biggest mistake you can make? Packing too much! Pay a lot of attention to RS advice on traveling lite. This will make a big difference in trip enjoyment.
Thoughts: check into flight cost for open jaw ticket. Fly into Seville and out of Barcelona. Advantages are greater travel efficiency and less hassle. Example: By flying into Seville, most likely via a connecting flight in Madrid, you will not have to touch your checked luggage until you arrive in Seville. So you are going with a slightly longer initial travel day, but using one mode of transport.
Stay three nights in Seville, take AVE to Madrid and spend three nights and then take AVE to Barcelona and spend four nights.
This will provide opportunity to experience three diverse regions of Spain and is a wonderful initial sampler tour.
Also suggest you rent apt in each location since you are staying minimum of three nights in each destination. Advantage is more space to spread out, separate bedrooms, kitchen, perhaps a terrace and we find apts a better value. There are a number of web sites to visit to learn more about renting an apt.
when are you planning to travel?
We have traveled w teenagers of same age. Insist on their planning participation!

I don't know about airline reliability.

I think that you have too much scheduled for too short a time, especially with only 10 days, two teens and it's your first family trip out of the US. You should drop Granada or Barcelona. Both are great places, but each has their own pluses. Decide based on the interests of your family.

That is a lot to do in 10 days, especially with teenagers that might not be willing to get up and moving at the crack of dawn.

Keep in mind that traveling takes up at least a half day each time: the actual transit time, checking out of a hotel, to-and-from stations/airports, finding your way around and to the next hotel, checking into hotel. So even a short 1 hour trip is easily 3 or more hours.

With 10 days and wanting to see as much as possible, I'd recommend either a combo of Madrid and Barcelona, with some daytrips thrown in, or a combo of Madrid and Andalucía (Sevilla and Granada). Either combo is going to be chock full of adventure and plenty to see. That also avoids air travel (other than coming and going) and gives you a little more time in each place.

There are plenty of daytrip opportunities from Madrid and Barcelona with interesting things for teens and adults alike. And Cordoba is a good daytrip from Sevilla or a stop along the AVE line between Madrid-Sevilla (to see the amazing Mezquita).

Thank you for the insight. Yes, the teenagers will appreciate longer stays in each location.

I think I will visit Madrid and head South to finish the trip in Malaga.

Arrive Madrid and depart Malaga.

Now what is the right amount of nights in Madrid? I will make a day trip to Toledo from Madrid.
How many nights should I stay in Cordoba? I will make a day trip to Sevilla.
2 nights Granada?
2 nights in Malaga or Marabella to enjoy the beach?

Total trip nights 9/10.

Please suggest an itinerary.

Well now you are in my sweet spot as we use Malaga as our home base.
But, I am still pushing you to check out using an open jaw to make the trip more efficient.
Malaga:
- if you rent a car a day trip can be made to Granada. This will allow time to fully explore Alhambra and maybe a tad of old town Granada.
- Ronda can also be a day trip via car
- Malaga itself has a full day of activities
- Gibraltar is an ez day trip form Malaga

Seville:
- cannot be done as a day trip from Malaga
- I would take the train to Seville and spend several nights

Madrid:
- take the train to Madrid
- fly out of Madrid

Susan,
What time of year are you travelling? Andalusia can very hot in late-summer. Cordoba can be especially hot. Some hotels actually close down due to the high temps.
Given 10 days and your itinerary, I WOULD recommend a car for you and your family. I felt safer driving in Spain than in most of the US. The highways are top notch. Upon your arrival in Madrid/Barajas that morning, rent a car and drive to Granada (4 hours) on the A-4 autovia. That would put you into Granada mid-afternoon. Check in. Tour Plaza Nueve and the old city that afternoon and evening. Tour the Alhambra the next morning and walk through the Albaicin (World Heritage Site) that afternoon. Drive to Cordoba (2 1/2 hours) the next day. Tours of La Mezquita begin early afternoon. Que for tickets. Stay one night in Cordoba, preferably in the old Jewish Quarter. Drive to Seville (1 1/2 hours) the next day. Stay in the Barrio Santa Cruz for 2 nights (Hotel Amadeus is well situated). From here, you can drive the Route of the White Villages to magical Ronda (2 1/2 hours) for a one night stay or just head to the Costa del Sol for a few days of R & R. RS recommends Nerja and I wholeheartedly agree {we were there last May) but anything on the coast from Marabella to Almeria is wonderful. At this point, you can drive back to Madrid, drop you car off at Barajas, and spend your last few days touring Madrid and Toledo.
If you wanted to visit Barcelona, you might pair a trip there with the Languedoc and Southwestern France but Barcelona requires a minimum of 3 nights. Just don't see the time available on your current itinerary.
Granada, 2 nights. Cordoba, 1 night. Seville, 2 nights. Either Ronda, 1 night and/or Costa del Sol, 2 nights. Madrid, 3 nights.
Enjoy your trip. Spain is wonderful.
Ed

1. Reliable flights? Yes, I'd suggest Vueling, it's the main regional airline in Spain. I had a flight booked on Iberia in 2012 and they went out of business, I'm surprised they're back, between booking the ticket and flying.

2. Drop Barcelona?

Generally in 10 days, I'd suggest you pick South or North. If South, you can focus on Seville, Granada, Cordoba and add Ronda, Tarifa, Gibraltar, Jerez and/or Cadiz to fill out your trip. You can high speed train from Madrid to Cordoba, pick up a rental car and go from there.

If you go North, you can do Barcelona, Toledo, Madrid (cough) and add Montserrat, Zaragosa, Pamplona, Olite (outstanding little castle), San Sebastian (only in high summer months), Segovia, and/or Avila. Probably not much more though Valladolid, Salamanca and Burgos are great old Spanish cities.

I don't like Madrid. It's a new city, the newest capital in Europe. Think of Washington D.C. compared to the original colony cities of Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Boston - only add 2,000 more years of history to every other Spanish city that Madrid doesn't share. That said, Madrid has one of the best art galleries in Europe, El Prado, and some really nice parks.

If it were me, I'd gladly trade any day in Madrid for a day in Barcelona, Toledo or just about any of the old cities in Spain. The Prado is walking distance from Atocha station, which is where you would connect for trains between Barcelona, Toledo and Cordoba/Seville from Madrid. My wife isn't much into galleries, El Prado was the only one she has ever said she wished we could spend more time in.