Spain

Twelve days for Barcelona-Seville-Madrid, or twelve days for Lisbon-Barcelona-Seville-Madrid?

12 days for the cities in Spain

The only possible problem is that Barcelona to Seville is at least 6 or 7 hours train ride. Otherwise there is a flight from Barcelona to Seville

I would do

4 Barcelona day trip
4 Seville day trip
4 Madrid

Thanks.

I would definitely visit all three of the cities you listed. As for dividing your time, there really isn't a magic answer that fits everyone. Much depends on your interests. Rick's "Spain" guide book covers Barcelona, Madrid and Andalucia well. Read the sightseeing information to see where it seems like you will need more time.

These are some factors to consider:

• You will lose a good bit of time just moving between Barcelona, Seville and Madrid. If you add day-trips (and I would want to do a few), that will be more time spent on trains or buses.

• Madrid has 3 major art museums that you may, or may not, want to allow a lot of time for. The other top time-consuming sight is the Palacio Real. There are a lot of smaller museums, of course. Consult your guidebook to see whether some are of interest. I'd like to have the better part of a day just for walking around the historic core in the vicinity of the Plaza Mayor, grabbing tapas at the San Miguel Market, etc.

• Madrid has more than its share of fabulous day-trip destinations, at least 3 of which (Toledo, Segovia and Cuenca) could justify an overnight stay. I think Toledo is especially fabulous, though it gets a lot of tourists. You also have access to Salamanca, El Escorial, and the smaller Avila. Add one day for each day-trip.

• Barcelona has a lot of museums, too, though none as famous as the Prado. Do you like Miro? Picasso? Those two smaller museums need at least 2 hours each. The Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya is very large; I spent 5 hours there. Even if you don't care for paintings you might be interested in the modernista collection and the church frescoes. Barcelona has an extensive area of medieval architecture, not limited to the Barri Gotic. To walk every street would probably take more than 2 days; how much time do you want to spend doing that? The city is probably most known for its modernista architecture, including La Sagrada Familia. I can think of seven major modernista sights, most of which need 90 minutes or more for a comprehensive look. How many of those do you want to see? Entry lines are more of a problem in Barcelona than Madrid. You'll need to pre-book entry times for some sights (which may leave some inefficient gaps in your schedule) to avoid hanging out in long lines. You'll also spend time just moving between Barcelona's sights.

• Barcelona has a number of key day-trip possibilities, including Montserrat (good for outdoorsy folks as well as art lovers), Girona (lovely medieval town, worth one or two nights), Tarragona for Roman ruins, Figueres and Port Lligat (near Cadaques) for Dali sites (to hit both in one day is tough without taking a tour or renting a car but can be done if you're motivated), and the beach town of Sitges. There are many other possibilities.

• For Seville I can't provide specifics, but I know Cordoba is an easy day-trip and one of Spain's top destinations; I'd definitely include it. Ronda and some of the smaller white villages are also popular destinations.

Check Renfe for train schedules. Your three cities have fast AVE service, but it's still about 5-1/2 hours from Barcelona to Seville via the fastest train.

Thank you, a lot to consider

Danaross,

12 days for the cities in Spain

I'd suggest something like this:

• Fly to Sevilla (3-4N)
• bus to Granada (3N)
• bus to Córdoba (2N)
• train to Madrid (3-4N)- possible day trip to Toledo or Segovia, if you choose spending 4 nights.

Another option:

• Fly to Granada (3N)

• bus to Sevilla( 3-4N)

• train to Córdoba (2N)

• train to Madrid (3-4N)-- possible day trip to Toledo or Segovia if
  you choose spending 4 nights.

I'd save Barcelona for another trip ;-)

If you decide to visit Granada, make sure you book your Alhambra tickets 3 months in advance.

Have a wonderful trip!

I like the idea of adding Granada (the Alhambra is wonderful), but I didn't find non-stop flights to Granada. You could fly to Sevilla, visit Cordoba (the Mezquita is a must-see) then train/bus to Granada. Fly from there to Barcelona, then train to Madrid.

Thanks everyone for the replies. We have now decided to delete Barcelona from our trip this time and have planned flying from Lisbon to Seville, staying 3 days. We would like to visit Córdoba, Granada, Toledo and end up in Madrid to fly home. We have the time to stay two nights in those 3 cities. The only fly in the ointment is how to get to Toledo from either Córdoba or Granada. We would be traveling to Toledo on a Saturday and I see there is only bus service from Granada on Friday. Would hate to have to go first to Madrid then back track to Toledo. Anyone have a thought?

"Would hate to have to go first to Madrid then back track to Toledo. "

Alas, that's the only way, as the train from Toledo only goes to Madrid Atocha station. But going from Seville or Cordoba, through Madrid Atocha, to Toledo is easy. You stay in the station, and if you need to change levels, ask for the elevator between them, so you don't have to go through security again (it connects the departure areas on the upper and lower levels).

I found that the Renfe website didn't show all connections, so I had to find all options on the Bahn website, then book separate tickets on Renfe (I had 30 minutes for the connection, so I wasn't worried). To use the Bahn (German Rail) website http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en, follow Rick's tutorial: http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/online-schedules

To book Renfe tickets you will need to use Paypal rather than a credit card, and you will need this tutorial from TripAdvisor: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g187514-c80518/Madrid:Spain:Buying.Renfe.Tickets.Online.html

I realized I needed five websites to book my Spain trains: Renfe, Paypal, Tripadvisor, Bahn - and Rick Steves to learn about the other four! But, I did it without difficulty in the end, and the trains themselves worked fine.

Danaross,

The only fly in the ointment is how to get to Toledo from either Córdoba or Granada. We would be traveling to Toledo on a Saturday and I see there is only bus service from Granada on Friday. Would hate to have to go first to Madrid then back track to Toledo. Anyone have a thought?

Just to add to Harold's great advice...

The main reason for suggesting this route: Sevilla >> Granada>> Córdoba >> Madrid, is to avoid the long trek from Granada to Madrid.

Toledo is an easy 30 minute train ride from Madrid's Atocha train station.

And to add just a little more about Toledo. It's easier to leave your luggage at the Madrid train station and take an overnight bag to Toledo. The lockers are near high-speed trains, which are the other side of this huge station from the Toledo trains. I'd allow 30 minutes between the arrival of the high-speed train and departure of the Toledo train, maybe another 10-15 minutes if you want to store luggage. It's a good idea to buy the tickets to/from Toledo a couple days in advance - they often sell out, as the trains are used by both tourist daytrippers from Madrid and commuters who live in Toledo.

By reducing your number of overnight stops you could possibly add in extra sights - Jerez & Segovia.

Day
1. Fly From Lisbon to Sevilla (4N)
2. Sevilla - Cathedral & Real Alcazar
3. Day to Cordoba
4. Day to Jerez
5. Train to Granada (2N)
6. Alhambra
7. Bus/train to Madrid (4N)
8. Madrid - Royal Palace & Prado
9. Day to Toledo
10. Day to Segovia
11. Depart Madrid