Spain (First TIme) HELP!!!!Please

With 12 days (I'm assuming 11 nights?) you simply do not have enough time to see it all. I would just stick with Madrid and Andalucia this time around. Now before getting into a specific itinerary it would be helpful to know your interests, have you done any research on your own?

Welcome to the site.

Of course, you have not mentioned your family's interests (museums, sports, landscapes, cultural centers, etc). You will get a better response here usually if you define your interests.

Logistically though, no matter what you want to see, you are proposing going in opposite directions geographically at least once, since Barcelona (B) and Andalucia (A) are in opposite directions.

RS in one of his travel shows does a list of places for a trip and then pares it down to fit in the number of days available, and the distances between proposed stops. If you do both B and A, you will have at least 3 travel days out of 12: M to B, B to A, A to M. Maybe half days of travel but that still cuts down touristing time.

Step One: Define your interest(s) in each place using guidebook(s). Binge watch RS travel shows.

Step Two: Make up a draft itinerary of places to go and things to see (with AM, PM and Evening activity slots). With 4 people you will have at least 4 times as many things to see/do as time available. But you can spend the next three months discussing priorities.

Step Three: get on the Spanish rail site (using Spanish spelling of cities, and the appropriate station names for each city center station (RS guidebooks are really good at that). Check out train schedules for your destinations, travel times, costs etc.

http://www.renfe.com/EN/viajeros/index.html

And an excellent advice site is maintained by The man in Seat 61:

https://www.seat61.com/index.html

If you are not locked in to arriving and departing from Madrid you could fly into Barcelona and out of Malaga our somewhere else in Southern Spain so you would save time back-tracking.

Finally, about three months out from the trip identify likely hotel/AirBnB/Pensions options near to the sights you have prioritized in each location. RS strongly suggests booking with hotels directly. I have done that many times, but I have also used sites like Booking.com to lock in accommodations early in more crowded places with the option of cancellation.

Where are you flying from? With 12 days you should fly into one city and out of another to save time backtracking. Are you planning to spend time in Madrid? Because 12 days isn't enough for the andalucia region, Barcelona and Madrid, especially flying in and out from Madrid. Can't you fly into Barcelona instead if that's a priority to see?

As a start, check out Rick’s Best of Spain guide book which has sample itineraries. Also, take a look at the Spanish tours on this site and check the listed itineraries for each. They are very informative for trip planning on your own. Determine your priorities, come up with a plan that interests your family and then ask for opinions on it. Spain is a large country and you won’t do it justice by trying to see too much. More isn’t always better.

With consideration to the number of adults in your party (four) the flight arrival and departure already set (Madrid), and the season (winter), I would focus on Madrid and southern Spain. With the size of your party, rail travel becomes expensive - high speed AVE train tix run around $50/person from Seville to Madrid - are you willing to rent a car?
I'd suggest investigating Toledo, Granada, Ronda, Seville and Cordoba - making a loop that starts and ends in Madrid - and even that might be too much for 12 days. I would avoid having a car while in Madrid, but it might be the most economical form of transport should you wish to see Andalucia.

You can easily take AVE high speed trains from Madrid south to Córdoba, Sevilla, and Granada. That would be a very nice trip and no worries about heat.
Do you have a good guide book for these locations?

With your limited time you can't see everything. But you can see some variety. It depends on your travel style, of course, but with 12 days / 11 nights, I'd spend 3 nights in Madrid, then take the train to Sevilla for 4 nights, with a day trip to Cordoba, then railway to Barcelona for 3 nights, before catching a train back to Madrid for a night before departing.

Youd be missing a lot of specific sights, naturally, but you would experience three different versions of Spain and be able to see some big-hitters. That pace would also give time to relax eating and drinking. Personally, whilst there are many sights, I can't see the point of just rushing between them and ignoring the culinary cultures.

I've not taken account of you travelling around Christmas. So do check closures on Christmas Day.

If you want help, we need more information. Date of travel. Are the airline tickets purchased. If traveling over Christmas Day or New Years Day you will need to planned carefully for those days. Very little, including restaurants will be open either day. Remember Spain is a huge country with travel distances. It is either Barcelona or Andalucia. If you want to see Barcelone why are you flying into Madrid?

How many nights will you be spending in Spain, not counting the night on the plane?

Spain is a very large country. There is a risk that by trying to see too many different cities you will spend a great deal of time checking in and out of hotels and seeing the country through the window of a train (faster) or car. There is an awful lot of rather dull countryside in and around Madrid, so you should not anticipate that getting from place to place will always be a scenic experience.

You'll need to check the websites of specific sights you want to visit to see whether they are open on the holidays falling within your time period. At a minimum you need to be concerned about December 24, December 25 and January 1. I wouldn't be surprised if there are closures and schedule reductions on December 31 as well. Some sights will also be shuttered on their regular closing days (typically Sunday or Monday, but Jewish sites will be different). I know from doing some poking around myself that many of Barcelona's modernista sites close only on Christmas Day. I don't think you'll be so lucky with the top sights in Madrid, Seville, Cordoba and Granada, but you'll only find out by checking their websites.

I agree that it would be a mistake to fly in and out of Madrid and try to travel both north (Barcelona) and south (Andalucia) on a trip of this length. However, winter weather is usually milder in Barcelona than in Madrid.

I tried to find flights out of Barcelona-Miami on my planned return date but they were way more expensive or travel time exceeded 20 hrs or required overnight stay. My sister has been the only one to visit Spain and LOVED Barcelona and Andalucia she did an educational tour through spain in 13 days/ 12 nights and was able to do MAdrid, Sevilla, Cordoba, MAlaga and Barcelona. She did it with a bus and a tour guide/ group of 20 students. BUt this time we are going with our dad who has an international drivers license and we can rent a car, train etc. Our interests are mainly sightseeing (castles, churches, wineries) and culinary arts.

Spain’s as big as Texas, and our trips have been either south of Madrid (Andalusia - including Granada and Seville) or Madrid and nearby towns like Segovia and Toledo, plus north/east, up to San Sebastián and over to Barcelona.

Flights within Spain are a possibility, including the budget airline Vueling, which could make getting to other cities and covering distances quickly a possibility, although you have to factor in getting to/from the airport, checking in and going thru security times, etc.

The trains also have a security screening, running your bags thru X-ray, but it’s quicker than airport screening.

If Madrid’s definitely part of your itinerary, I’d say stick to the northern half of the country, and include Barcelona. But if you go south as well, you’ll have limited time in each place. See Segovia as a day trip from Madrid, or spend at least one night there, if your schedule allows.