Wondering how many days to book in Seville and how many to plan on traveling. Is there another town worth a couple nights rather than a day trip (then doing 5 in Seville, 2-3 elsewhere?) Can we do things like Alhambra in a day trip from Seville by car? Our kids are well-seasoned travelers and enjoy museums and historical/archeological sites.
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
Are you talking about 7 days, in and out, from PA, USA? Philadelphia would be your nearest major airport with flights to Europe.
Posted by
Washington DC
27237 posts
I don't think the Alhambra is quite close enough to make a good day-trip from Seville. The Deutsche Bahn website says Granada is 3-1/2 hours each way, and unless you want to hop on the train at 6:50 AM, you won't get to Granada until after 3 PM because of the gappy schedule. (There may be buses at more convenient times, but it would still be a long trip.) Driving wouldn't be any faster. There's more to see than the Alhambra, too, so Granada would be a good possibility for a 2-night stay.
Cordoba is close enough to be a day-trip but is also a worthwhile overnight destination.
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
Several points to note.
1. You can't fly directly to Seville from USA. However, one stop (via London) may be your best arrival option.
2. Madrid is your closest major airport to Seville. American Airlines flies directly to/from Madrid from Philadelphia.
3. Granada and the Alhambra are not advisable as a day trip from Seville. It's a 3+ hour drive each way.
4. Cordoba and a visit to the Mezquita should be on your radar too, if Andalusia is your focus.
5. Seven nights in Spain is a tight time frame, but can be done, without too much stress, and without overly rushing.
Day
0. Depart Philadelphia on American Airlines via London for Seville
1. Arrive Seville (3N)
2. Seville
3. Day to Cordoba & Mezquita
4. Train to Granada (2N)
5. Visit Alhambra
6. Train to Madrid (2N)
7. Madrid
8. Depart Madrid for Philadelphia
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
The highlight of the Alhambra complex is the Nasrid Palace. For this you get a strict 30 minute window during which you must enter; miss that window, and you don't get in. Furthermore, it sells out, so you need to buy advance tickets; these will include your Nasrid Palace admission time, and you can then see the rest of the complex at other times that day.
All of this means that it's very difficult to make a day trip from Seville to Granada work. You'd have to hope that there are still afternoon Palace slots available for your one day, and hope that you're not delayed on your travel day. As said above, it's a drive of several hours, each way, between Granada and Seville.
A much better plan is 1-2 nights in Granada, and booking your Alhambra tickets for the day after your arrival. That way, whatever time you get for the Nasrid Palace, and even if you have delays getting to Granada, you won't miss the Palace. You could make a 1 night stay work if that's all you want to see in Granada; 2 nights are better if you want to see other things too.
Besides Seville and Granada, the other famous city in Andalucia is Cordoba (between the two). Cordoba can be seen as a day trip, although it takes longer by car than by express train. Italica, a Roman site close to Seville, makes a good half-day excursion from Seville (I took the bus, but with a car it's even easier). With a car you can also look into "white towns" like Arcos and Ronda (I didn't get to those).
Do you have Rick's Spain book (or his Snapshot: Sevilla, Granada & Southern Spain)? These have lots of details about these places and more in the area, as well as detailed driving and parking directions (driving and parking are restricted in the town centers, particularly Granada; he has exact directions for how to manage this).