Questions about mid-January in Andalusia- how quiet is it?

Granada for at least 2 days. Granada should be the first stop for every visitor to Spain.

Are you aware "Andalusia" is neither a theme-park nor a summer resort, are you not? :) Andalusia has 8.4 million residents and cities like Córdoba or Granada have 350 thousand and 230 thousand respectively... and, their lives go on all year long, meaning restaurants, museums, shops, leisure sites... everything is open for residents to enjoy. While tourism in Andalucia is indeed seasonal, peaking in summer with +1.2 million visitors in August, low season months like January sees +450 thousand visiting this region, so, "quiet" is not something you're likely to find in any city.

Though Enric provides the statistics that Andalusia doesn't become deserted after Christmas, there is the fact that some sites reduce hours and darkness falls early. But this is Spain, the country of afternoon siestas and late, late dinners. They revel in evening activities around meals and family. Of the 3 locations, Cordoba will be the sleepiest at night as its tourist area is a little removed from real life.
The high speed train is running from Granada to numerous places now. I u derstood that included Seville. It is a little further, but it is defi itely worth the effort.

I was in Andalusia during the first half of November. There were still largish crowds at the main "attractions". I would guess that mid-January would be a little quieter, but not dead. You trip time is quite short. So it's hard to advise how to break it up. My favorite cities were Sevilla and Cordoba, but then my favorite site was the Alhambra, with Cordoba's Mezquita VERY close behind. Cordoba doesn't get its just do, it is lovely and the old town, patios and rivers are exceptional The high speed trains are your friend. How many nights do you have? I don't mind changing hotels more often than most on the forum, but will do short stays when there is merit, and I feel for this trip there is merit for all three cities. I would suggest going to Sevilla on the train when you arrive Madrid and stay 4 nights. Take the train to Granada and stay for 2 nights, and then take the train to Cordoba for 2 nights. I would stay the night before your flight home in Madrid. If you only have 8 nights (which probably means you have 7 days) I would take a night from Cordoba (but that suggestion makes me sad)

Even in January, I'd recommend advance purchase tickets to the Alhambra and Sevilla's Alcazar.

Since it's very risky to buy train tickets in advance for your arrival day (they'll be worthless if your flight is seriously delayed), yet the cost can be rather high for last-minute purchases, there's a lot to be said for making Cordoba your first stop if it makes it onto your itinerary. It's the shortest trip from Madrid and therefore the cheapest ticket to buy on the day of travel. I can't guarantee that trains won't be sold out, but I assume it's less likely in January than at other times.

Acraven makes a good point and whether you go to Cordoba before Sevilla or after Granada, does not make much of the difference. We did take the train from Madrid to Sevilla and it did cost us about 20-25 euro more per person to buy the tickets day of. Logistically it made sense for us to get to Sevilla, but OP's time frame and priorities could likely differ.

Thank you for your replies. I had a negative experience with Amsterdam in December, which was where my question originated. Maria, your comment has reassured me.thank you.!
Appreciate all the info. Now I just have to figure out how to get to Granada on a Friday or Saturday as I have read that the nighttime Alhambra visits only happen on the weekend in the winter.

Schedules of key sights would be a factor, too. I just wanted to point out the probable financial advantage of starting in Cordoba. But the variation in price or a train ticket could easily be swamped by hotel-rate anomalies if there's something going on in one of the cities that has boosted demand. Then there's the question of sightseeing: What is closed on each day of the week? On a short trip you have to be very efficient.

I remember spending 2 nights in Toledo in early November, and yes, the streets were dead down town....so if you experienced the same in Amsterdam, then maybe lodging is going to need to be more strategic. Cordoba tourist centre has numerous little restaurants in the alleys around the Mesquita, so you won't be totally alone, and you just have to accept you may need to take a pack of cards for the evening. Granada has a University, and it seems that reviews note the Realejo district is a little more 'happening' that say, the lower section of the Albacin. I will admit, I loved the night visit to the Alhambra if you can work it in. I did that first, for the atmosphere and magic, and the next day did an early morning visit and then the gardens. As a lot of it is shrubs and hedges, it is still worth seeing even in 'winter'. I don't typically stay in hotels, so can't recall where they tend to be in Sevilla, but the shopping area 'north' of the Plaza Nueva was busy in evenings, and has some Flamenco shows in the area. Calle Cuna, Tetuan, Mendoza Nunez for example. Still walking distance to the 'mushroom', near the tram and accessible to the Cathedral and main sites.

I went to Andalusia last year mid January with my mom and it was great. We only had 8 nights and since we really wanted to focus on Andalusia we cut Madrid from the itinerary completely and flew into Malaga (via LAX to Heathrow) instead of a direct flight from LA to Madrid and then a train. We rented a car so it was more of a road trip.

We stayed in Ronda, Cordoba, Granada and right by the airport in Malaga (late flight in and super early flight out so it was really convenient). Long story short, Malaga and Granada seemed the most lively with the most people out and about in the evening. Unfortunately we didn’t go to Seville. That said, there were still plenty of places open in the evening in Ronda and Córdoba (I’m thinking of restaurants mainly) and plenty to do during the day, however, on this trip we tended to get up super early and not stay up terribly late.

I went to Arles a few years ago in October and wandered around the old town for quite awhile one midweek night trying to find where all the people disappeared to and where the open restaurants where! We eventuality found them but everyone seemed to all be in the same square!

If you only have 8 days (7 nights?) I’d maybe just stick to Madrid and one other place and really experience them. Maybe a day trip or overnight to Toledo added in? I regret not going to Toledo (and not bringing a warmer coat!) but really tried not to do toooo much even though it’s tempting. Also, the weather was great during the day but ended up being a bit colder than expected at night. Quite a bit colder actually. Whatever you choose it will be amazing! We loved Spain so much we are planning another trip soon!

Thank you so much! Sounds like you did a very similar trip! This is great information. We are also coming from the West coast (sfo). I wish we had been able to get a flight into Malaga, but I found a deal on the flight to Madrid so I'll have to do it that way. But I really appreciate your comments on the towns and the weather. So helpful!