Which southern towns to visit in 7 days?

Prioritize the day trips from Sevilla as I doubt you’ll get to all of them with the time you have.

Seville is your first priority, then Granada and Cordoba.

If you are visiting the Alhambra in Granada, make sure to get your tickets ahead of time as they sell out. Here is the link to the official website - most people buy the "Alhambra General" ticket:

https://tickets.alhambra-patronato.es/en/

Day trip to Ronda and environs is not feasible from Sevilla..

With one week, base in Granada and Sevilla, with day trip by train from Sevilla to Cordoba and MAYBE Sevilla to wither Jerez or Cadiz.....

Personally, I would overnight in Cordoba rather than do a day trip.

Be realistic about how much time you have. One night in Granada does not give you two days; it gives you a few hours on the day you arrive and a few hours on the day you depart, possibly adding up to less than one full day. With a schedule like that, seeing the Alhambra may be awkward.

Your schedule gives you only six full days in the south plus the partial day after you arrive from Madrid.

Seville is a large city with a lot of sights. It really needs multiple days, so you need to trim the list of side trips. After you do that, you'll be in a better position to decide how many days you'll need the car. It will be useless in Seville and Cordoba.

After renting the car in Granada, you could drive to Ronda and then Seville. That's a four-hour drive minimum. You could break it with a night in Ronda, or make it a long day with a multi-hour stop in Ronda to see the bridge, old city, bullring and other sights. I agree with acraven that Cordoba deserves an overnight if you can manage that, or at least a full day. It's a short train ride from Seville so a day trip could be done without the car.

Thanks for all the suggestions!! Lots to consider. If we're going to pare down the list of places to realistically be able to spend time in & see the highlights, of the places I mentioned above, which would you suggest we go to, for how many days each & in which order?We're very "outdoorsie", not so much musuem people but 1 or 2 here & there are fine. We really enjoy experiencing the local culture & food.

We're also ok with taking the train from Madrid to Seville instead of Granada (we'd be arriving in Grenada at 11am on Oct 1) if that's a better choice. And renting a car isn't a must if trains are a better option. I saw the recommended Alhambra guide in another post, Margarita Ortiz de Landazuri. We'll definitely be booking with her.

We'd be ok with basing in 1 or 2 towns for the 7 nights. In any case, we'll be flying from one of the southern cities to Barcelona on the morning of Oct 8.

Thanks again for all the input!

I don't think the order of visit for Granada and Seville matters; you can base that decision on the train and bus schedules. There aren't a lot of fast trains in and out of Granada, so you're smart to be looking at that. The trains from Madrid to Seville and Granada go through Cordoba, as do many if not all the trains between Seville and Granada, so Cordoba can be slotted into your itinerary nearly anywhere.

To me, Seville, Granada and Cordoba are by far the most important and interesting destinations in Andalucia, though there are many other worthwhile destinations for visitors with more time available. Seville needs the most time, but the other two can fill a solid two days each if not longer. On a short trip, I'd spend my time in those three cities. Some visitors like to rent a car and drive between Seville and Granada, stopping to see some white villages along the way. That can be an efficient way to include one or two small places in an otherwise city-oriented trip. Ronda is larger and can't really be seen well on a 1- or 2-hour stop.

Thanks for that info. It may even make sense to stop for a night in Cordoba on the way down from Madrid if the train stops there anyway. I really appreciate having input from everyone that's already been.

Driving in Andalucia is easy and pleasant so that is a good option and offers flexibility. For us, the highlights of Andalucia were: the Mezquita in Cordoba; El Caminito del Rey; and, the rooftop tour of the Seville Cathedral. Have a great trip!

PS - Driving in Granada was the only nightmare so grab a car as you are leaving!

Always compare travel time by train (renfe.com) to driving time (viamichelin.com) before deciding where to rent a car. Sometimes the train is massively faster. Example: Madrid to Seville...

By train: as little as 2 hr. 43 min.

By car: estimated at 5 hr. 20 min. by the fastest route, excluding stops, traffic delays, navigational errors, etc.