Hi travel community! We are planning a trip to Spain in Oct. We will be there for 10 days. Our trip will be bookended with Barcelona and Madrid (I'm pretty sure! Madrid for sure because that is where we depart from). We are trying to figure out where to go in between and are considering Granada or Sevilla (or maybe you have another suggestion all together!). Our travel style is to move slowly. If I had my preference I would stay the whole time in one or 2 places but I'm trying to balance seeing some of Spain with having a more immersive experience. Importantly, we are traveling with our 10 year old son who likes history, ruins, music, and nature and can handle ~2 hours at a museum. Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks!
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7157 posts
I’ll beat Carlos to it by saying consider Zaragoza for a third stop. Ten days isn’t that long and would be enough to see Barcelona, Zaragoza, and Madrid. Whatever you decide, consider the travel time between places since it will take away from the time you have to see things. While both Sevilla and Granada are worth visiting, they are also a distance away from the other places you mentioned. Zaragoza is between them, so not out of the way at all.
Posted by
Barcelona + Sweden
4180 posts
jaimeelsabio read my mind lol!
Yeah I think with only 10 days it's best not to journey all the way down to Andalucia just to backtrack to Madrid. Spend a few days in Zaragoza conveniently halfway between Barcelona and Madrid. Zaragoza has everything you're looking for, Roman ruins, a Moorish palace, and one of the greatest cathedrals in Spain.
Posted by
Hudson Valley
2267 posts
5 days each, with a day trip or two, is not too much time for Barcelona and Madrid.
Zaragoza could certainly be a smart choice if you really want a third stop. (I'm only going there for the first time in a few weeks.)
Posted by
8246 posts
Seville is my favorite city in Spain, don't miss it. You need two days, minimum there.
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
4656 posts
I would build a later trip around Andalucia and stick to the 2 main cities with some day trips.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7887 posts
Barcelona is perhaps the number one Spain destination for Rick and this newsboard. I'd suggest that you look into it, and make sure that Sagrada Familia and Art Nouveau are really important to you. There is more to do than Granada, but (except on this newsboard) Granada is perhaps ... ... more iconic and "historic" than Barcelona. This is very much a personal OPINION.
It's not hard to find people who aren't interested in Madrid on this newsboard, but we like it very much, and have enjoyed a few more days, before a flight home, on additional trips through Spain. The last time we got off a cruise ship in Barcelona, we went right to the train station. OPINION. Seville, and nearby Carmona/Italica, or Jerez, is a nice destination too.
I think it may be a mistake to let others decide this for you. But you can't go "wrong" with any answer. Would your son want to see four museums in Madrid? BTW, Madrid has a lot of green spaces for a big city.
Posted by
stevens point, wi, usa
1194 posts
Hello from Wisconsin,
We like to move slowly and stay in locations for as long as possible. And not run out of places to explore. We thought we spent one day too many in Lisbon and it turned out to be one of our betters.
2 hours in a museum. Sounds a bit like me. I try to do a museum entry at about 10AM, eat lunch at the museum, and then do another 2 hours in the museum. We seldom do the entire second 2 ours. And NEVER pass a chance to sit on a bench.
Madrid can easily absorb five days if you like exploring neighborhoods. Plus it has a number of great museums. There is the Palace, the Cathedral (yawn), La Latina, parques, markets ... Famous plazas. And some real nice food. Barcelona too can offer a lot. There are day trips out of each that could add to variety of what you do. And, yes, if you have to stay in a third city Zaragosta does sound good. Mass transit will get you from BCN to Zara in 90 minutes. And Zara to MAD is also about 90 minutes, so it is easy to do. But it does take time to pack, move to the station, move from the station and unpack.
Barcelona. read up on Guadi. the Ramblas, museums...so much to this place. day trip to Montserrat.
wayne iNWI
Posted by
Sacramento, CA
288 posts
Did 2 weeks in Spain with a week in Madrid and a week in Barcelona and side trips. Both cities are great for very different reasons. We had our 4 young kids with us and had a great vacation.
While in Madrid we did side trips to Sevilla and Segovia. We knew that Sevilla deserved more time than a day trip but didn’t know when we were going to be back. As expected, it was, indeed, rushed, though we did get to see the Alcazar, Cathedral, and Plaza de Espana. We did get a taste of it and know we will circle back some day. Retiro, Prado (too many great paintings to count), El Palacio Real, Guernica, exploring neighborhoods, churros, buying cookies from Nuns.
While in Barca, we did a side trip to Monserrat and loved it. Sagrada Familia is gorgeous even though it’s a work in progress, Barca match (saw a brace from Messi), Font Majic, Gaudi architecture.
You can easily fill your 10 days with 2 stops and day trips. If you do take on a 3rd stop, which of the other two will get less time? I guess that’s not that bad of a problem to have.
Enjoy!
Posted by
1 posts
I am sure you will be able to find many people who will tell you that one is better than the other, but I am going to give you my humble opinion. I have been to both cities and enjoyed them very much, but I think that Granada is better for a short stay. It is smaller and has a more relaxed atmosphere. It also has some great cultural sights like the Alhambra and the Alcazaba fortress. Sevilla on the other hand is bigger, with more things to do and see. You can visit the cathedral or ride a horse or go for a walk along the river.