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Plane/train travel in southern Spain

Posted by (Lubbock, TX) on

I'm starting to plan my next vacation for summer 2017, and right now I'm looking at a combination of Lisbon, southern Spain (Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada) and Berlin. The issue I'm considering is: what's the cheapest and most time-conserving method to travel from city to city, and in what order should I see the Spanish cities? At first I thought it made the most sense to travel from west to east (Lisbon to Granada), but flights from Granada to Berlin are much more expensive than from Seville. I'll be flying into Lisbon from the US, but after that, what would be the cheapest/fastest way to see the south of Spain? Here is what I was originally planning:

Lisbon-Sevilla (plane)
Sevilla-Cordoba (train)
Cordoba-Granada (train)
Granada-Berlin (plane)

Because Granada isn't a transportation hub like Sevilla and Madrid, it takes longer to get to and is more expensive to travel out of Granada to Germany. I've thought about flying Lisbon-Malaga and maybe spend a day there and then bus to Granada, followed by train to Cordoba and Sevilla, fly Sevilla to Berlin. Is Malaga worth adding to the schedule if it cuts down on transportation costs? This is my first trip to the south of Spain (I spent a month in Barcelona and Madrid last year) so I don't mind adding other cities if they're cheaper to fly into/out of from/to Lisbon/Berlin.

Posted by
27190 posts

It's unfortunate that the search function here only picks up words in thread titles, not in thread texts. I know there have been several positive comments about things to do in Malaga over the last 1 - 3 months, but they were apparently in broader threads not specifying Malaga in their titles. I did find this older thread that may be helpful. I haven't been to Malaga myself, but it definitely seems worth a visit if it won't cut too severely into your time in Seville, Cordoba and Granada.

Posted by
15593 posts

I wouldn't put Malaga in the same category as Sevilla/Cordoba/Granada, but it is a pleasant town with a few things to see. If you can get a good price on a Malaga flight, it's worth going there for a night or two. Or perhaps do a "triangle" of Andalucia - fly to Sevilla, but go straight to Cordoba, then Granada, then Sevilla. Also consider the bus to/from Granada.

Posted by
11294 posts

In 2005, I took the train from Seville to Cordoba, the bus from Cordoba to Granada (3 hours), and the bus from Granada to Malaga (2 hours). Since then the fast trains in this region are more extensive, and by summer 2017 the fast trains from Granada should be operational. But if they're not, do consider buses. You get an assigned seat, and they're much nicer than Greyhound in the US.

I was in Malaga for the same reason you're considering it - the airport. But I had a nice day there (unfortunately I don't remember specifics). Malaga's center and its airport are connected by a frequent, cheap, local train line.

Posted by
5226 posts

Bill,
I like Chani's suggestion & it makes good sense:

Or perhaps do a "triangle" of Andalucia - fly to Sevilla, but go straight to Cordoba, then Granada, then Sevilla. Also consider the bus to/from Granada.

Check flight prices from Madrid to Berlin. But then you'd have add the expense of a train ticket (Sevilla to Madrid or Granada to Madrid)

You can book your train tickets 60- 90 days in advance at considerable savings on the Renfe website:http://www.renfe.com/EN/viajeros/

Have a wonderful trip!

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