a friend and I will be travelling to Andalucia in a few weeks for a week and I'm debating whether it's worth the expense of renting a car. Our rough itinerary is to fly into Malaga, take the train to Granada for a few days, take the train to Seville for a few days. After that I was thinking of renting a car, and travelling to some of the smaller towns - possibly Ronda for a day, and I'd like to do a beach day. I'm also looking into visiting either a sherry or olive oil producer, which I assume I wouldn't be able to get to by public transport. Does it make sense to rent a car for 3 days at the end - picking up in Seville and returning it to Malaga airport? Or could we get by with trains and buses? Also, would appreciate recommendations for beaches, hopefully avoiding the really horrible over-crowded areas! Thanks so much!
Posted by
Whittington
984 posts
If it helps, the journey time by train Malaga to Granada is not less than three and quarter hours, compared to bus(coach) at never more than two hours. 'Does it make sense to rent a car for 3 days at the end - picking up in Seville and returning it to Malaga airport?' - If you want to see any more than one or two these smaller towns in a day - yes, as public transport is not designed with you, the tourist, in mind. Beaches - Malaga, the city, fits your criteria.
Posted by
Bend, OR, United States
1167 posts
That sounds like a good plan. I would suggest spending you beach day an Nerja, a beautiful village that is ony 2-3 hours from Malaga. A bonus for you would be the large number of British expats and vacationers there.
Posted by
Gaston, Oregon, USA
931 posts
Even though it cost $19 EU/day to park our car in Seville, and about the same elswhere, we loved having the freedom it offered this June. From Seville we did a day trip to Arcos and we went to the horse show at Jerez (it was awesome!). Ronda was our favoite town; we stayed there three nites, and drove to the Pileta caves, and one of hill towns. Granada is not worth any more than two days, IMO. We loved the Hotel Amadeus in Seville, Las Almenus in Granada,and the San Gabriel in Ronda was fantastic. In Malaga we steyed at a newer downtown hotel that was very nice, and great value for the money; the Hotel Malaga Centro. Check them out on Trip Advisor. PS We were warned that our GPS would be worthless for many of the newer East-West roads. Our small fold-out Michelin map of Spain was invaluable. Use the map to navigate from town to town.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7889 posts
I really don't like driving in foreign countries, but we're glad we drove across Adalucia. Get the smallest car you're comfortable with for narrow streets in the hill towns. Bring your own GPS from home. But finding a specific destination may still be difficult. As others have mentioned, there are a few attractions, like the White Towns, and even the Carthusian Monastery in Granada that it's handy to have a car for. You may find the Pileta caves omitting a tour you targeted, so you'll have to go back-good to have a car! Plan your route so you hit these before a city stay where you don't want it anymore. When we returned our car in Granada, the Avis guy told us to park on the sidewalk in front of the agency. (Make sure you have your safety vest when you pick up the car, or they might try to charge you for it.) The fields of sunflowers and rapeseed blooms are neat during drives. When we drove South from Ronda (to Gibraltar, rather than Malaga as you mention), the highways were in great shape, but we were subject to being trapped behind slow trucks and busses for many kilometers.