We're going in Sep for 17 days. Flying round trip to Barcelona. Maybe see 5-6 places, definitely Lisbon, Porto, Seville, maybe Madrid. Recommendations? And recommended transportation between spots.
Posted by
Richmond, VA
301 posts
It depends on your interests. If you are even a little bit interested in art, I certainly wouldn't skip Madrid. Cordoba is an easy day trip from Seville (about 45 minutes by train). For food, history, culture, shopping, and general ambiance, Granada is wonderful.
Caroline
Posted by
Washington DC
28083 posts
Transportation between Spain and Portugal is a thornier issue than you may be expecting, so take it into consideration as you're planning your itinerary. Check skyscanner.com for flights. I think you'll find that flying is the only practical way to get from Barcelona to Portugal on a trip of this length unless you want to drive a big loop, which I believe would chew up too much time.
Rome2rio.com will help you figure out where trains and buses are available, but you'll need to drill down to find the bus company names and go to their websites for accurate schedule and fare information. If you're contemplating driving, consult ViaMichelin.com for projected driving times (said to be optimistic). Note that between the major Spanush cities the AVE trains are usually much faster than driving, and with no parking challenges or risk of tickets.
I don't know about the pricing of Portuguese trains, but within Spain you can save a lot of money on rail tickets if you buy non-exchangeable/non-refundable tickets early.
There's enough to see in either country to fill all of your time. You can spend 3 months in Spain without getting much farther south than Madrid; i know because I did it. I suggest some guide book research to determine whether you want to spread yourself so thin and have the hassle of two cross-border trips. If it were my trip, I'd stick to Spain this time and plan a separate trip to Portugal, flying into Lisbon.
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
It would be nice if you had a few more days as the scope you perhaps wish for means a pretty hectic pace. Still doable though.
Arrive Barcelona (3N)
Fly to Granada (2N)
Train to Sevilla (3N) - with day to Cordoba
Fly to Lisbon (3N) - with day to Sintra
Train to Porto (2N)
Fly to Madrid (3N) - with day to Toledo
Train to Barcelona (1N)
Depart Barcelona
Posted by
OP
17 posts
David, thanks for the tips! I think we must tour the Alhambra while in Granada, can that be done in a day?
Maia
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
Yes, it's the main attraction, not only in Granada, but in all of Spain. Your Alhambra visit can last 4-5 hours. Tickets MUST be booked ahead, advisedly through the official Ticketmaster site.