we'd like suggestions for lodging in Madrid, Granada, Cordoba and Sevilla for mid-March. No B&Bs or hostels, but price and proximity to trains and buses are important
We are considering renting a car for travel thru Granada Córdoba and Sevilla. What is parking like in those cities?
thx!
booking.com should do it.
Do not dismiss premises described as a hostal or hostales thinking it is a hostel (or any title in the description for that matter).
Your rental car is an expensive (to me) burden in these cities.
Just for info: "hostal" refers to a hotel with basic ammenities, and has nothing to do with a hostel.
Yes I understand about hostales.. Maybe I should have said youth hostels
We will be checking out from hotels in the morning and continuing our sightseeing the rest of the day. So we are concerned about what we do with our luggage. We are traveling light but these small suitcases may be too large for train or bus station storage. Can anyone advise on the size of lockers at stations?
Thanks!
Lockers are meant for luggage storage. I've never seen a station locker that wasn't plenty large enough to hold a carry-on sized suitcase, and there is usually an even larger option. Granada train station does not have this service; in Cordoba, it's at the nearby bus station. Any hotel will hold your bags after you check out, so that is usually first choice.
We stayed at the Macia Real hotel in Granada. There are two in that chain in the city; we were at the one that is not in the older section of town, but it's actually fairly close to the Alhambra. A bus just outside the door took us into the center in about 10 minutes. One reason we chose it was because it had parking. The price was also reasonable. The room was modern and good-sized. The bathroom , again, very modern and sizable. The breakfast was extra, but quite a good value. The hotel has a pool and, I think I'm remembering correctly, some kind of fitness center. We had an extremely satisfactory stay. My only reservation is that this all happened more than 10 years ago, so if you want to consider it, check for current reviews.
In Granada, you can park in the Alhambra lot and take the 5 minute walk down the hill through the Puerta de las Grenadas gate and into the old city. Take the bus (#31) from Plaza Nueva up the hill for your Alhambra tour. In Cordoba, there is free parking in the shopping mall just SE of the old city. Look for the McDonalds sign on the outside of mall. Park underground and walk across the street to the Jewish Quarter. In Seville, there is an underground car park just north of Jardines Reales Alcazores on Avenue de Menendez Pelayo. Use San Telmo as a landmark. It is an easy walk from the car park into the Barrio Santa Cruz. Google Maps will show you exactly where the lots are.
We stayed in the Hotel Viento ( in the old Jewish Quarter) in Cordoba which is 5 minutes from the mall car park. In Seville, the Hotel Amadeus (in Barrio Santa Cruz) is just a couple of blocks from the underground lot on Avenue de Menendez Pelayo. In Granada, we stayed in the Hotel Puerta de las Granadas, less than 100 yards from Plaza Nueva, the main plaza in Granada. This is only a 2 Star hotel but the location was perfect and included a nice patio on the second floor and a good breakfast. Location, location, location.
Andalusia is very welcoming.
Ed
I typically use smaller hotels so you may not like my choices.
I think you would be really happy with our choice in Cordoba:
Hotel Hesperia Córdoba
Avenida Fray Albino, 1
14009 Córdoba
It's a decent modern hotel with a rooftop lounge, lots of free and safe parking in the area, and a short walk across the Roman bridge (walking bridge only) to the Mesquita and surrounding quarter. If I wasn't driving, I might have wanted to be in the old center but this was perfect for the person with a car.
We stayed in a pretty large hotel in Sevilla:
Hotel Silken al Andalus Palace
Avenida de la Palmera s/n, esq. C/ Paraná
41012. Seville, Spain
T: +34 954 230 600
This is much bigger/more luxurious than my normal hotel but I found a great deal for a four night stay. They have parking in an underground garage, but the area has plenty of free and safe parking so save yourself money and park on the street. The hotel isn't downtown but there is a bus stop at the end of the block that takes you downtown in about ten minutes and runs longer than you will (during April Fair, we were catching buses at 4 am).
We loved the place we stayed at in Granada but it was just a tiny Hostal with maybe 8 rooms. It was downtown, a few blocks from the Cathedral and walking distance (for regular walkers) to all of the main sights. There was a parking garage around the corner - so you don't have to park all the way up by the Alhambra.
Pension Zurita
Plaza de la Trinidad, 7
18002 Granada
We may have parked at Parking Victoria (but it seems like ours was even closer than that).
I wasn't particularly impressed with our place in Madrid (expensive and adequate is the best I can say). We had dropped our car in Cordoba and fast trained into Madrid, so can't recommend parking anywhere. There are two Hostals in the same building Hostal Santa Cruz and Hostal Cruz Sol. They are nicely located, an easy walk to either Plaza Mayor or Puerta del Sol but the rooms are utilitarian, not at all charming, especially compared to much cheaper rooms we stayed in elsewhere in Spain.
