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Spain to Portugal (Seville afternoon) travel advice

Posted by (Midwest) on

Hi, We are flying into Madrid and flying out of Faro, Portugal, staying in Malaga for one week and the Algarve region for one week. The challenge I'm encountering is getting between the two. We don't want to use a car rental as the fees to drop off in a different country are exorbitant. I'd love feedback on this idea (or suggestions for other ways to do this in one day).

Train Malaga to Sevilla Santa Justa 9:17- 11:19

Afternoon in Seville - check bags, cab to Plaza de America, lunch and walk around Plaza de espana
Walk to Prado de san sebastian, then walk or cab back to pick up luggage at Plaza de Armas bus station

Bus Seville to Faro (either 16:00-18:15 or 18:00-20:15)

Pick up car rental at Faro airport and drive to our hotel about 1 hour away

This is a long day with 2 kids (ages 12 and 18) but we do want to see and do something in Seville.

Posted by
940 posts

I'm sure you have your reasons, but 7 days in Malaga and 5 hours in Sevilla seems
a bit disproportionate. Maybe move things around to spend a night or two in
Sevilla?

The walk between your places in Sevilla is longer than you think it is. If you get lost
in the narrow twisty streets of the old town, your schedule could get shot pretty easily.

Posted by
1313 posts

I'm a little confused by your plan. Prado de San Sebastian and Plaza de Armas are both coach (bus) stations. Why would you need to go to both? And by "check bags" do you mean store in luggage lockers? Also, Plaza de America and Plaza de Espana are just two areas around the same park (Parque de Maria Luisa), so you aren't really moving much.

An alternative might be to arrive at Santa Justa railway station then take a taxi to Centro (where the catedral is). There are luggage storage places here - for example, "stowyourbags" is about a minute away. There are likely others. You should book in advance. Then spend your day walking around this part - outside Catedral, Alcazar, Santa Cruz barrio, etc - and having lunch. If you book in advance, you even have to time visit inside one of the sites in this area, such as a couple of hours in the Alcazar. Once done, collect your luggage and take a taxi to whichever of the coach stations you are using.

Posted by
1 posts

My husband and I did the trip from Malaga to Lisbon by FLIX bus in mid September 2024. The bus seats were wider than economy class airline seats. The trip was overnight departing Malaga bus station around 10:30 pm (from a platform inside the bus station wall) and arriving in Lisbon around 06:00 am. About half way, there was a stop at a “truck” stop with food and restrooms. The bus had a restroom on board. Being a couple in our 70’s, we were the only passengers over 30. The trip was no more difficult than an overnight flight with no meals offered.
The one difficulty was only being able to purchase tickets about ten days ahead of the trip. As we like to plan ahead and have things printed before leaving home, I had to up my trust in the system that it would work out. It did and we have our story to tell!

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