Driving From Madrid to Marbella

The motorway south from Madrid is a nice easy road - you can get to Marbella in one day. (I will be doing that route myself in two weeks time.) I would spend your first day in Madrid, acclimatising and resting.

Thank you Roger. We were planning a two day trip to Marbella after spending a couple of days in Madrid. Currently we think that a night in La Carolina would give us some sight-seeing opportunities along the way to Marbella.

We are doing a similar drive in October....spending 3 nights in Madrid before driving south - first overnighting in Granada and then continuing the next day to Marbella where we also have a timeshare.

if you remind me after the middle of May, I would be happy to give you a report.

Just as a side issue, in my humble opinion, the coast road along the Costa del Sol is awful and well worth avoiding. It is also regarded by many as being the most dangerous road in Europe, as far as driving safety is concerned. I'll be heading for the ferry port at Algeciras and will go the extra 30 kms via Sevilla, so as to avoid the Malaga area.

Thank you for the information Roger. We had considered driving from Madrid to Valencia, then down the Costa del Sol to Marbella, but the driving time seemed to be longer than we have scheduled.

Assuming you'll keep the car while you're in Marbella, then some great spots are an easy reach from there, so I'll say visit Toledo. It's nowhere near halfway to Marbella, but it is beautiful. Then you can head south. The major southern cities are an easy reach from Marbella. No one regrets visiting Toledo.

Thank you Janice. Since we will be in Spain/Portugal for nearly a month, we were thinking we would return to Madrid 3 - 4 days before our departing flight to see more of Madrid, with a day trip riding the AVE to Toledo. I really appreciate everyone's input and comments. Please feel free to provide more advice. A little more bout our trip: We arrive in Madrid on April 20, and check-in at our time share in Marbella on April 23. We plan to make several side trips (Gibraltar, Sevilla, Granda, etc.) during that week in Marbella. Afterward we will drive along the Spanish coast as much as the roads permit, up into Portugal. We are trying to leave the drive/sightseeing as open as possible as we drive northward to the Bay of Biscay area. If time permits, we would like to make it as far as Bilbao before we return to Madrid. Any suggestions from anyone who has made a similar trip is very welcome.

Since I've criss-crossed the Iberian penninsula more times than I can count: bless you for skipping Barcelona. Here's a few ideas that might work. Catch Toledo on the way south (why will become evident later) and spend that first night there. Make the next night Ciudad Real, and Cordoba the next (skip Seville for later as well). I think that gets you into Marbella on time. I'm not a big Sun Cost fan, but the interior of that chunk of the country is neat. Jaen, Granada, Gibraltar, and even Malaga all make nice day trips. For the duration of the week, try to stay east of a line from Cordova to Marbella (except for Gibraltar which you really should see.) A note here: southern Spain is in the midst of a very slow major highway construction program to the point that I couldn't see much change from two years ago to a few weeks ago. Don't rely on a gps or even a map for precise routing - - use the map to keep track of what places are in front of you and follow signs (some will be ramshackle). It's not hard and the traffic isn't that bad, you just have to look around. When you leave Marbella, head for Cadiz, but don't use the freeway down by Gibraltar - - instead cut across the back roads through Jimena. Cadiz is small, but neat - - you can either spend the night or press on to Jerez or Arcos and then to Sevilla the next night.

You said 'into Portugal as far as the road goes'. It goes as far as it can (Cape St Vincent), but you've got to make a decision and it's a hard one. Coastal Algarve is a lot like the Costa del Sol - - condos and beaches. If you go that way, I wouldn't even get off the freeway until well after Albuferia. Faro is big, but doesn't offer much. Portimao is okay for lunch stop. There's some really spectacular scenery if you go all the way to the point on the west side (more straight south, really) of Lagos. If you go that far, you might as well push on to St Vincent. From the Algarve, the best route north is along the N120? (the minor road through the national park), eventually through Setabul and then to Lisbon where two nights will give you enough time to see the city and scoot out to Sintra for the better part of a day. more later

