Spain/Morocco Itinerary

With the limited time you have available, I'd stick to Barcelona and Madrid. If you have no interest in Madrid's fabulous art museums, you could consider a day-trip to Toledo or Segovia. But I confess that I haven't been to Tarragona.

For Morocco I'd recommend either Marrakech or Fes, though my visit was long ago. Perhaps a recent visitor can confirm that those are still very interesting, not-too-Europeanized destinations. Just don't go to Casablanca, which is a very modern city, or a ferry port like Tangier.

On a 10-day trip, this is really hard. There's so many great places to see/things to do/experience in Spain. I loved Morocco (twice) but taking those days from Spain...hard choice. I'll set that aside for now, but you should give your Spain trip a hard look before deciding to take 3 days for Morocco. Assuming your Spain trip is long enough, and it does make sense to do the Morocco side trip (or you choose to do it anyway), then...

First, and foremost, don't just do a "ferry trip" to one of the ports on the coast. That's like going to Tijuana so you can experience Mexico. Likewise, skip Casablanca, not much to see there.

Second, you need a minimum of 3 days for this, a 4th day would be better. Yes, the flights from Spain are very cheap and quick, but it's still an international flight, so airport hassles, security, etc. You burn a major portion of each "travel day" so you shouldn't count those as actual usable days in Morocco. A 3-day trip gives you just one day in Morocco.

To your question about where: for a quickie 1-2 day visit to Morocco - yes, Marrakech makes a good choice. The other obvious choice is Fes. There are flights to both. At a gross high-level, the two destinations are similar: both are large, historic, traditional cities. Both have huge medina (old city) sections. Both will make you feel like you have stepped into another time or another planet. Both are great. Either would be a great choice (in fact, the only choice, given your constraints). Marrakech has a huge public plaza (Jamaa el Fna - google it) that is something of a 100-ring circus, filled with performers, scammers, food booths, everything from acrobats, fire-eaters, to snake-charmers to "folk dentists" (use your imagination...). It's like noplace else I've ever seen. Fes has a larger medina/old city, and is a bit less touched by modernity and tourism.

Either city will blow your mind and make you feel like you are very, very far from home. Both are amazing and great. Picking one over the other is a tough call. Both do get tourists (Marrakech gets more, I think, but neither is untouched by tourism). With a gun to my head, I'd probably pick Marrakech (it's perhaps a little "easier" for a first time visitor who may be a little wary about the whole idea), but the medina in Fes is like wandering through a time machine...

Tough call. Happily, you can't go wrong with either choice. Have fun!

Are there any other "can't miss" cities in Spain besides Barcelona and Madrid that it would be worth carving time out for?

Another hard question. "Must see" in Spain? It's a long list. I'd include...

• Madrid
• Granada
• Cordoba
• Sevilla
• Barcelona
• Toledo
• "White Hill towns" (Ronda, Arcos de la Frontera, etc.)

And there's more, too.

I think most North Americans are very uninformed about what to expect in Spain - IME many people's expectations for Spain are strangely conflated with their images of Mexico. Spain is, IMHO, one of the best countries to visit in Europe, easily on a par with France, Italy or anywhere. It's also a surprisingly large and diverse country - with one of the most rich and interesting histories of any country in the world. It was the world's only superpower for a long time, and it shows.

Yes, Morocco is right next door and worth a trip, but carving time for that out of a visit to Spain is a difficult task.

We all need to take more/longer vacations...

Thank you for the suggestions! As I think about it more, I do not want to take time away from Spain and since it's such a short trip already and there is so much to see in Spain, we may just contain it to Spain and do Morocco on another trip.

If we stick to 10 days all in Spain, do you think it's feasible to do Madrid, Seville, Granada, and Cordoba all in that time? I realize we might have to skip Barcelona if we do that since it's much further away.

Glad you’re leaving Morocco for another trip. Yes, you can do Madrid, Córdoba, Seville, and Granada in 10 days. Would be better to have more time but ... now get out the guidebooks and start planning !

Yes, that's a perfectly do-able 10 day trip (although will still require you to be on the move a lot - but if you have just 10 days, it is what it is). If this is your first trip to Spain, and you can not manage more than 10 days, it's probably wise to drop both Morocco and Barcelona.

