Recommendations for car hire, shuttle service, transfer in Andalucia

CP, welcome to this board with your first post.

It might help us if you can explain why you want a car-and-driver for these city changes. I mean, are you reluctant to drive in Spain, do you have an impediment, etc. Are you staying in traditional hotels, or in unstaffed apartments? I ask that, not to berate you for using AirBnb, but because a hotel desk is a good place to ask for the name of a land-travel-partner; The hotel has a huge incentive to demand good service, and the partner has a huge incentive to provide it. Also, are you skipping Madrid on this trip? Is any of the transport paid by a third party, like your employer?

That said, have you looked at Google Maps? These are very large distances. How can someone quote an affordable price for an empty-return over such a distance? Except for the first (Cordoba), I think it's a tough row to hoe.

I have rented a car and driven this route, but I cannot recommend that to you without more information. Please come back and post again.

Why not just take the train?

Yes, impediment to drive. I don't mind train from Madrid to Cordoba and Cordoba to Ronda, but am having some challenges with Ronda to Granada -- train times are far from ideal from what I'm hoping to see/do. So while I could do train for the other point to points, it's this last leg that is causing challenges. Hence I was seeking maybe a private driver or shuttle and didn't know if they'd be willing to do just one route. Thanks for any tips, ideas, suggestions! Please keep them coming.

On a related note, anyone know anything about whether blablacar is a good option for this?

Blablacar is organized hitchhiking/ridesharing. I don't think that's what you're looking for. Those aren't professional drivers, and someone could very easily cancel on you, or show up hours late.

There's a company called MyDayTrip that works to connect travelers like you to local transportation providers. I haven't used that company, but others on the forum have. It might be what you're looking for if you don't have a hotel concierge to suggest a driver the hotel has worked with before. MyDayTrip will arrange direct point-to-point trips, or it will arrange trips with an intermediate stop for sightseeing (at extra cost).

Understand that MyDayTrip will receive a commission from whatever driver it finds for you, so you may well pay more than you would if you arranged the trip yourself.

You certainly don't need a car in Granada or Cordoba, but multiple nights in Ronda would be more fruitful with a car available. Ronda is actually a nice place, with plenty of walking to do. But it's far from anywhere without a car. OTOH, we overdid it to daytrip to Gibraltar from Ronda. But we knew we didn't want an overnight in Gibraltar.

I don't want to get into the morality discussion, that Rick covers in some of his books, but note that Ronda has a bullring. For a place overrun with day-trippers, it's very much a place where people live.

If it is true that car rental prices (not to mention gas and diesel) are way up, perhaps a car service isn't such a luxury price after all. It's still hard to justify single-nights with a professional driver. They have to make a living, and if they could do three trips to the Madrid airport in one day, why should they put all that wear and tear on their car? Just thinking out loud. These are not cheap places to stay, what would they do if they stayed on the road with your continuing trip? And they may have a family-remember that Europeans work to live, not as we do, live to work.

Thank you very much for the helpful replies! Much appreciated.

I am using this company recommended in the RS Spain guide book-
he may be able to help as well with transfers and drivers.

Carlos Galvin
Founder at Letango Tours

M +1(919) 785-8719
W www.letango.com
E [email protected]