Thank you all for your comments on my previous itinerary. Here is my tentative revised schedule. Please let me know your thoughts:
Barcelona-9 days
Granada -6 days
Malaga - 4 days
Seville - 7 days
Cordoba: 3 days
Toledo - 3 days
Segovia - 2 days
Madrid -6 days
Thanks again for any input you may have. This is our first trip to Spain and I'm finding planning it to be challenging.
Unless you’re taking days trips I feel you have too many days in Granada, Sevilla, and possibly Toledo, but it all comes down to what you want to see and do while visiting those places. It should be a nice trip.
Thanks. How long would you recommend in each of those places?
I actually don't think three in Toledo is too much. Assuming that's 2 full days plus the arrival day, you can easily fill that time.
Seven in Seville is leisurely, but you know, maybe that's a good thing. Relax a little.
But do agree six in Granada is a long time. Not sure how I'd fill that long of a stretch. I'd maybe take that down to three or four, and redistribute the days among the other stops.
Overall, though, I think this a great deep dive into Spain. What time of year is this, BTW?
As stated, it depends on what you want to see and do. To me, Granada needs 3 nights, meaning two full days and the arrival day. Sevilla can be fully explored in 4-5 days, meaning 5-6 nights. Toledo deserves 2 full days, so 2-3 nights. Others will have a different opinion on how many days are needed.
Thanks again. We arrive mid April through the first week of June, it may be too long. I’m trying to spend appropriate time in representative places without driving my huaand crazy with too many stops. I may abbreviate it by a week and head down to Italy where I’m very comfortable.
Let’s call these # of nights and not # of days - and you have my kind of slow travel.
We ARE all different, so for me this would be too long in Barcelona (but I am not one of those who absolutely loves it). I would shave it to 6 nights and go somewhere else (maybe Valencia?) for 3 nights. I AM that person who loves Granada, but it would be ok to shave a night if you need it somewhere else.
With 7 nights in Seville, you could run to Jerez or Cadiz for the day. And with 6 nights in Madrid, I would have to take a day drip (or two) - but I am not a big city person. Your style may differ. :) Haven’t been to Malaga.
Could you do all this in less time? Sure, but if you don’t have to, then why not take your time. Basically you look like you are taking a very nice, leisurely stroll through the south. It would be fine with no changes.
I sincerely thank you all for your help. Italy is no problem for me, but for some reason I have been struggling with planning this trip and truly appreciate your input.
@ pollocktoni. You've done a great job. Yeah, you might tweak here and there, or you might not. But the hard work is done. Now you can relax a little and enjoy the research and discovery process that is unique to you. Find what YOU want to do in these places, and what you are most eagerly anticipating, rather than how much time you "should" spend at each stop. Put the fun back into the planning process -- you've earned it!!
Aww...thank you so much. I really appreciate it. Love this blog to get real information from people who have been there. Thanks again. It means the world to me.
The older I get, the more I appreciate slow travel. We were in Spain last Nov. for 3 weeks. This was our third trip to Spain, but our first time in Andalucía. We had round trip plane tickets in/out of Madrid with 2 nights upon arrival and departure.
Our itinerary included 3 nights in Toledo (loved it!), 4 nights in Cordoba (can't wait to go back!), 3 nights in Granada (wished we had 4!) and 7 nights in Sevilla (never ran out of things to do!).
Spain is wonderful! Enjoy!
Barcelona-8 days are too many days more like 5. Easy train to Girona. Would do 2 nights in Girona. Can train to Figures to see Dali museum. Also bus to Cadiques to see Dali home and charming fishing village. Could stay there 1 night.
Granada -5 days Doable because has lot of charm.
Malaga - 4 days Ok.
Seville - 4 days
Cordoba: 3 days
Toledo - 3 days
Segovia - 2 days
Madrid -5 days
Easy train add Avila charming walled city 2 days.
Train from Avila -Add Salamanca lovely town. 2 days.
