Spain, last half of April — suggestions?

I would suggest two or three nights in each of Cordoba and Malaga, then the rest of the time in Madrid.
All do-able by train.

I would spend most of that time in Madrid,

• Easy day trips to Toledo and Segovia
• Royal Palace
• Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum (I think most people like it better than the Reina Sofia)
• Cerralbo Museum, Naval Museum, MAN Archeology Museum, etc.
• Some of the best restaurants in Europe
• Madrid in late April has the Mutua Madrid Open if you're a tennis fan.

Depending on how many nights you have after Granada, I would suggest Malaga, Cordoba, and Madrid. If that seems too rushed for you, then Cordoba and Madrid. You can easily spend 2 or 3 nights in Cordoba, which is a beautiful city. Not only does it have the amazing Mezquita, but there are the Alcazar gardens, the Roman Bridge, the Palacio de Viana, and much more. Exploring the Juderia with its white-washed buildings, narrow lanes, and flowers and patios is delightful.

There is so much to see and do in Madrid. We spent 4 nights there and could have used an extra night. You could also visit Toledo for a day from Madrid, or spend a night or two in Toledo.

We love Malaga, and I think it's an underrated city. There is lots to see and do in Malaga to keep you busy for 2 or 3 nights, even longer if you have the time.

So, you have quite a few options to choose from. It all depends on your interests, and how fast you want to travel. Do you have any guidebooks? In addition to Rick's books, I can recommend the Michelin Green Guide and the Rough Guides.

Also want to add that I'm not sure you really have time for a daytrip from Barcelona. Four nights is not really a lot of time for Barcelona, which has so many interesting sights. You will have jetlag the day you arrive. Also, for many of the sights, you need to purchase tickets online in advance. So that means you may not be able to go from one sight directly to another sight, and this will take you longer to see what you want to see.

If you’re a fan of Dali’s art I would keep Figueres even if it means adding a day to Barcelona. Madrid is a great home base for day trips to smaller areas with historical points of interest and opportunities to wander and take in the culture.

These are the tricky places in Barcelona:

• La Sagrada Familia: Sells out somewhat in advance
• Parc Guell: May sell out in advance
• Casa Mila/La Pedrera: Long ticket line; might sell out
• Casa Batllo: Long ticket line; might sell out
• Picasso Museum: Long ticket line; might sell out

All of the above sights can be very crowded, though some visitors had more luck at the Picasso Museum than I did back in 2016. Because of the crowding, Casa Mila and Casa Batllo often monitor exits very carefully, allowing new entries only as other people exit. Do not assume you'll get inside instantly at the time shown on your ticket.

A train trip from Barcelona to Granada will be an all-day affair. I like trains, but you don't have much time, given how large a country Spain is. I haven't covered the Cordoba-Granada route by train, but I recall quite a lot of unexciting scenery between Barcelona and Madrid; we're not talking Alps or Norwegian fjords here. I'd rather spend my time seeing more of Granada (the Alhambra can take nearly a full day by itself) or going to Toledo or Segovia.

I recommend a copy of Rick's guide to Spain, but you can find Rick's top sightseeing tips for several of its cities here: https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/spain

Click on a city and then on "At a Glance". (Not all the cities have that link.)

Thanks so much for all your suggestions, particularly the number of days to budget for Barcelona and Madrid given our timeline. We do indeed have Rick's Spain guidebook, and the advice here has been really helpful too. I'll look into flights from Barcelona to Granada to see what that would look like, logistics-wise, versus the train.

From Barcelona, a great day trip is Montserrat. Look that up. For us, that was a highlight.

I loved Madrid and there are so many things to do. Lots of Art Museums, you have to at least walk around El Retiro park if it’s nice out. Visit the flagship El Cortes Ingles department store-it also has decent food at decent prices and maybe even a guided tour around the historic center.

We are now on a train to Barcelona. We had 4 fulls days (5 nights) in Madrid and did not run out of things to do as museum lovers. We covered Prado, Reina Sofia, and Thyssen in 2 days (Prado del Arte pass, which you'll find on the Thyssen web site, gets you into all three and saves you money and lots of time).
Madrid is very walkable and is a fun city to explore on foot (see the Rick Steves walking tour). We also went to El Rastro, the huge flea market on Sundays, We stopped in on a few cathedrals, visited Retiro Park, walked to Temple Debod, strolled the Gran Via, and ate our way across the city. We had rain two of those days but with museums we were fine.

We spent a day and a half (two nights) in Toledo, which was great. Rick's walking tour there plus the little tour train were fun. The cathedral is massive, impressive, and an art museum on its own. Loved the synagogues and Jewish museum and other sites in the city.

Whatever you choose you'll have fun.