Toledo or Cordoba

Hello, how much time do you have, would this be a day trip or overnight? May I also ask if you could elaborate on your and your wife's interests?

Two very different sites and IMO you cannot judge one as being better than the other. Toledo is more typical European style walled city with a big cathedral. And was the capitol of Spain till it was moved to Madrid. Cordoba is very different with a huge Moorish influence. It was the furthest north that the Muslims went in Spain and, at one time a cultural capitol of Moorish Spain. Personally, I would go to Cordoba over Toledo if I had to chose but that is only my preference.

Hi Carlos,
We will have 14 full days. Three in Madrid, three in Seville, two in Granada, and three in Barcelona. That leaves three days open? Just not sure if I want to try to do two more cities in those three days. The only reason I’m even considering it is that they are both on the route from Madrid to Seville and we may not get back to Spain. Too many places for too few years!. My wife and I both enjoy the history, and architecture. We also are foodies and the nightlife.

Hi Frank,
Thanks for your comparison of the two.

What a difficult decision! Toledo is interesting and has a lot of art, especially El Greco, but Cordoba's Mezquita is unlike any building you're likely to see. Built as a mosque, it was turned into a cathedral after the reconquest--the church was built into the middle of the mosque. The mosque has the most amazing striped columns and arches extending practically forever, with the cathedral in the midst. I'm sure you can find lots of photos online to get an idea of how wonderful it looks.

I'd pick Cordoba if both didn't fit your schedule.

Since you have 3 days open, have you considered adding that time to existing stops and then visiting both Cordoba and Toledo as easy day trips from Sevilla and Madrid respectively? Or one as a day-trip and the other as an overnight stop?

How are you travelling? If by train then Cordoba is on the route between Sevilla and Madrid and also Granada and Sevilla. Toledo isn't on a direct route from the South by railway and you'd need to change trains in Madrid.

PS The Moors certainly got much further North than Cordoba, such as several hundred years in Zaragoza, and beyond, so I don't understand that poster's comment.

Just saw your reply with your timing. While both places could well deserve more than an afternoon or part of a day, you could stop at them in your travels. Cordoba is picturesque, but not more so than other places, other than the Mezquita, which can be seen in a couple of hours. I spend a night there, and could have managed with less time. Ditto for Toledo. Admittedly, short visits like these aren't ideal, but perhaps better than not going at all.

Mike - Have you booked an open jaw ticket for your trip to Spain?

I would say with the 3 free days you have, allocate 2 days to Cordoba and add 1 day to Madrid so that makes it 4 days in Madrid and use that 1 day to do a day trip to Toledo from Madrid.

The 14 days Itinerary can look like this:

Fly into Málaga

Then head straight to Seville from Málaga

Seville - 3 Days

Cordoba - 2 Days

Granada - 2 Days

Madrid - 4 Days (Day trip to Toledo)

Barcelona - 3 Days

Fly out of Barcelona

Logistically, it's shorter time to commute between each cities.

The numbers of days you list for each city are not really accurate because you haven't deducted the travel time needed to get there. So all those 3-day places are actually 2-1/2 days, and you may be severely jetlagged and sleep-deprived at your first destination, meaning just 2 real days there. I'd throw 2 extra days at Barcelona.

I like Rjean's itinerary. If for some reason you can't do that, I personally would choose Cordoba over Toledo. It is a matter of personal preference. We spent 1 night in Toledo, and 2 nights in Cordoba. We much preferred Cordoba. And there is a lot more to Cordoba than just the Mezquita, which is amazing! There are the beautiful gardens of the Alcazar, Palacio de Viana, wandering around the very pretty Juderia, with its narrow lanes, white buildings, flower pots, and patios. We loved strolling along the Roman Bridge at night which gorgeous views of the illuminated Mezquita. One of the best meals of our trip was at Regadera (you need to make reservations). And we loved sampling all kinds of foods at Mercado Victoria.

I do think that people who visit Cordoba and Toledo as a day trip do them both an injustice, but seeing either one for a day is better than not seeing it at all.

I definitely agree with kmkwoo that Cordoba is charming--all the places he mentions are lovely, and if there is time, well worth exploring. But even a short time limited to the Mezquita is better than not seeing it at all!

Hi Mike thanks for the response! I would recommend you add 1 of your free days to Barcelona and the other 2 days to Cordoba, and leave Toledo for another time. Cordoba is on the same AVE line between Madrid and Sevilla, so it's easy to make a stop at. The AVE to Toledo is only really connected to well Toledo, so that forces one to backtrack to Madrid to get down to Andalucia. Toledo is easy to visit when back in Madrid/Central Spain on another trip.

Cordoba itself is a very historically important city, capital of the Umayyad Caliphate and in its time was more significant than Granada. Also wanted to correct some info in another post on this thread, in actuality the Moors made it all the way up to central France but were turned back at the Battle of Tours. The Moors were firmly in control of most of Spain up to the Pyrenees for several 100 years. In the northern city of Zaragoza there is a nice Moorish palace one can visit called La Aljafería, a UNESCO world heritage site.

