Spain for 8 nights - April 8-16

if you can fly into Barcelona and out of Sevilla better
it is a whirlwind but doable
what city are you flying from to Spain

Thank you - we'll try to fly out of Sevilla.

In US we will probably fly from and back to Dulles, though National or even BWI are possible.

I may also compare train v. plane prices to see about flying from Barcelona to Granada (or Seville, where we could rent a car and day trip to Granada). I realize that will likely be more $$, so not sure (plus side is flight is much quicker - and hence easier on my back). There are 3 of us.

I don't think Granada is practical as a day trip from Seville. ViaMichelin estimates the driving time at over 3 hours without any stops, and folks say those estimates are usually optimistic and need to be bumped up a bit. I think you'll need to sleep at least one night in Granada.

I assume the reason for going to Granada is the Alhambra. I know from posts on this forum that it sells out early. I'm not sure whether April tickets are on sale yet, but if they are, you need to check on availability immediately. You're traveling during Easter Week, which is a very big deal in at least some parts of Andalucía. You may run into issues lining up hotels, too.

Edited to add: I took a look on Google Flights and for your dates (flying out of Washington 4/7 and out of Seville 4/16) I found a good number of options in the $1300 - $1500 range. Many require puddle-jumpers to a domestic gateway like Philly or NYC, which would not be my preference, especially when you have so little time to begin with. If something went wrong on that domestic flight, you might well be held up 24 hours. Given the Easter-week situation, it might even be worse. I would prefer to change planes in Europe on the way over.

The return options are not so attractive in most cases--much longer, or two stops, or separate tickets for the two legs (leaving you holding the bag, I assume, if the first flight is delayed).

You might take a look at returning from Madrid; perhaps the options would be a bit better. The AVE trains would get you from Seville to Madrid in 2-1/2 to 3 hours. You'd need to be in Madrid the night of April 15 to be safe. You can check out the train schedules and fares on the Renfe website. You'd be traveling from Sevilla-Santa Justa to Madrid-Puerta de Atocha. I don't know whether this link will work, but for April 15 I see that four of the trains are already full.

Because of the timing, I'm afraid some key aspects of this trip may be more costly than you're expecting, so I suggest that you shop for hotels and make cancelable reservations before buying your airline tickets. Best to know what you're getting in for.

or you may want to reverse the order of it :
https://goo.gl/flights/6um3

April 9-April 16 is Semana Santa. In Spain (and much of Europe) Easter is the most important holiday of the year. In Andalucia (Sevilla, Granada, etc) the week leading up to it is high, high season. In Sevilla there are multiple processions every day from mid-day until very late at night that attract thousands of spectators. Each procession has its own route from its church, looping through various streets to the cathedral and back. Each procession takes hours, so there may be 3 or more at any given time. Any time of year, a rental car wouldn't be a good idea for your plan.

I just looked at the Alhambra booking site - the only tickets left for the 12th are for 4.30 pm or later (and not many of them). There are a few more for the 13th. If your reason for going to Granada is to see the Alhambra, here's what you need to do:

1. Figure out how to get to Granada. From Barcelona it's best to fly. From Madrid or Sevilla it's best by bus or train. Make sure you can get plane/train/bus tickets for the day you intend to travel there.
2. Make sure you can get hotel rooms for the 2 nights you plan to be there
3. Buy Alhambra tickets, then commit to transportation and accommodations.

You should look for a hotel in Sevilla before you commit to staying there. While there may be rooms available (the hotel I use is fully booked), expect pretty steep prices. Rooms for 3 are rare in general, so you might need to book 2 rooms, a higher hurdle logistically and financially. Cordoba's celebrations are more low-key than Sevilla, so you may find it better to stay in Cordoba and day trip to Sevilla. It's also a bit shorter to Granada and Madrid.

