Hello,
We are planning 7 days vacation with kids ( 12 and 7) to Seville in the end of March. Were planning to see Cordoba, Granada, Cardiz. Would like to know what other places would you recommend as well as best way of transportation by train or by car between all these cities? Will one day be enough to spend in all these cities??? Where should I look for train tickets?? Any other tips would really appreciate. Thank you =)
Easter is on April 1 next year. That's an extremely popular time to be in Andalucía, so your lodging costs may be higher than expected.
I don't think Granada is workable as a day-trip from Seville--too much time on the road or in a train given the time you'll want at the Alhambra.
Cordoba is an excellent idea from the standpoints of both logistics and interest. Cadiz takes about twice as long to reach but is doable. Jerez is sometimes mentioned as a side-trip from Seville.
The pretty town of Ronda (on a ravine) would be viable if you had a car. Careful plotting of train schedules would otherwise be necessary. Some of the trains are too slow, and faster trains are not very frequent.
Thank you. Planning to be there from 3/23-3/30 Would you recommend renting a car instead of taking a train??
March
23. Arrive Sevilla and take train to Cordoba (1)
24. Visit Mezquita then take train to Granada (2)
25. Visit Alhambra
26. Pick up car and drive to Ronda (1)
27. Drive via Arcos/Jerez to Seville (3) and return car
28. Sevilla
29. Day trip by train to Cadiz
30. Depart Sevilla
Drop Ronda if you think you may like a 2nd day in Sevilla.
Sana101, I cannot give advice on car vs. train since I've never rented a car in Europe. For the major cities, the train will often be faster. You can check driving times (probably a bit optimistic) on ViaMichelin.com and train times on the Deutsche Bahn website. If you want to buy rail tickets ahead of time (which will save money in many cases), you'll need to use renfe.com or trainline.eu . It has been reported here that Renfe doesn't like US credit cards, but PayPal works better.
Most people would say that one day in Sevilla is too few, and I agree. We spent three nights there (2.5 days) and I would consider that to be just about the minimum to really enjoy that beautiful city.
This may be a feature or a bug, but your travel dates are during the Holy Week/Semana Santa this year. You will definitely want to read up on that as my understanding is the crowds may impact your travel and accommodation plans. We visited Sevilla and Cordoba during the same dates last year, but it wasn't Semana Santa.
You definitely won't want to wait to make your accommodations in Sevilla, if you haven't already.
Also, does your 7 day itinerary include the days that you fly into and out of Spain? Any itinerary that involves four cities in 7 days is going to feel rushed, especially if that includes getting from and to an airport. You will have plan your transportation connections carefully, and book rail tickets are early as they become available (about 60 days before the travel dates), due to peak demand.
Kendalit's post has reminded me that Semana Santa processions may affect your ability simply to move around some Andalucian towns. I've never experienced those, but I ran into other festivities in Toledo and Laguardia (Spain) that had streets blocked off last summer. I was afraid I wasn't going to find a place to cross the path of the procession and would miss the bus I was planning to take.
Experiencing events like Semana Santa in Spain is wonderful, but it is very likely to affect the number of traditional sights you are able to see. This would seem to argue for going to fewer cities.
Thank you all soo much. Sounds like it might be a little hectic traveling there with kids during that time of the year.
I will tell you my experience last year during Semana Santa. I was in Malaga and then Sevilla and ended in Cordoba for Easter Sunday.
Semana Santa (from Palm Sunday through Easter Sunday) is the biggest holiday period in Andalucia. That means the highest rates for rooms and the most crowds. There are long religious processions that wind through virtually all the streets in the historic centers. Each procession can last from 4 to 10 hours, include usually 2 floats and several marching bands, and lots and lots of penitents in colorful costumes. Locals and visitors line up along the routes (there are several) as much as an hour or more in advance of the beginning of the procession. In Sevilla, it is possible tthat there will be 2-4 processions at any one time, from afternoon until the wee hours of the night. Some streets are closed off for the entire week, others are closed off just when a procession is scheduled to pass by. I didn't see processions in Cordoba but I believe they are more solemn, without music, but just as long and just as popular. Several times I felt like a salmon swimming upstream when I encountered a procession while trying to get from point A to point B. I found it beautiful, fascinating, and at times very moving. Trying to keep 4 people together, especially kids, can be difficult.
If you are set on Andalucia and want to experience Semana Santa, I suggest starting in Cordoba and day-tripping to Sevilla. Then go to Granada and end in Malaga. Thursday night is the highlight for processions, and Sevilla gets more crowded and more crazy leading up to it, so it's best to visit there at the beginning of the week, there will still be crowds and closed-off streets but fewer processions. Malaga is smaller and from what I saw, they take the processions more seriously and there is more order. It's also easier to get flights out of Malaga.
If you want to go to Spain, a much better choice for that week would be Barcelona - there's plenty to see and do there to fill up a week, including great day trips, and Semana Santa is pretty much a non-event in Catalonia. Alternately you could split up the time and spend 2-3 nights in Valencia.
