Itinerary help for two weeks in Spain

Posted by merrynmg on 04/01/17 02:32 AM

I'm flying in and out of Barcelona in August and hoping for some advice on my itinerary while I'm in Spain. I have 3 weeks total but I'm leaning towards spending about a week in Morocco also. I'll be traveling alone (35 y/o woman) and don't want to be super rushed- I'd prefer to see fewer locations but have a chance to relax and explore vs. trying to fit everything in. I'd like to have about 1/2 of the time relaxing at the beach or in the countryside and half of the time more active and seeing cultural sights. I love Spanish wines and would like to see at least a couple of wineries. The itineraries I'm considering are below.

Option 1
Arrive in Barcelona and spend 5-7 days
Drive or take train/bus up the Costa Brava to Tossa de Mar or Lloret de Mar (open to other beach towns also- looking for someplace charming and relaxing- not too much of a party town, with good beaches.) Spend 5 days to a week here.
2 days in Madrid.
Fly to Morocco and spend 4 days in Marrakesh and 2 days in Essaouiria.
Return to Barcelona to fly home

Option 2
Arrive in Barcelona and spend 5-7 days
Drive to San Sebastian (2 days)- spending the night in Rioja
5-7 days in San Sebastian/ Basque
2 days somewhere else- Madrid?
Fly to Morocco and spend 4 days in Marrakesh
Return to Barcelona

Option 3
Barcelona- 5 days
Madrid 3 days
5-7 days on the Costa del Sol- Marbella?
Fly to Morocco- 5-7 days

Is Madrid a must see? I love museums- but I know there are several great museums in Barcelona also- am I hugely missing out if I miss the Prado?

Does the convenience of the Costa Brava to Barcelona make it a better option than San Sebastian or Marbella?

Any place that I should definitely see that I'm missing on this itinerary?
How far in advance do I need to book accommodations in August- If I were to drive along the coast/ Rioja would I be able to play it by ear and book rooms as I go?

Thanks!

Posted by acraven

Washington DC

04/01/17 03:03 AM

27138 posts

Research the range of temperatures to be expected in August in San Sebastian if being able to go into the water every day is an inherent part of your plan. You can pull up hour-by-hour historical temperature graphs going back quite a few years on wunderground.com. The northern coast of Spain can be quite cool even in mid-summer. That makes it a lovely place to visit when you want to escape the heat, but not necessarily ideal for a beach vacation. [edited for clarity]

There's a long list of places I'd want to see rather than spending 5 days in a little beach town, but I am not a beach person. I do adore Barcelona. The Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya is a fine, large museum. Fanatical art people would feel they had to go to Madrid for the museums. That doesn't mean you have to. Every trip involves trade-offs. In addition to the expected paintings, MNAC has a very interesting modernisme collection and some very impressive frescoes rescued from extremely old churches in the Pyrenees.

I think San Sebastian (along with Barcelona and Madrid) is a place where you might be limited to sort of pricey options if you wait till the last minute to make reservations for August. I traveled all around Spain mostly doing that last year, but I booked Barcelona more than a month ahead (for August 1 - August 10), and I made a point of going to the Basque Country in June. San Sebastian was awash in tourists even then. The beach was large. And mostly empty. I deduced cold water but did not check it out.

Fares will also be substantially higher for fast trains if you don't buy your tickets well in advance. The flexibility may be worth it to you, however.

I liked Fes as much as Marrakesh. I haven't been to Essaouira.