Driving from Cinque Terre to Barcelona in 2 days - Stop in Nice or Marselle

Why not Marseille? It is big city there is a lot to see and do around there. You should also do some research about both of those. You or the people traveling may prefer one over the other.

I have never driven in Europe, but I visited Nice and Marseille last year. My thought is that if this is just an overnight stop and you don't have time for much sightseeing, you might as well stay in a smaller place where you may not have the traffic hassles you might encounter in those two large cities. Also, Marseille is not on the direct driving route. Nice would be a pleasant and convenient stop if it doesn't present traffic and parking issues.

Unfortunately, I am not familiar with any of the small towns directly on your route, so I am not able to offer what might be a better solution.

With France not being on the itinerary, I would look at doing 350-400 miles the first day ( wherever that is ) and have a shorter drive the second day. Marseilles is definitely a detour off the direct route

I agree with Joe's suggestion, and Ideally would prefer a smaller coastal town to stay in near or better yet, west of Marseille, but not far off of the main route. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, as I am not familiar with the region.

Thank you.

Arles or Nîmes?

You could do Cassis. This is just east of Marseille. Its a little off the main highway, BUT, you could hike to one of the most spectacular places... before heading on to Barcelona the next day (there's sufficient info online about the trail head, hike and calanques to get there...)

https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&q=cassis+calanque&chips=q:cassis+calanque,online_chips:en+vau&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjurKGFyOTZAhUDI6wKHYLJDZIQ4lYIJygA&biw=1216&bih=715&dpr=1

What about Aix-en-Provence? Right off the autoroute north of Marseille, beautiful town set in the Mont Sainte Victoire countryside.

What time of year are you traveling? Your drive time will depend on the traffic, which can be very heavy in the summer particularly between Genoa and Nice.

I've driven this route (also leased a car) and liked Aix as a stopover: beautiful restored town to explore, great cafes and restaurants, variety of accommodations with the all-important guarded parking...and if you have time, very close to Mont Sainte Victoire. Also a wonderful morning farmers market to put together a picnic lunch for the road.

Have a great trip!

I would go along with the previous suggestions and pick a smaller town for a stopping point that still offers an interesting evening of sightseeing. Driving in big cities is a chore to say the least and with just an overnight stop in either Nice or Marseille you will get very little benefit, kind of like getting a root canal for the heck of it.

I do like Barbara's suggestion of Aix-en-Provence. It jumped out at me last night as I was youtubing the area for options and it lioked to be a perfect little stopover along tge main route. We are driving through tve area in early May. Can you recommend a hotel?

You may already be aware of this but I wanted to mention it "just in case".

It's important to note that for driving in Italy, each driver listed on the rental form must have the compulsory International Driver's Permit, which is used in conjunction with your home D.L. These are valid for one year, and easily obtained at any CAA/AAA office (two Passport-sized photos required, which may be provided by the issuing office). Failure to produce an IDP if requested can result in fines on the spot! An IDP would also be a good idea in Spain.

You may also want to have a look at some of the other posts here concerning the Zona Traffico Limitato (limited traffic) areas that are becoming increasingly prevalent in many Italian towns & cities especially Florence, which is almost saturated with automated ZTL cameras. EACH PASS through one of the automated Cameras will result in a €100+ ticket, which you won't know about until several months after you return home!