If it were you...Spain inputs appreciated

Definitely add Seville! I would choose Seville over Barcelona. Also the Alhambra in Granada.

To translate your post, it's like a European says they want to visit the USA but only have 7-12 days and must sees are New York and Hollywood and has to fly in/out of New York with no real interest in seeing the middle of the country beyond the coasts.

To me it seems very impractical as similarly Barcelona and Granada/Sevilla are on opposite sides of the country.

I guess you could fly to Sevilla (from Paris?) for 4 nights then take the AVE to Granada for 3 nights then fly to Barcelona for 5 nights then take the high speed train back up to Paris. That seems exhausting to me.

I agree with both Carlos’ proposed agenda and his assessment of it.

I’ll just add that, while I am a trail lover, and sometimes chose slower routes, even when more expensive, I’d definitely take a careful look at flights over trains between Barcelona and Paris.

If it was me, I’d stay in Catalonia the entire time. After spending time in Barcelona I’d either take a train or get a rental car to visit smaller towns in the region.

If it were me.....I would go to Madrid. Madrid is a fabulous city! And it has a special place in my heart, will always be special because I spent my junior year in college there. But I get it, not everyone likes Madrid. But you did say "if it were you..."

I would also definitely see the Alhambra if you've never been. Truly a magnificent place! The alcazar in Sevilla is also a must in my opinion. Also a magnificent place!

Enjoy your trip!

Seville, Cordoba and Granada are the highlights of southern Spain, though there are a lot of other great places in Andalucia. But this trip is in late June, a time of year when the weather can be oppressively hot in that part of Spain. I like to look at the actual, historical, day-by-day weather data available on the website timeanddate.com when I'm considering visiting a city at a questionable time of year. The data goes back at least ten years.

Seville weather -- June 2023

Definitely check additional years (use the pull-down box at the right, just above the graph), but as you can see, persistent very high temperatures are quite possible in June. You can find the data for other cities by using the Search box at the upper right.

In Seville, from June 14 through the end of the month, the high temperature hit at least 90F every day. There were 13 days with highs of at least 95F and 9 days when it reached at least 100F. Much as I love Andalucia, I can't recommend going there in June when you have other options--coastal or mountain Catalunya among them.

Barcelona, to skim the surface, requires 3 full days. It’s wonderful and you should experience Barcelona like you would Paris - slowly. A 4th day would be a good day to go north or even a trip to Andorra. But if the goal is to see as much as possible, you need at least 3 full days to skim the surface the dinners alone should be 2.5-3 hours. Fantastic city. It’s a small city though, very walkable. Would do at least one walking tour of the old city. It has a fascinating history.

You all have exceeded my hopes for helpful inputs!!

Scudder - I’m interested to hear more about your concerns over the train to Paris. I was thinking the high speed one that is 6 hours and maybe erroneously thought the scenery would be nice? We are trying to avoid flying as much as possible, so e could break it up.

acraven - brilliant reminder! I had originally determined we needed to go to Barcelona as early in our trip as possible due to heat, but then with extra days we found in the planning, thought to add it to explore more of Spain and forgot the temperature issue!! My husband is heat sensitive!

I would avoid June (and July, August) in España. Too many tourists.
I would fly into BCN and fly out VLC to ORY.
5 days in Barcelona
3 in Sitges
4 in Valencia.