The alternate routing, and the one I prefer, but it's highly personal, is to head north from Sevilla on the E803 and cut west right at the Huelva/Extremadura border and work through Extremadura toward Monsaraz, Portugal. This puts you at the southern corner or a rough rectangle, the other corners of which are Elvas, Marvao, and Evora. I can wander this little area for a month, but try to spend a couple or three nights (you've got time). Cough up the bucks for a Michelin Green Guide (and get one for Spain while your wallet's open) and pick a few hill towns for day sorties working out of Elvas is fine. Elvas to Lisbon is only a couple of hours and the freeway is fine, but you've got to allow time to stop at Almendres (more stones, but smaller than Stonehenge and no lintels, but it darn near rivals Avebury). Now, one way or the other, you're out of Lisbon heading north. The Spanish border is about five hours away - - Santiago about six. I'd spend the night along the way, huggin the coast for Obidos, Alcobaba, and especially Batalha, then cutting back to the freeway. Coimbra is a good overnight stop and puts you well within striking distance of Santiago so you can polish it off in the afternoon and ready to move on the next day. Some folks really like the Duero/Douro River area - - as you refine your planning, you might have time for it, but, except for hiking, it's not high on my list. Portugal's economy is on the rocks. You won't need to make reservations (except maybe for Lisbon). You can pop into the TI and find a place in a heartbeat. Alternatively you can look for hostals (not hostels), a small family-run hotel that's a real bargain - - the good part is that many of them have small dining rooms with really intersting local grub. They also abound in Spain. more much later

Spain is fairly straight-forward, especially in the north. Just to say you've seen the westernmost point in Spain, a drive from Fisterra and back from Santiago will make an interesting half day. Santiago to Lugo is only a couple of hours, giving you a long time to poke around Coruna. From Lugo head almost straight north to Foz (a bit more than an hour) and then work your way along the coast. (Turn on google maps, hit the 'what's here' button, then click 'more photos' and eat your heart out. Foz to Gijon is a couple of hours, but you'll take all day to do it since there's so many spots to look at. From Gijon, head toward Santillana, but swing south midway there to duck up into the Picos de Europa national park. There's a short funicular that goes up into the mountains from Camarena to Bulnes - - the detour won't take but a couple of hours. Santillana is one of the best places to spend an afternoon and the night I've ever seen. Do it. The caves with the Paleo paintings at Altamira have long been closed. There's a repro around somewhere, but I saw the real thing many years ago and have never been interested. However, at Zurita (20 min se of Santillana) there's Cuevas del Monte del Castillo which still has the real thing. There's another one, but I can't remember where and I've never seen it. I suspect it's better. There's a gal around here that knows more about Cantabria and Asturias than I ever will. NANCY, BAIL ME OUT!*

From the caves to Bilbao is only about an hour. The museum's in the new town, the charm is in the old town. The bridge that crosses the river from the lower end of the Gran Via gets you there. If you go up the east side of the river, just opposite Portugalete, there's a unique suspension ferry disigned by Eiffel or one of his henchmen. Guernica, the heart and emblem of everything Basque is a half hour east - - it also has a really good central market. From Bilbao head to Salamanca via Burgos and Valladolid. Driving time is about four hours, so you'll have time to stop at both. From Salamanca, you can stop in both Avila and Segovia on the way back into Madrid. You have time for both in one day and they're adequately covered in any guide book -- one walled city and one aquaduct. That should pretty well fill up the time until you need to get back to Madrid - - you need at least three days there, not counting departure day. I didn't count the nights along the way, but two weeks should do it.

The back-channel from Nancy: 'The town is Ribadesella - kind of on the way to Santander from Oviedo. The name of the cave is Tito Bustillo. Tours are free on Wednesday. Umm... and it's famous for its "prehistoric porn", but the tour we went on didn't take us to that room (it was the free day). When I was there in 2007 they were getting ready to start construction on a reproduction of the parts of the cave that it is too dangerous or fragile to enter. There were no plans to stop the tours where you see actual cave paintings. ' Ribadesella is right on the coast maybe fourty miles outside of Gijon. The northerly cut-off to there is about ten miles before you make the southerly turn down the back road to get to the Picos.

Thanks so much Ed (and Nancy), for your well-detailed replies. It appears that we have very similar travel interests. I/we have traveled extensively throughout Germany (I lived in Germany for 2-1/2 years as a GI) , Austria, and Switzerland. With the exception of "Running With The Bulls" in Pamplona MANY years ago, neither of us have traveled to Spain or Portugal and are looking forward to a great trip. Thanks again, Jim

Another question I have is regarding the best way to obtain and pay for road tolls in both Spain and Portugal. I know that Spain has the Electronic Toll Collection (ETC), and I know that they can be purchased at most financial institutions in Spain, but can they be purchased at the rental car agencies, or is there a financial institution for example, at the Madrid airport?
Also, is there a similar system/product available in Portugal?

Not worth the bother in either country. Unlike France which seems to have a toll plaza every six miles. Just use cash.