You can do Cordoba as a day-trip/stop en route between Madrid and Seville. Take the high-speed train, leave Madrid early, and charge off the train in Cordoba. Run (perhaps fight) to find an available locker for your bags in the nearby bus station (when we were there, the train station had no lockers, but a few were available in the nearby bus station...the fastest and best prepared travelers got lockers, the late-comers were bummed out...be ready to move fast as the train arrives, find your way quickly to the bus station with lockers, and be sure you have coins for the lockers ready). Cordoba can be easily done in half a day, then get back on the train to Seville, you'll arrive there in time for dinner. This competitive push for a day locker was needed when I was there but it was a few years ago, verify details that may have changed.

Get your tickets to the Alhambra in Granada in advance, especially if your time is limited, as tickets may be sold out if you try to get them after arrival (in a pinch, ask your hotel, they may be able to set you up).

If you have enough time, consider an overnight trip to Toledo. Do not do Toledo as a day trip (everyone does that, and the city is badly crowded during the mid-day). Instead, arrive from Madrid in the afternoon, watch all the day-trip crowds leave, enjoy a few hours in the later afternoon/evening, sleep in the old city center, get up early and enjoy a few more hours, then move on/back to Madrid by late morning, when the town fills up again.

The above all assumes you have 10 full days in Spain, not including your arrival or departure days.

Good luck!

If you don't want to potentially have to compete for lockers at the Cordoba bus station, you can just plan to see Cordoba on a day-trip from Seville. No stress that way. To keep the rail fare as affordable as possible (if that matters to you), you'll need to figure out how much time you want to spend in Cordoba s you can buy your tickets way in advance. Everyone wants to see the Mosque, but there are lots of other sights there. See what your guidebook suggests and also look at TripAdvisor.

I adored Toledo and wouldn't want to be limited to just late afternoon, evening, and a few hours the next morning. Those are, indeed, times when it's less crowded in the city, but even mid-day isn't bad if you walk away from the well-worn path between Zocodover Square and the cathedral. There is plenty to do in Toledo that will get you away from the mobs. But do check into the opening times for the cathedral. You will want to see it, and it can be a zoo with long lines. Figure out whether it's something you can do late in the afternoon or early in the morning.

You're making a smart decision about skipping Barcelona and Morocco this time around. There is a great deal to do in both of those places, and you'll have better visits later on when you don't need to rush.

1. ARRIVE Seville (4N)
2. Seville
3. Day to Cordoba for the Mezquita
4. Seville
5. Train to Granada (2N)
6. Visit the Alhambra
7. Train to Madrid (4N)
8. Madrid
9. Day to Toledo
10. Madrid (or day to Segovia)
11. DEPART Madrid

David thank you for the itinerary suggestion! All the advice is very helpful. Really looking forward to this trip!

You’re welcome. Hopefully a similar itinerary will fit in with your plans. Starting in Seville would probably mean a connecting arrival flight.

Hi again!

I think we are going to be able to add an extra day to our trip (yay!) so now a total of 11 days to spend in Spain. Still short but I'll take what I can get.

Where should we spend more of our time? I like the itinerary from David only reversed so below would be ideal, because we will most likely fly into Madrid and out of Seville. Is it worth spending more time in Seville over Granada? Or vice versa?

Day 1: Arrive Madrid 2pm (4 Nights)
Day 2: Madrid
Day 3: Madrid/day trip to Toledo
Day 4: Day trip to Segovia
Day 5: Train/fly to Granada (3 Nights)
Day 6: Granada (Alhambra)
Day 7: Granada
Day 8: Train to Seville (4 Nights)
Day 9: Seville
Day 10: Day trip to Cordoba (Mezquita)
Day 11: Seville
Depart Seville

Personally I prefer the greater options an extra night in Madrid provides. You could choose Seville if a day to Jerez appeals.

Day 1: Arrive at 2pm in Madrid (5 Nights)
Day 2: Madrid
Day 3: Day trip to Toledo
Day 4: Day trip to Segovia
Day 5: Madrid (morning to El Escorial perhaps)
Day 6: Morning flight to Granada (2 Nights)
Day 7: Granada (Alhambra)
Day 8: Afternoon train to Seville (4 Nights)
Day 9: Seville
Day 10: Day trip to Cordoba (Mezquita)
Day 11: Seville
Day 12: Depart from Seville

I would choose this train (on the current timetable) for Day 8. Arrive in Seville at the perfect hour for dinner.
TRN13945
Dep 17:32 GRANADA (Spain)
Arr 20:44 SEVILLA-SANTA JUSTA (Spain)