Itinerary for 8 days in Andalucia

I have to suggest you take a hard look at that "1/2 day" trip to Tangiers.

First of all, would you go to Tijuana for a 1/2 day and consider that a good use of your time? Tangiers is Morocco's "boardertown". What you would get there is largely a manufactured-for-tourists experience, very much akin to going to a town like Tijuana and thinking you had gone to Mexico. yes, technically, it is, but it really doesn't do justice to the vast and fascinating country just beyond the garish tout zone you would find in your "1/2 day" there.

If you want to check out Morocco, go to the real Morocco: Marrakech or Fes. You can fly there for dirt-cheap from all over Europe, it's quick and easy, and soooo much better than Tangiers.

Second, have you investigated how long it would take you to get to Tangiers by ferry, and get back? With your plan, you might get, at best, a few hours there. It's gonna take a while to get to Tarifa and back, never mind the crossing to Tangiers. Also be aware that when the weather gets rough, the ferries are delayed or canceled.

Also...where are you coming from? If you are going to fly from North America, on a redeye, land in Spain, jump in a car, and drive off, you may want to reconsider that.

I never drive upon arrival. Jet-lagged, exhausted, stressed, and on the road in a foreign land is no way to start a trip. Be careful if you choose to do this. I usually recommend pretty much writing off your arrival day - just try and stay awake until local dinner time, hit the sack, and wake up feeling mostly human the next day to start your trip happy and safely.

Thanks David. I agree with you, but I'm getting a pretty hard push from my other little travelers as a must-do so if it's a reasonable thing we'll do it. But yes, it's like stopping at a cruise port, I'm sure. It's time-wise possible, but a VERY long day. If we flew in we'd have to for sure give up another city and I'm not sure what would be lowest on the list.

Well, I don't think it's a good and realistic use of one's time. Just driving from Ronda to Tarifa is not trivial; nor is driving back from Tarifa to reach Seville(!), especially after the long slog before that - yikes, what a day, that does not sound anything like fun to me. You'll be doing some of that driving in darkness (on one of the shortest days of the year) - if you do this, be careful.

I've been through Andalucia (and Morocco) several times. What you're proposing sounds like a mistake to me, but it's your trip.

As an alternative, you might consider this: spend that day working your way through the other White Hill towns (Pueblos Blancos) on the way to Seville, instead of trying to go touch Tangier briefly so everyone can come home and tell their friends that they rocked the casbah. Personally, while I'm glad I went to Ronda, I found other hill towns in the area a lot more appealing (Arcos de la Frontera was my favorite); there are several other towns you can do on a nice, enjoyable day trip across the region. I love Morocco, but I would save it for a trip when you can actually go to the parts of it that are worth the time and trouble.

Either way, good luck and be careful with all that driving.

You may consider cutting a night from Seville, as hard as that would be, in order to make time for the trip from Ronda to Tarifa to Seville. Consider staying a night in Tarifa so that you will not have to make the drive from there to Seville after such a long day. That way, you could just find a nice place to eat in Tarifa after the Tangiers day trip and relax without having to rush off to get to Seville. If you left Tarifa fairly early the next day, you could get to Seville in plenty of time for New Years celebrations. How does that sound?

To make the logistics for Tangiers work you really need to spend the nights before and after in Tarifa.

Wed 26DEC: Arrive Malaga at 12:55. Drive to Granada (2N)
Thu 27DEC: Granada: Alhambra
Fri 28DEC: Drive to Ronda (1N)
Sat 29DEC: Drive to Tarifa (2N)
Sun 30DEC: Tangiers day trip
Mon 31DEC: Drive to Seville (3N)
Tue 1JAN: Seville
Wed 2JAN: Seville
Thu 3JAN: Return to Malaga (1N)
Fri 4JAN: Fly out early

Thanks Australian David. I've revised our itinerary to stay the 29 & 30 in Tarifa so that we can get the full day in Tangier. Great advice!

You’re welcome. Sounds like a great little trip. I’m sure you’ll all have a fun time.