Spain Christmas week... trip planning phase one!

Kris,

Given the fact that you have 12 nights to work with, I'd suggest limiting your visit to Spain.
However, you may have already booked your flights into Barcelona & departing from Lisbon, correct?

I'd suggest something like this, taking into account the interests & sites you've listed:

• Fly into Barcelona ( 3-4N)

• Fly to Granada (2N)

• Pick up car in Granada & drive to Ronda (may wish to stop in
  Grazalema en-route to Ronda) (1N)

• Drive to Arcos de la Frontera 1N

• Drive to Sevilla & return car (3-4N)- day trip to Córdoba

• Fly to Lisbon 2-3N

I'd not recommend visiting Granada from Arcos de la Frontera; mainly because it will be a 3 hour drive each way.

Make sure you book your Alhambra tickets 3 months in advance.

Have a wonderful trip!

Keep in mind that 2 nights in any particular destination = One full day at said destination; 3 nights = 2 full days; 4 nights = 3 full days, etc, etc...

@Pricilla thank you so very much! This is the best advice I've gotten and I think it looks doable! However it would put us leaving Granada Christmas Day...which I don't mind but will have to look at the logistics!

We just did a modified version of this trip (minus Arcos and Lisbon). I would recommend Devour Tours for a food tour in Sevilla:
http://devourtours.com/

I also loved where we stayed in Sevilla - highly, highly recommend: http://www.overlandsuites.com/

Good advice from Priscilla, my friend across the Pacific. With just 12 nights you need to try and keep it simple.

Dec 21. Fly into Barcelona (4N)
Dec 25. Fly to Granada (2N)
Dec 26. Book Alhambra
Dec 27. Travel to Seville (3N)
Dec 29. day trip to Córdoba
Dec 30. Fly to Lisbon (3N)

@david thanks... I've been looking a revising and I think it looks a lot like what you suggest.

@NP thanks, I would love to hear what you liked/didn't like and any other hints.... by the way are you a Nurse practitioner (NP?)

Barcelona:

We stayed here and loved it:
https://www.aspasios.com/apartments-barcelona/rambla-catalunya-suites/

Food we liked:
Ciudad Condal - https://www.yelp.com/biz/ciudad-condal-barcelona

Xaloc  - http://www.xalocrestaurant.com/en/ (this one is the closest to your hotel)

Paco Merlago - http://www.restaurantpacomeralgo.com/the-restaurant/

Wanted to try Tapas 24, but it was too crowded every time we walked by (might be good for lunch). All are on TripAdvisor if you want to look up on that site too. The Boqueria market is good to wander around if you want to graze.

Sevilla:

This is where we stayed:
http://www.overlandsuites.com/en/

Food:

I'm sure you have read this or know, but people do not start eating dinner until 10pm! Lunch is usually 1-4pm. Many places don't even re-open for dinner until 8pm, but at the more popular places you will have a better chance of getting seated if you go closer to when they open (and definitely before 10pm). These are the places we tried and loved:

La Azotea (there is one on Mateo Gagos too) - http://laazoteasevilla.com/en/restaurant-santa-cruz/

Reyes Antonio Romero - recommended by local for the Montaditos (small sandwiches - they have gluten free) - http://www.bodeguitaantonioromero.com/es/reyes-antonio-romero/

Sal Gorda - https://www.yelp.com/biz/sal-gorda-sevilla-2 - arrive early if you can. Before 10pm for sure.

La Brunilda - http://www.labrunildatapas.com/ - had lunch here. Get there right when they open or you'll wait a bit.

Petit Comite - https://www.yelp.com/biz/petit-comite-sevilla-2

We walked by Bartolomea and that looked good - sister restaurant of La Brunilda. All of these are on TripAdvisor too.

Things to do

Tapas tour
http://devoursevillefoodtours.com/

Flamenco Show
not touristy - recommended by Rick Steves
http://www.lacasadelflamencosevilla.com/

Bike Tour
This is the one we did, but there are several
http://sevillabiketour.com/

Rick Steves recommends these guys - I needed to book in advance and I didn't so we went with the one above
http://reallydiscover.com/

The Cathedral was interesting and so was the Alcazar. They are basically next to each other and have the same or similar admission prices (9 Euro). The Alcazar is free on Mondays during the last hour it is open (I think 6:30-7:30pm).

Wow @NP thanks for all the great information!! I'm excited to check out all the links!
Yes we have heard about the dinner hours...hoping I can nap/siesta in the after noon and get on schedule.
Appreciate all of the advice and time you took responding.

While dinner starts around 9.30, you can certainly make a full meal on tapas any time in the afternoon or evening.

Find out if restaurants are open or closed on the 24th and 25th. I was worried that I'd be stuck eating snacks on Easter Sunday (Easter is a much bigger deal than Christmas) and discovered that it's one of the biggest days of the year for restaurants.