Southern Spain in July, including Tangier

Sevilla less then a day, I think you will regret. I would stay AT LEAST another night. It's an amazing city with a fantastic vibe to it. Many major things to visit such as the alcazar, the cathedral and giralda, plaza di espana, plaza del toros, and many others. As well as just walking fantastic santa cruz, see a flamenco show, eat tapas, etc
Try to cut one day somewhere
Arcos is very nice. The whole road up to Ronda(sad you don't see) :-), Grazamela in between was a nice small white village.
Make sure you book your alhambra tickets in advance.
So these would be my first comments.
This corner of the world is amazing, we loved it. It's in the top areas we've liked the most in our many trips to Europe. You will love.

I would suggest spending just the 2 nights in Granada. Add that night to Seville which you have seriously short changed. Where is Cordoba as well for the Mezquita?
Madrid too has been undersold, as you could day trip to Toledo and Segovia - far better than a wide detour by car for a ferry ride to a North African port city. (I would love to go to Morocco, and hope to one day, but the Tangier day trip thing leaves me cold ... or maybe hot).

I also think you're shortchanging Madrid & Sevilla.

Since you only have 12 nights, which translates to 11 full days, I'd suggest something like this:

• Madrid - 3N-- possible day trip to Toledo or Segovia
• Córdoba - 1N
• Sevilla- 3N
• Granada - 2N
• Barcelona- 3N

If you don't want to spend an overnight in Córdoba, then add that night to Sevilla, and visit Córdoba as a day trip.

Enjoy your trip!

I have to go along with the others. You are trying to see too much and short-changing Sevilla/Cordoba. Rank your priorities and eliminate something!! One of the flaws in your plan is that you have a string of short stays - Madrid 2N, Sevilla 1N, Arcos 1N, Tarifa 2N - and that's the beginning of your trip. Take into account how much time you use up in moving - packing/unpacking, checking in/out of hotels, getting to/from the train station, extra time in the station to find your platform and go through security. If you travel in the morning, after breakfast, you aren't going to be luggage-free and ready to sightsee until around noon, missing the coolest part of the day.

Here's another idea for Tangier. From Madrid/Sevilla (choose one) train to Jerez (2N). See a horse show at the Royal Equestrian School, tour a sherry bodega, day-trip to Arcos by bus, maybe to Cadiz by train. Then rent a car and drive (about 2 hours) to Tarifa (1N). From Tarifa it's about 4 hours drive to Granada.

Lastly, the thought of spending a day at the Prado when I'm zonked after the long flight and jetlag, and possibly a bad night's sleep is far from enticing (and I've spent the better part of 2 days at the Prado, on 2 separate trips).

I've just had two summers in southern Europe, and I suspect you'll find the heat in Andalucía more draining than you are expecting. You mentioned having traveled in hot climates, but have you done that in places where you were outdoors most of the day pounding the sidewalks rather than splashing around a beach or a lake, and not traveling all the time in an air conditioned car?

I haven't been to Andalucía recently (Madrid and Extremadura were plenty hot enough in May/June, thankyouverymuch), but I believe you'll find a lot of places not air conditioned that would be cooled in the US--train station shopping concourses, small cafes, small shops, etc. Museums can be positively stifling if they don't house temperature-sensitive objects like paintings. If you're not sightseeing near your hotel, it's not necessarily so easy to find a place to get out of the heat.

Seville's average high temperature (not the record high, the average high) is at or above 100F for the months of July and August.

I'm not trying to convince you not to go (I went to Sicily in July myself--though it's not quite as hot), but I urge you to think about strategies for dealing with the draining heat. I think this is going to make your trip pretty tiring, and you're planning to set a rapid pace. A common suggestion is to adopt the Spanish habit of taking a long afternoon break in your hotel. But will you have time for that with all you want to see?

Hi, everyone! Thanks so much for your feedback! I love this forum - people are so experienced and insightful. Anyway, my husband and I are reworking our plan a bit, based on info here. :) It's just so frustrating to have the typical American jobs with very few vacation days per year - we try to pack in a lot of experiences, especially since our kids are up for it. But we want to have a fun, enjoyable trip, so we're going to take into account the heat, the pace, and our priorities regarding places to visit. Thanks again!

Whilst I acknowledge that you're coming from the US and want to fit as much as you can into the limited time you have I'm afraid you'll simply be seeing the sights rather than enjoying and experiencing them.

We're in Spain several times a year and, particularly with kids, the heat is incredibly draining and it is not enjoyable rushing around trying to cram as much in as possible. There's a reason the Spanish take siestas and everything reawakens in the early evening. After spending the day traipsing around in the heat, eating dinner late and finally getting to bed it's going to be a real drain getting up early and repeating the experience or travelling to the next destination.

We were in Washington DC last August and trying to fit in a number of the museums and other sights in the heat was difficult, Southern Spain in July is hotter and without the aircon that we enjoyed in DC.

My suggestion is to drop a significant number of destinations, certainly Tangier, and focus more on experiencing Spain and immersing yourselves into the culture, you'll make it a more enjoyable and memorable experience.

I also have to echo adding more time to Sevilla. I went there last January for 4 days and wished I had more time there. I wanted more time there so much that I'm going back next month! It is a very special place (my fave city ever)! Hope you and your family will experience it. Happy travels!

My husband and I just got back from a two week trip to Andalucia and Madrid - you can actually read my whole trip report in "trip reports" - two parts. However, here's my advice:

DEFINITELY note that it'll be hot as hell in July - we were there from 4/3-4/17 and it was 80+ and sunny EVERY day - basically a tropical vacation. We were expecting milder weather.

Sevilla and Granada were our favorite places - we stayed 3 nights in Sevilla, 2 in Granada and wish we had more time. You MUST see the Alcazar in Sevilla and the Alhambra in Granda - breathtaking.

I really disliked Cordoba, and wouldn't suggest it. If you must, do a day trip.

We originally booked a ferry from Tarifa to Tangier, but due to some weather situation the port closed and we weren't able to go. Some people on here may try to dissuade you from going to Tangier, but I would recommend it because you're "in the neighborhood," why not!

Please note that driving through Spain is BREATHTAKINGLY beautiful, but the roads are very hilly, and if you rent a manual trans, it's an exercise in down-shifting to get your car up the hills. Get an automatic unless you're an experienced manual driver.

We made use of the siesta time in the day to relax and unwind, possibly nap. The heat is tiring, as well as all the walking. We would be up & out from about 9am-2 or 3pm, then back out 6pm or later for dinner and tapas, etc.