Thoughts on my Andalusia itinerary

It may be a tad long for Granada without a car--what did you have planned for that time? You could split the stay and overnight in Cordoba as well--it just depends on what you like. I love a long stay anywhere, but staying overnight in Cordoba was pretty nice too.
The Rough Guide to Andalucia was great for nitty gritty details. https://www.andalucia.com/ is also helpful.

I think four full days in Granada is fine if you're going to day-trip to Malaga. If you run out of things to see in Granada (which I think is doubtful), you can head to Priego de Cordoba or the Alpujarras by bus for a change of scenery.

Four full days in Seville (though that first day may still be affected by jetlag) is the absolute minimum I'd want to spend there if one day is to be used for a trip to Cordoba. I really enjoyed Granada, but the list of sights in Seville is much longer.

I'd prefer to spend (multiple) nights in Malaga, Cordoba and Toledo rather than taking day trips to those cities. However, I'm retired and have the advantage of time

I wasn't that impressed with Malaga, but Rhonda is good.

To me, three nights is plenty for Granada. Visit the Alhambra complex one day and the rest of the city the other. I agree that Córdoba and Toledo deserve more than a day trip.

Thank you all for your thoughts on our itinerary! Definitely considering shuffling a couple days around now and will sit down tonight with my husband and go over what you’ve all said. It’s much appreciated :)

Malaga is a great place to fly in/out of but is not worth your time to day-trip to. Your seeing Granada over a weekend which is perfect. If your going to day-trip around I would as others have said see Ronda rather Malaga. If your renting a car you could drive around in the hill towns and see what you end up seeing which is all nice. This time of year the mountains will be brown rather than green and full of wild flowers, so not as spectacular as spring. I love Ronda in April, it was okay in October. I think 4 to 5 nights in Seville is perfect, 3 for Granada, 2 for Cordoba. Much depends on what you like to do and how much heat you can stand as the heat can cut your day short, for me heat means shade and a chair. Have a wonderful trip. J

I guess I am in the minority here because we really liked Malaga. We spent 2 nights there and would have enjoyed a 3rd night. Regardless of what you decide to do, Malaga is NOT a place only to fly into and out of. That is how Rick Steves treats Malaga in his guidebook but I beg to differ with him.

If you have not already done research, you should read up on Malaga to see what wonderful things there are to do there. In addition to Rick's book, I used Lonely Planet and Michelin Green Guide. Malaga's center is beautiful with marble streets, lovely architecture and lots of restaurants and stores. It's a pedestrianized zone. For sightseeing you have the Cathedral and tons of art museums, such as the Picasso Museum. The walk to the top of the Alcazaba (Moorish fortress on a hilltop) is stunning with lush greenery, exotic flowers, towers, pathways, gateways, Roman Columns, arches, and a small Nasrid palace at the top. And the views! Stunning views of the city, the port and the Mediterranean. If you have the energy, you can also walk to the top of the Castillo de Gibralfaro.

And talk a walk along the seaside promenade and have drinks watching the sunset over the Mediterranean. And then there is the Atarazanas Market, a huge market with tons of stalls selling fruit, veggies, fresh fish, etc.

And you have some lovely coastal ambiance instead of being inland all the time. I think Malaga is very under-rated. Looks like you have 5 nights in Granada. You certainly have time for a day trip to Malaga. It's only about 1.5 hours by ALSA bus.

Can you post a day-by-day itinerary listing the major places you want to see each day? That would help figure out how many nights for each city.

Malaga looks like a good city. I didn't make time for it. I spent 4 nights in Seville, 2 in Granada, 2 in Córdoba, day trip to the castle of Almodovar, 5 in Madrid, day trip to Toledo. I didn't make time for Segovia.

It looks like as of now you will have 14 nights total, 5 nights in Seville, 5 nights in Granada, 4 nights in Madrid.

Córdoba deserves more than a full day and at least one night.

Maybe try 4 nights in Seville, 1 to 2 nights in Granada, at least 1 night in Malaga, at least 1 in Córdoba. If you have already seen enough in Madrid on your last trip, maybe delete it or reduce your time there.

I love the fact that you have 5 nights in both Seville and Granada. We obviously all have our preferences and favorites, but I love those two. Plenty of people think Granada is just the Alhambra, but I love the vibe of the town and would happily go back a third time. And after 8 days in 2 trips, I have so many things still to see in Seville.

I am no help on day trips, though. I can see how I would choose a long day trip to Cordoba instead of changing locations (and you definitely should go), but haven’t been to Malaga. I spent nights in both Segovia and Toledo in March instead of day-tripping, since I like smaller towns over larger ones (Madrid). There are so many interesting places to visit that there are no wrong answers!

October 12 is a National Holiday in Spain. Not sure what is open/closed on that day, but may want to double check.