Spain - small city for 2 weeks in February 2017

"typical tourist route"

What does that mean.. you do not like museums or cathedrals ?

I am a seasoned international traveler too.. but I would never go to Rome and miss the Vatican or St Pauls, or visit Paris and not bother to see the Louvre or Orsay.. perhaps a visit to Athens but carefully avoid the Acropolis?

Now.. do you mean that with your longer stays you have time to branch out and see some smaller less well known sites.. or do you mean you really do avoid all well known sites , regardless of their historical or artist value ?

Pat,

In my attempt to be brief in my post, I did not explain in depth my phrase "typical tourist route". We truly appreciate and love visiting sites of historical and artist value, which we always do!! We've just progressed into a season of traveling that allows us to add another layer of learning about the local culture beyond the primary sites, or as you said, "we have time to branch out and see some smaller less well known sites". For example, we have spent several weeks over the years touring the major sites in Italy, and although because there is so much to experience we could probably spend another few years continuing this, we branched out on our last visit to smaller, lesser-known towns/sites that still make us "ooh and aah" with their culture! It was through those visits that we identified the town, Modica, which will serve as our base from which to continue our more in-depth exploration of Sicily. With our two weeks in Spain, although it is a much shorter time frame, we aim to layer our visit in a similar way.

Thank you for asking for a more in-depth explanation of our travel wishes!!

Mid-winter weather might be a concern in much of Spain--at least it would be for me in February. If you're not expecting warm weather, check out Alcala de Henares, which is about a 1-hour local train ride from Madrid. I visited it a couple of weeks ago and found it very attractive. I think it's probably a popular getaway for folks from Madrid (not what you want), but I imagine that wouldn't be much of an issue in February. Another possible problem is that it may not be small enough for you. I've been to Modica, and Idon't think any of my Spanish stops have been that small.

Cuenca, east of Madrid and probably with the same frigid winters, is another option. Might be too isolated from day-trip destinations if you're planning to branch out. It's on the high-speed Madrid-Valencia AVE line, though.

In Extremadura fhere's Trujillo. Very hot in summer but I think also very cold in winter. Walled, near Portuguese border.

In the south, I'd think about Ronda, I guess, but there are certainly many smaller towns in that area, none visited by me.

Check out Antequera in Andalusia. Not overly touristy but interesting.

Dear acraven and Christi (2 separate replies):

Thanks for sharing your experiences and offering your recommendations. We live in an area that experiences cold/snowy winters, so we look forward to a climate that offers less snow though we do not expect, or prefer, hot temps. We also like to travel this time of year to avoid the crowds on mass.

We will have enjoy browsing information and images of the places you suggested in your posts.

Thank you very much!

We love traveling Europe in the off season - I totally understand.

Are you planning to have a car and take day trips or mostly spend your days in one town?

I think Jerez may be a good choice for you. You can day trip by train (35-40 minutes) to Cadiz and by bus (also around 40 minutes) to Arcos. It's an hour by train from Seville, too. With a car, you could explore some of the pueblos blancos beyond Arcos, even Gibraltar is not that far (about 1.5 hour drive). Jerez has more to offer than Antequerra - sherry bodega tours and the Royal Equestrian Stables, plus the cathedral and alcazar.

Without a car, you are pretty much stuck in Antequera. The main train station is miles away from the city center. With a car, it's still over an hour's drive to Granada, nearly an hour to Malaga, though there are a few things nearby, El Torcal for hiking, the Pink Lagoon (if some of the flamingos have already arrived).

Girona and Tarragona get lots of day-trippers from Barcelona. There are villages too, if you want to explore rural Catalonia by car. Otherwise, you are probably better off basing in Barcelona and taking some of the many day trips, independently by train/bus and possibly an organized tour or two (some are very good small-group tours).

The sights, even in Andalusia are spread out. Unless you are planning to return to Spain in the near future, wouldn't you rather see some of the top sights - Alhambra, Mezquita, Seville's Alcazar . . .

Dear chani,

Your insights are valuable to us. Thank you! We look forward to having some time this weekend to research deeper into the specific recommendations you made (Alhambra, Mezquita, Seville's Alcazar). Jerez has been on our radar and seems like a reasonable base for several adventurous day trips.

Cordoba would be another option that has lots of things to do in town and is well located to explore the Andalucia region. Girona, with a car, would also be a good place for that sort of thing in Catalunya.

Tarragona would not be my suggestion. It is a nice city for an overnight and there is a lot in the area, but it seemed to lack the nightlife and restaurants for more than a night or two.

Valencia is a pretty big city but might be worth considering as it is very laid back and filled with lots of great restaurants, shopping and sites. It would be warmer than Catalunya.

Douglas,

You have included some terrific ideas for us to research. We have read consistently positive reviews for both Cordoba and Valencia, but now you have peaked our curiosity even more. As our planning evolves, I'm sure we'll have follow-up questions. It's great to know we have a travel community to share our adventure with!

Thanks, Douglas, for sharing your experience and wisdom with us.