This is going to be hard, but not impossible. However, in Barcelona Semana Santa is barely noticeable and I understand (could be wrong) that it's not a big deal in Madrid. You may want to consider just Madrid and Barcelona. There's plenty in those cities to fill up 8 days.

Thank you for much for all this terrific advice.

We didn't realize until I got started about the holiday, which coincides with my son's spring break.

I'll check flights also out of Dulles for June, I'm beginning to think this week is not going to work.

Yes, I wanted to see Alhambra, my main reason to go to Granada, but maybe we will have to skip it; I hate to skip Seville, it's the main place I want to go in Spain.

I have heard mixed reviews about Madrid v. Barcelona - my sisterinlaw says Barcelona is not to be missed, but Madrid is not as interesting. Is this correct? We like old architecture.

I am also thinking now we'll see if we can go instead the for 10 days in the last week or so of June. I am concerned the Easter holiday will make our trip too challenging.

This is a great forum - thank you so very much for all the helpful information. I really appreciate it.

You will find much to see and do and marvel at in both Barcelona and Madrid. Both are excellent destination choices and are surrounded by multiple daytrip opportunities or overnight visits to nearby places of interest. Don't be quick to dismiss Madrid. You should research the different daytrip/sidetrip possibilities from Madrid. People traditionally visit neighboring Segovia, Avila, El Escorial and Toledo. But also consider La Granja de San Ildefonso, Alcala de Henares, Aranjuez, and Cuenca a little farther away. Look for posts by Enric for good info about Barcelona and surrounding areas. Since Sevilla is where you most want to go and you are not sure about Granada, consider basing yourself in Madrid and Sevilla and saving Barcelona for a future trip. What a great reason to return to Spain! Either to or from Sevilla you should visit Córdoba. Right outside of Córdoba (only 7 km away) are the ruins of the city of Medina Azahara, the largest archeological site in Spain and combines well with a visit to the Mosque in Córdoba. Toledo itself is a wonderful place to visit for an overnight stay. A great sidetrip from Toledo is to visit the hillside windmills overlooking the plains in Consuegra. Easier to get there by car but you can go by bus. Bus travel is comfortable and convenient in Spain. You could also go by bus from Sevilla to Granada. The Alhambra is a true gem. My advice is to consider three options, 1) Madrid/Sevilla/ and maybe GRanada areas or 2) Barcelona/ surrounding area and maybe Granada or 3) arrive Madrid and go directly to Sevilla and concentrate on Sevilla/Córdoba and Granada but I personally would not try to do both Barcelona and Madrid in such a short visit.

Thank you very much Pat. I am considering your #3, which makes sense and would be easier on us (we are not as young as we used to be :-)). We may go in June but still wouldn't have a ton of time, so I will def. consider not trying to do Barcelona and Madrid in same trip.

Since it sounds as if your trip will have a southern focus, I'd recommend that you try for early June so you have a better chance of beating the really hot weather than can hit Andalucía in the summer. Madrid can also heat up.

Do spend some time reviewing guidebooks and Rick's videos (on this site) to learn about all southern Spain has to offer. You'll want to have as much time as you can manage; there are just so many interesting places to see.

If you prefer to be surrounded by really historic architecture and don't have much interest in art museums, you might consider staying in Toledo rather than Madrid. Madrid is atmospheric and handsome but post-medieval. However, if you want to visit multiple surrounding cities, Madrid is a much, much better transit hub.

Barcelona gets a log more love, but I much prefer Madrid.

What I would do since it's this close and it's a bad week is fly into Madrid or Seville. If you fly into Madrid take the train directly to Seville. Spend the first few nights in Seville and then head to Madrid. You can day trip from Madrid to Toledo, Segovia etc.. if you want to get out of the city. I just checked the 8th to the 11th and found some of Rick's hotels still available at not too bad a price. (Alacantara was $573 for three nights in a family room for example)

I found Madrid has one of the great collections of paintings housed in 3 museums but after seeing them and the city I do not see ever a need to go there again. I can not say the same about Barcelona.