Nights in arcos & cordoba & porto

I would spend at least 2 nights in Cordoba. There is a lot to see and do here: The Mezquita, the Alcazar and its beautiful gardens, the Roman Bridge, exploring the Juderia, Palacio de Viana with its 12 patios, etc. The Juderia is so pretty and atmospheric with its narrow lanes, white-washed buildings, flower pots, patios, etc. We spent 2 nights in Cordoba, but an extra night would have been nice for leisurely wandering and getting lost.

If you arrive early enough in Arcos de la Frontera to walk around then one night should be sufficient. The town isn’t very large. Two nights for Córdoba and three nights for Porto, but those are dependent on what you want to see in each place. Time of year, meaning the number of daylight hours, will factor in.

I was thinking 2 nights in cordoba so this helps. Last time in Andalusia 7 years back, one night in Ronda was enough. This time round doing three nights in Sevilla.

Did you visit Sevilla during your last trip to Spain? If not, then I would recommend 4 nights in Sevilla for a first-time visit if you can add an extra night to your trip.

As a Cordobian and guide I hardly recomend to come to Córdoba at least 1 night.

I spent five nights in Cordoba in 2024 and that was a great amount of time. So for you, I'd certainly recommend two nights, minimum.

Sevilla=absolutely minimum, three nights.

Arcos, you could skip in order to cut down changing hotels so often, and you could spend those nights in Cordoba or elsewhere.

Where else do you plan to visit, in Spain?? Do you want small towns, cities, etc??

Sckurncky nyc - itinerary: Madrid, ciudad rodrigo, Porto, nazare w day trip to Tomar, Lisbon, Salema, Sevilla, Arcos, Cordoba, Grenada, Toledo Most place are 2-4 nights.

Since you’re driving consider stopping in some of the small villages between your lodging destinations. Some places we enjoyed between Ávila and Ciudad Rodrigo are Mogarraz (portraits of former residents on the buildings), La Alberca, Hervás (bridge, Jewish quarter), Granadilla (residents were relocated. Now a school. Check its open hours), Arenas de San Pedro (castle, medieval bridge), Béjar (medieval city walls), and El Barco de Ávila (castle, 1300s bridge). Mogarraz and La Alberca are very close to each other, on Spain’s prettiest villages list, and only an hour’s drive from Ciudad Rodrigo.

In Ciudad Rodrigo visit the Parador (the old castle) and climb up the tower. It affords some great views of the surrounding area. There’s little to the city itself and it has no wow sites. We spent one night there and felt that was sufficient. It would be a nice base to visit some smaller villages that seldom see a tourist.

I recommend looking up parking lots for places you plan to stop in. All the places I mentioned have free parking lots, but you need to know where they are to prevent driving aimlessly looking for them and because some are not marked.