Intererary Feb23-Mar 8 Questions

The Prado and Reina Sofía on the same day may be too much art for one day.

The two art galleries are quite close to each other, but if I had to pick one, it would be Reina Sofia. If there was something in the Prado that you particularly wanted to see, it's next to Retiro.

It seems like a doable itinerary.

Consider that you shouid arrive at the airport at 7am for a 10 am flight and check your transport options accordingly.

I agree the Prado and Reina Sofia on the same day might be too much, so consider putting one of them on your Saturday. I'd also suggest considering the Thyssen-Bornemisza, I found it to be less overwhelming than the other two big museums. You might consider a taxi to the airport as I'm not sure about the bus schedule early Sunday morning, as you should arrive 3 hours early.

In Barcelona, I loved the Picasso Museum, and it's less crowded in the evening hours. Since you're going in February they don't have a late opening day of the week, but they're still open until 7. Unless you're a rabid Picasso fan two hours should be enough if you went around 5 p.m.

I appreciate the feedback. And I could easily move the Reina Sofia to Saturday.

I'm curious as to what kinds of crowds me might expect this time of year. And should we expect the Cathedral and Real Alcazar to be more crowded on weekends than on weekdays?

As to a transport to MAD on Sun, Mar 8 - since we should arrive at the airport at 700am what would be the best transport option? On a Sunday morning should we worry about the bus or Uber being held up in traffic?

I like your itinerary. Retiro Park is nice but won't take too long. Visit the Archeology Museum that day too and/or Reina Sofia so you can spend more time at El Prado. Some of the RS walks are on the app---we like sharing a set of Airpods as we use them. Consider the MUHBA museum in Barcelona---the Roman ruins are great.

Your time in Barcelona has a lot of Gaudi. I find him interesting but I'm blown away by Domènech i Montaner. One of his masterpieces is the Palace of Catalan Music. I highly recommend taking an English tour (book in advance, they usually sell out). The cafeteria is open to the public and has reasonable prices, worth stopping for a drink or a light meal. The TI has guided walking tours which are worthwhile. Weather in February may not be conducive to Montserrat.

I enjoyed the show at La Casa del Flamenco in Sevilla.

If you love European painting, you'll want hours at the Prado. It is HUGE. It's best to have a plan in advance. Decide which artists, schools and/or individual works you most want to see. I never got to the American paintings, for instance and I spent at least 6 hours in the museum and left exhausted. Not a fan of modern art, so I've skipped the the Reina Sofia. My favorite art museum in Madrid is the Thyssen-Bornemisz which has a wonderful collection of Impressionists and often has temporary exhibitions. Buy train tickets to Toledo in advance. You won't save any money, but trains do sell out.

Many of the sights you mentioned call for purchasing tickets in advance. They don't necessarily sell out, but their ticket lines can be very long (and probably outdoors). It's unfortunate, but winging it may not work well. These are the places for which I'd definitely get tickets in advance if missing them would be a disappointment:

Barcelona: Parc Guell, La Sagrada Familia, La Pedrera, Picasso Museum
Seville: Alcazar and Cathedral
Madrid: Royal Palace

I had no problem getting into the Prado with essentially no line, but that was in 2016, and I've seen suggestions here to buy a ticket in advance. The only crowds I experienced at the Prado were in front of Velazquez's Las Meninas and Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights. The Royal Palace is very popular with Spaniards; I suspect avoiding weekends and holidays would somewhat reduce the crowds.

How crowded places will be is difficult to predict, but in Barcelona I'd expect shoulder-to-shoulder conditions at La Sagrada Familia and La Pedrera. Parc Guell will be busy, but it's outdoors and has some space to spread out. The Picasso Museum was a nightmare when I visited it in 2016, but many folks here have not had that experience, so I think I was unlucky.