You also could train from MAD to Valencia and train down to Malaga. If you like to fast travel Valencia is worth seeing for 2 days.
"Let's get ready rumble...!!!!" 😛
So I humbly and respectfully disagree with @Ann, Citizen of World. We traveled in Spain for 46 days last year, so not dissimilar to your proposed itinerary. What you've given yourself is the gift of TIME. Both Avila and Salamanca are easy daytrips from Madrid. I would not pack and unpack; check-in and check-out, all while cutting down my nights in Madrid. Same for Barcelona and Girona. I think a long, ambitious daytrip is still ultimately less exhausting than repeated relocations. Come back to your neighborhood. Have some vermouth. Order some tapas. I would prioritize long days and groovier evenings over short stays across three cities.
BUT...I 100% acknowledge that's OUR travel style and where we are in life. You've been given two equally valid but different suggestions. What works best for you?
Though I try to avoid day trips myself, I'll agree with "History Traveller": if your goal is to "see everything" (even if it means just glimpsing a lot of it), choosing a minimum of overnight bases, and doing day trips, seems to be a more relaxing way to travel, especially in a country with a great train system, like Spain.
Also, I have to put in another recommendation for timing itineraries by nights. In fact, timing by days is so vague I prefer not to struggle with a response. Consider "Cordoba - 3 days": does this mean
[] Three full (non-travel) days, as in arriving Monday and leaving Friday (my preferred definition); or
[] About 72 hours, the equivalent of three days, as in arriving mid-day Monday, and leaving mid-day Thursday; or
[] A mere span of three days, as in arriving late Monday, and leaving early Wednesday?
The kind of advice I might give for filling your time in Cordoba would vary considerably, depending on which of those cases is your idea of "three days." Note that timing by nights is precise, the number of full days being the number of nights minus one. (Example: arriving Monday, and leaving Thursday, implies three nights in town, but only two full days, Tu. and Wed.)
Your planned time allowances are similar to what I have done in most cases. I'll give you some possible day trips in case you get stir crazy:
First, I would put Madrid and Andalucia first and Barcelona last just because of the heat. Also check for local ferias (festivals) in Andalucia. Off the top of my head, there's a spring festival in Sevilla, patios in Cordoba and horses in Jerez.
Second, it's much better to count in nights, which gives you a better sense of how much time you really have in each place.
I love Barcelona, I could (and have) filled twice that much with only a couple of return visits to sights and 3-4 day trips. I would go back in a heartbeat. There are great walking tours, and day tours out of the city, as well as a number of easy day trips on your own by train. Spend a couple hours browsing the official TI website for all the possibilities.
I spent 4N in Granada and felt that 3 would have been enough but since your trip is a lot longer, 4N seems good.
I was in Malaga once, for the Holy Week celebrations. 4N and I saw most of the sights (nice enough) in my "spare time." It may be a good place if you want some beach time.
Sevilla is another city with much to see and interesting to wander. Cordoba is my favorite Spanish city, so for me, 3N gives you just enough time to scratch the surface. OTOH Toledo which is somewhat similar (don't ask me why I think so, I can't really explain it), 3N is fine.
I haven't been to Segovia, but many seem to think it's fine as a day trip. You might consider just a single night with a small overnight bag. There's left luggage at the Madrid Atocha train station.
5N in Madrid is okay, especially if you switch and start there. If you love European painting, you'll want 2 full days for the 3 major art museums, with your first full day seeing some other sights.
With so much time on your hands, are you willing to drive for some sections of your trip? You could easily take 3 days from Granada to explore the white villages around Ronda, for example. Or explore the Catalonian Pyrenees. Or... wherever, really.
And if you do not drive, I would consider adding Extremadura. Take 3 days out of Granada, 1 out of Seville, and spend 4 days in Cáceres, from where you can visit Trujillo and Mérida.
If you do that, I would reorder the trip as follows:
Barcelona-Cordoba-Granada-Malaga-Sevilla-Extremadura-Madrid area
