We're returning to Spain (and Portugal) next May for three weeks, all of which will be spent road tripping by car. We've decided that rather than go to Madrid, which we love and have been to before, that we're instead going to spend our time in Central Spain overnighting in Toledo and Segovia, rather than basing in Madrid and visiting them as day trips; it will be our first visit to both. We are wanting to visit Cuenca as well, where we've also never been.
So ~ the questions are then how long to spend in each one. Our preliminary sense is to spend two nights in Segovia, after which to then spend three nights in Toledo, of which one of those days will be spent visiting Cuenca as a day trip. It's also a possible option to overnight in Cuenca, whether the night comes from one of the three nights for Toledo, or just from our overall itinerary. Otherwise, after we leave Central Spain, we are heading to the coast, though it's still to be determined if we're going to visit Valencia, or head further south directly, such as to Alicante to Almeria ~ ultimately we will end our time in Southern Spain in Cadiz, before heading to Portugal (the Algarve and then Lisbon). Any/all input on number of days, if three nights in Toledo is too much, if Cuenca is worth overnighting, etc., is very much appreciated.
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Mid-Atlantic area
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I’d spend two nights in each Segovia and Cuenca, and two or three nights in Toledo depending on what you want to see there. Since you’re heading east after Toledo it makes no sense to visit Cuenca as a day trip.
Since you have three weeks consider visiting Teruel and Albarracín. Outside of Cuenca is La Ciudad Encantad; a park with odd rock formations. If you do make it to Almería its Alcazaba was worth visiting. One full day in the city is sufficient. Near there is the Tabernas Desert and filming locations for a number of those 60s spaghetti westerns.
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8244 posts
We loved Toledo and Segovia. We did both on day trips from Madrid. If you get there early, you can see either in a full day.
Do not miss Seville, it is a MUST SEE. Cordoba is another good visit.
Not sure how long is your trip, but you might consider sticking with Spain, unless you have a month.
When you do visit Portugal, consider visiting the Douro River Valley and Porto in the north, it is better than the Algarve.
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OP
54 posts
jaimeelsabio ~ Thanks for your suggested day count. I just recently became familiar with La Ciudad Encantada when seeing it online, so glad to see you also mention it as something to consider. It looks interesting and seems like it would be easily doable if we stay in Cuenca for two nights. I also appreciate the suggestion to tour Almeria’s Alcazaba. It even predates the Alhambra, which we’ve visited before. Looks like it offers great views too.
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OP
54 posts
geovagriffith ~ Thanks for your reply. Good to see that you feel Toledo and Segovia can each be seen in a full day, as it appears then that two nights (so one full day) in both would be sufficient. We’ve been on the fence whether we should spend a third night in Toledo. Seems that may not be necessary. And thanks for your comment about Porto and the Douro Valley. We’ve been before, so definitely agree that the city and region are amazing! That trip we did Lisbon and then traveled north (to include northern Spain), which is why we want to check out the Algarve this time. We’ll be wrapping up our time in Spain in Cadiz, which makes the Algarve easy for us to get to as well, before our three week trip ends in Lisbon, our entry/exit city.
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OP
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geovagriffith ~ And noted about Seville too. We spent a weekend there before, and while we don’t know if we’ll return this trip, we would definitely like to visit again.
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Barcelona + Sweden
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It seems you are a bit tight on time? My thought would be 2 nights Segovia, 3 nights Toledo, and 2 nights Cuenca. After that you can head east to Valencia region and work you way to Andalucia or head west to Extremadura region and also work you way to Andalucia. Personally I'd need at least 1 month to do this trip. I've traveled a bit around these areas, here are my trip reports:
Between Toledo and Cuenca make sure to stop at the Roman ruins of Segobriga, an intact Roman town that was completely abandoned during the very early middle ages, only recently begun excavations, relatively undiscovered by most foreign and even local tourists.
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OP
54 posts
Carlos ~ Thanks for your reply, along with the links. We’ll check them out. Our trip to Spain and Portugal is three weeks, with the bulk of it spent in Spain. It’s our third visit to Spain and we’re trying to visit all new destinations, even if we’ve been in a particular region before. Absolutely love your suggestion about Segobriga, which I was unfamiliar until your reply. It seems it’s easy to get to from either Toledo or Cuenca. As far as time there ~ would two to four hours be enough, such as if we did it the day we move our base from Toledo to Cuenca? Otherwise, noted about Extramadura. We’re actually starting there, as we fly into Lisbon, where we will pick up our rental car at the airport and drive immediately to Merida, where we will stay two nights (perhaps three) before continuing to Segovia. We’re still trying to wrap our heads around Andalucia this trip. We’ve been to Granada, Ronda, and Sevilla before, and while we loved our time in each, won’t be returning, at least this trip. We plan to end in southern Spain in Cadiz, and then drive to the Algarve for three to four nights (likely four) before returning to Lisbon. So we’re not sure if we should go to Valencia from Cuenca, or save Valencia for another time and instead go to Almería (or Nerja) before Cadiz. Any thoughts you may have on that are appreciated.