Thank you Carlos and Nick for correcting the history on how much of Spain the Moors actually controlled.
To the original question, my preference is Toledo. Having visited both multiple times, I feel Toledo has more to offer, but neither is better than the other. If driving from Madrid south, you could stop at Consuegra (castle and windmills) and Campo de Criptana (windmills referenced in Cervantes’ Don Quixote) after leaving Toledo and heading to Sevilla. Neither takes long to see, but are worth visiting. You could then stop for a night in Cordoba before continuing on to Sevilla.

Hi!
We are doing a similar trip in September. After 10 days in Portugal, we are doing 3 nights in Sevilla, renting a car and driving to Cordoba for the day and then on to Granada to stay for 2 nights. We are renting a car because after that we are driving through the white hills towns for a few days. We will then take the train to Madrid where we added an extra night to do Toledo as a day trip. Finally finishing in Barcelona. Good luck with your travel planning!

Couldn't go wrong with either choice.

Mike,
I agree with Kent, you can’t go wrong with either of these two amazing cities.

BTW, don’t forget to book your Alhambra Tickets 3 months in advance. October tickets should become available in the next week or so.

Have a wonderful trip!

If you've got a chance to go to Cordoba and see the Mezquita I'd recommend it highly. Its doable as a day trip or stop en-route although the town is nice enough to spend some time in if you've got it. Toledo is quite interesting but unless you can do more than a day trip I wouldn't bother. Way too many tourists on the day trip schedule really take away from the experience. Its a different place when they clear out.

It was my impression when I visited Toledo in 2016 that the vast bulk of the tourists were along the walking route between Zocodover Square and the cathedral or within a block or two of the cathedral Outdide that area it didn't seem particularly touristy at all. However, my visit fell on the weekend of a major religious celebration, so it may have been abnormal.

Hello, This is a very timely post as my wife and I are also traveling on a similar route this September. We didn't book open jaw, so in and out of Barcelona, but decided to hop on a cheap flight when we land and go directly to Madrid. Figured better to burn a half day on the front end and relax on the back end of the trip. My assumption, like the poster, is that we won't be back - maybe to the Pyrenees and Basque country some day.
Itinerary:
3 nights in Madrid
3 nights in Sevilla
1 night in Granada
4 nights in Barcelona
Everything I've read points me to spend the majority of time in Barcelona. We love food and wine, I speak some halting, non-Castilian Spanish (no Catalan) and while we like the energy of the cities, we typically gravitate to the quieter spaces and more authentic experiences. Toledo sounds like it is similar to San Gimignano in Tuscany more Disney and tourists than a real town? I have the same question and sounds like Cordoba is currently the leader over Toledo. Would any of you recommend giving up time in Barcelona or Sevilla in order to add Toledo, Cordoba or another night in Granada (seems a shame to only be there for one night)?
I am fascinated by the Mezquita but Toledo and El Greco are also on the bucket list. Currently, I was thinking of a day trip to Toledo from Madrid, which leaves just one day for the Prado and other sites.
Thanks for the informative discussion and those that already responded to the OP.
Cheers,
Ty

One night in Granada is problematic, but you don't have extra time to give to that city. At least the AVE links are now working, so it won't take so long to get to and from Granada.

I absolutely do not agree that Toledo is Disneyfied. These days the top sights in every city are mobbed. You can usually find your own space by simply walking 2 or 3 blocks away. I am convinced that most of the people who say a sizable place--and Toledo is by no means tiny--is like Disneyland probably visited it for just a few hours (quite likely on a group tour) and went to the same 2 or 3 sights everone else chose. The vast majority of tourists hang out in a very limited area. Toledo has lovely sights that are not the Cathedral or Zocodover Square.

Wait till you see the conditions inside Barcelona's modernista sights (and the Picasso Museum--eek).

You can't go everywhere. I much prefer to see fewer places and not have to look at my watch constantly, thinking about where I'm supposed to be. You can have a great trip to Spain without going to Toledo. As a lover of Mudejar architecture, I'd choose Toledo rather than Madrid (and I spent most of 2 days in Madrid's major art museums). It's just a personal choice.

A big thanks to all who have weighed in with your great comments!

We are flying open jaw into Madrid where we’ll spend 4 nights. Our flight arrives around 08:30 and my wife and I always hit the ground running so our arrival day will basically be a full day. We will actually do a day and overnight in Toledo returning to Madrid so we are only sleeping in Madrid 3 nights so we still get 3days and 3 nights in Madrid. Then off to Seville for 3 days/3 nights, Cordoba for 2 days/2 night, Granada for 2 days/2 nights, and finally Barcelona for 3 days/3 nights. We may add another day/night in Barcelona?

Acraven - thanks for the advice! We actually live out in Winchester VA, looks like you are in the DC area based on your profile. I feel the same way about Sienna, Italy as you do about Toledo I think. Loads of tourists at points during the day, but what an amazingly beautiful city once things return to normal in the evening. The Moorish influence is also present in their main cathedral, one of the most amazing spaces I've been in. We were there in October and there were a bunch of street parties being put on by all of the neighborhoods and clubs that take part in the Palio. Based on the conversations here, I'm going to look at peeling a day back from Madrid and doing an overnight in Toledo.
Thanks,
Ty