Barcelona vs. Madrid

That is a tough decision and probably depends a lot on your interests - if art galleries are important for example, Madrid would be the obvious choice. Madrid is a bigger city and therefore takes more time to 'see'. Both are wonderful cities but in very different ways. I would suggest you think about what your family interests are and do some research before deciding. Whatever you decide, you will enjoy both.

Search a little, there is another long thread on this topic and it will give you a lot of details answers. It will depend on your own family's interest. In short, Madrid has great museums and daytrips, Barcelona great beaches, architecture and nightlife. Madrid is more like Spain, Barcelona more like France.

You could add the day to whichever city offers the more interesting day trip, since a two-day stay isn't enough for that. So, consider: For Madrid, Toledo, Segovia, Avila, etc. For Barcelona, Montsettat, Sitges, Cadaqués, etc. We loved Toledo but stayed overnight there, so I don't know how it is as a day trip. Would have liked to See Avila and Segovia but did not have time. We liked Barcelona so much we did not even try a day trip out of the city. There is so much to do there, and with two full days we barely got started. If you are not thinking of day trips, I would suggest adding the day to Barcelona. People get downright passionate about Barcelona, and I can see why. Not to disparage Madrid at all, it is a majestic Capitol city with one of the world's finest art museums. But Barcelona offers so much variety--- the beach, the mountain, a medieval center with narrow lanes and a more modern section with wide, tree-lined boulevards, the Gaudi sites ( don't miss Parc Guell), fantastic food, the Ramblas scene, La Boqueria. . .

IMHO, your 18 year old daugher will love Barcelona more, More lively, smaller downtown area, fun. Really a great time! For all of you! Bobbie

I would agree with Liz (by the way, Malaga is a great city!), in that Madrid is larger, but in my humble opinion, more "traditional" or more "old world" than Barcelona. I expect you would thoroughly enjoy either city. I like to subscribe to RS's recommendation, "plan that you will return."

IMHO We would spend the extra time in Madrid. Both cities are great but Madrid is more to our tastes. Your 18 year old daughter might prefer Barcelona though.

Barcelona