seeksocean

Three of us are trying to figure out an itinerary that will give us a little taste of a few places. We start with 5 nights in Barcelona (we are meeting family there). Then so far plans are to head by train to Valencia with 2 or 3 nights there. I have read about the Festival Of Patios in Cordoba, and that interests us. Other places we would love to see are Malaga, Seville, Granada and Cadiz. And ending our trip in Madrid or Lisbon, Portugal. We plan on taking trains, buses, flying, private drivers, but probably not renting a car. Can any of you Spain experts please help me figure out an itinerary and path to getting there that makes sense? Thank you!

seeksocean

If we fly home from Madrid, it's really 20 nights. If we fly home from Lisbon, it's 21 nights.

nytraveler

Well it looks like you want to visit 6 places in 13 days you have left. After you have deducted time to get from one place to another (about 1/2 day for each transfer) that leaves you 1.5 days per city.

If that leaves you with enough time to see what you want in each city then you can certainly go for it. But it would not be enough for me - I would want more than that - 3 days at least in Seville and Madrid and at least 2 full days (3 nights) in the other places.

So I fear you have some hard decisions to make - unless you can fit what you want in 1.5 days - and avoid any day trips- such as Ronda from Seville and Toledo from Madrid.

You might want to have a look at the Michelin green guide, which rates sights by * and tells you how long it will take to visit them.

kja

Oh, you are going to have a wonderful trip! And oh my, you are are going to have to make some difficult choices.

I recommend that you get some good guidebooks or spend some time with a few in your local library (as nytraveler mentioned, the Michelin Green Guide would be a great choice), identify the things you most want to see in each location, check their opening/closing times on the internet, and mark them on a calendar. Then pencil in your transportation, add some time on either side (for getting to/from your lodging, checking in/out, packing/unpacking, getting oriented, etc.). Then see how things fit together. BTW, note that many things in Spain are closed on Monday, and often for all or part of Sundays too; and many things in Spain will also be closed daily for a very long mid-day break.

For information about public transportation options, you might want to check the Rough Guide (which might be a good source for lots of other information, too) and you might also consult rome2rio.com

Good luck and enjoy!

seeksocean

Thank you! Which route from Valencia should we take to optimize our time? Once again we are on buses and trains and hired driver.

seeksocean

I think we'll cancel Córdoba. So that's one less stop. And I will get on reading those travel guides. Apparently hotels are filling up fast for May, so I feel a little pressured to get on it. Thank you again!

seeksocean

Taking advantage of high speed trains may be our best option. Small train to Valencia, two or three nights there, high speed train to Madrid with a connection to Seville. And then after days down in southern Spain, high speed train back to Madrid for 3 nights. I'll spend the next couple days trying to research. Thanks again

kimhe

Córdoba in May is something special, almost the whole month is 24/7 food, wine, song, dance, music and fiesta spirit: http://www.andalucia.com/cities/cordoba/festivals.htm

The famous patio festival is much more than flowers and patios, and most nights there will also be concerts, both outdoors and in theaters, and you could expect to see some of the greatest flamenco artists on stage. Here's last year's program, and it's very similar from year to year: http://www.turismodecordoba.org/84/g...ordoba2015.pdf

Cordoba is on the high speed AVE Train line between Sevilla and Madrid.

seeksocean

Just what I needed. Thank you! After some research, I am now rethinking going to Valencia. Instead, maybe going from Barcelona to Madrid and then south to Córdoba, Seville, Granada and Malaga. Probably back to Madrid.

seeksocean

I wish they had the 2016 Festival agenda of events ready. I've written to the Festival promoters. What we have tentatively planned now is 3 nights in Cordoba, 3 nights in Seville, 3 nights in Granada and two or three in Malaga. then maybe Cadiz and then back to Madrid for a few days and fly home.I think I'll research in which direction...starting from Cordoba to do the triangle, ending in Malaga. Thanks again Fodorites. I love and appreciate your positive energy and encouragement.

otherchelebi

Some seven, eight years ago We did Madrid, Toledo, Cordoba, Sevilla, Malaga, Granada and Valencia, spending a night each at Cordoba, Sevilla, Granada and Valencia. plus 3 nights in Madrid, driving between all in 7 days. We did not feel rushed but missed many sites which we did not research. So, no regrets.

Driving gave us a chance to see small medieval towns, interesting cathedrals and castles, troglodyte dwellings and such, as well as good food in out of the way places.

Malaga and Valencia were wasted visits, we thought.

Toledo, Cordoba, Sevilla were the highlights. We only had time for the Alhambra in Granada. (make sure you get tickets in advance, or appear on site hours before opening.)

We stayed at some lovely locations including Paradores in Cordoba and Valencia and the interesting hotel Puerta America in Madrid.

We did that end of April, and the weather was decent but with some drizzling rain.

Check the Paradores for guaranteed quality, although the Paradore at Granada may be all booked already because it is within the Alhambra.

Try for gooseneck barnacles in Barcelone. (We had it at restaurant frequented by Miro and loved it) I thing they are called "percebes."

Please post of your awe of Gaudi in your trip report.

seeksocean

Great! Thank you! Originally Valencia was my must do. But too many days on the road. Next time.