Beginning to plan next trip...need opinions where to go.

That is much to short a time for extra travel. Spain is wonderful and Barcelona is quite a place. We would recommend Segovia for its fairytale castle and Roman ruins ( A large aqueduct runs thru the main square). You could go there and spend a few days, just as you would spend a few in Barc.

Prague is a terrific city and has some gorgeous sights but there is little nearby and 8-10 days in Prague is a bit much

Shannon - You really could spend all your time in Andalucia because there is plenty to see. I don't think I would plan on spending 8-10 days just in Barcelona unless there are a lot of things you would like to see in the surrounding areas.

If you really want to see highlights of Barcelona, you could spend a couple of days there at the beginning (or end) of your trip and then fly down to Granada to spend the majority of your time in Andalucia. I would only try that if you had a full 10 days in Spain. If you have to figure in transatlantic travel into your days, I think I would stick to Andalucia.

We flew Vueling last year from Barcelona to Granada to save time and money. We only got a peek at Barcelona but we are very glad we went. We spent the rest of our time in Granada, Ronda, Sevilla and Cordoba before heading to Madrid. We rented a car when leaving Granada and drove to Ronda for a night and then on to Sevilla. If we had an extra day, I would have liked to stop in Arcos de la Frontera.

Have fun!

Shannon, Barcelona is fun, but I agree with Julie, you can do Barcelona in 2 or 3 days.

I've never been to Andalucia, but We did Barcelona and Madrid for our trip. 3 days in Barcelona, then 5 in Madrid. Of the 5 days we did a 1 day trip to Segovia, which was beautiful!

If you are still undecided on spain, check out www.maribelsguides.com. She does a great breakdown on various cities and maybe that can help you decide.

I personally loved Spain... and can't wait to return.

Michelle & Julie,
Thanks for the info. We're leaning towards next June - to financially recover from our trip to Italy/Greece last month. :)

Right now we're looking into flying into Barcelona - 3 days then training it down to Andalucia for a week. Flying home to Chicago out of Milaga. I'm sure I will have more questions. This is just preliminary.

Thanks :)

Personally, I'd fly into Madrid, stay for a couple of days, then do the Cordoba, Sevilla, Ronda, Granada circuit. Barcelona, as someone noted earlier, is "fun." But to me, Madrid is "fun" but with more options.....Avila, Segovia, Toledo, plus all the sights in the city itself. Weather in March will be pleasant....certainly better than Chicago...if long term trends hold.

Shannon,

It really depends on the time of year. If you were to go in March, I'd say go to the cities (where you can do a lot if it is raining). That pretty much leaves a lot of Andalucia out of the picture. If you go in June, by all means do an Andalucian tour, hitting Grenada, Nerja, Seville (maybe Cordoba) Rhonda (or Los Arco de la Frontera), then flying out of Malaga.

Shannon,

Have you looked at Rick's Barcelona & Madrid in 8 days or San Sebastian & Basque Country in 7 days tours (or one of the other city tours? Those sound like they might fit your criteria.

Cheers!