should i get a car or stick with bus/trains?

Take trains and buses. Having a rental car in those locations saves you an hour or so here and there, but once you arrive in Tarifa, Lisbon and Porto — the car will be an albatross wrapped around your neck and a burden beyond belief. Entering those cities with a car will be very stressful, parking will be a nightmare and any time gained by driving will be lost once you factor in parking, refueling and shopping for antacids! You will be able to actually enjoy your trip if you simply take buses and trains and leave the stress behind.

The only part of your journey where a car makes sense is Arco and the hill towns of Andalusia. So, just rent a car for that portion and return it in Andalusia.

Personally, I would skip Tangiers because it’s simply not worth the hassle. If Morocco is a must-see—then fly from Seville (SVQ) to Marrakech (RAK) in 90 minutes for less than $50 and then fly to Lisbon ( LIS) in another 90 minutes for less than $50 www.Skyscanner.com has flight schedules and airfares.
You can book IRYO trains from Madrid to Cordoba and Seville now at www.IRYO.eu
Madrid to Granada is exclusively a Renfe route. From Granada to Seville, the bus is best. www.Alsa.com
Have a great trip!

Wow, that car is cheap, specially if it includes drop off charges. For your planning add €25-30 per day, for parking in most places and tolls. I don’t like flying internally in Europe because they are very strict with bag size/wt and the cheap fares are no frills. So I gets why you are driving.

Just so you know, the Granada to Seville route by train is 3.5 hrs, Renfe the only provider and only basic/2nd class offered (2X2). I couldn’t choose my seats - they assigned them. But here again, I prefer train travel vs bus. Find train seats more comfy, can walk around and toilets are better, generally.

We were thinking something similar but dropped Portugal, spending more time in Andalucia with 3 cities covered by train and rest by car in a loop, picking up from/to Seville Justa stn.

I’m curious which car rental company and who did you book through? Does this include excess damaged waiver?

mike

Speaking for the last leg, in Barcelona:

While having a car gives you more freedom to go out and about at your own pace, here in Catalonia you can do a lot and see a lot using public transportation (bus and/or train). For example, a day escapade to Besalú and Girona, Sitges, Tarragona, Sant Sadurní d'Anòia, Montserrat...

Unless you intend on stopping at out of the way locations, i.e., really small villages not served by public transportation or nature areas for walking, there’s no reason to have a rental car. It appears public transportation would be fine for most of the places on your itinerary.

If you do get a rental car and go to Tangier, ensure your insurance covers theft and/or break in since you’re leaving it unattended in Tarifa.