We are planning a trip Spain and would love to visit Madrid/Barcelona and Portugal (Not sure what the best area in Portugal would be). We have 12 days one being the day of arrival. We are not afraid to drive while there. We are in our 50's and love to sightsee and are avid hikers - not so much into museums but would like to visit a few. Should we take day trips or is there enough to de in each city? Should we spend 4/4/4 days? Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15791 posts
So Day 1 is a partial day when you are probably tired (long flight, little sleep) and jetlagged. You may still have lingering effects on Day 2. Day 12 seems to be the day you leave, so unless you have an evening flight out, you can't count that one either.
That gives you 10 days to work with. You'll use 1/2 day going from city to city, so you are down to 7 full days and 2 1/2 days. I'd say that's the minimum you need for 3 major cities. You'll get a taste of each, maybe squeeze in a day trip. Driving will just eat up time, so forget that. Take the high speed train from Barcelona to Madrid, then fly to Lisbon. I don't know about Lisbon, but there's enough for 3 days in Madrid, and easy day trips to Toledo and Segovia. There's enough in Barcelona for 3 weeks. The best day trip for hiking would be Monserrat.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
Before you go any further, you should figure out what kind of trip you want. Then, look into what places in these countries are best suited to those goals. If you are avid hikers and not into museums, you may want to skip Madrid (and possibly even Barcelona) and instead go to places like the Picos de Europa. Similarly, "the best area in Portugal" depends on what you want out of Portugal - cities, Roman ruins, fishing villages, castles, hikes, etc.
As Chani says, you have a short trip. And combining Spain and Portugal in one trip almost always means a flight between them; ground connections between the two countries are surprisingly skimpy. I'd stick to one country, and figure out what kinds of places you want to visit. Only then should you book flights. With limited time, you'll want to fly as close as possible to what you actually want to see. Don't make the (all too common) mistake of booking a round trip flight to Madrid, only to spend time at both ends of the trip getting away from there, to the places you are actually going to see. You will probably want a "multi city" flight - into one city and out of another.
Also, what time of year are you going? Some parts of Spain are VERY different in different seasons. For instance, in the summer, the south (Andalucia) is an oven, while the Basque country in the north is very pleasant; however, much of the rest of the year the Basque country is very rainy.
Posted by
Denver, CO USA
495 posts
As someone who is about to spend 22 days in Portugal, I would say: stick to one country.
Don't waste time traveling.
Waste is on: eating, drinking, sightseeing, walking.
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
1..Arrive Barcelona (4N)
2..Barcelona
3..Barcelona
4..Barcelona
5..Fly to Lisbon (4N)
6..Day to Belem & Cascais
7..Lisbon
8..Day to Sintra
9..Fly to Madrid (4N)
10..Day to Toledo
11..Madrid
12..Day to Segovia
13..Depart Madrid