arh615

Hey there! Thanks in advance for the advice and help!

My cousin and I have booked flights to Spain for two weeks in March. We're flying into Madrid and out of Barcelona. We're young and excited to see everything, but I also don't want to overstretch and not get the opportunity to really take it in. Originally we wanted to see Porto & Lisbon as well, but I've been advised by friends it may be too much.

Right now I see 4 nights in Madrid, a trip to Toledo in there somewhere. Between Seville & Granada I figured 5 nights, and then 4 nights in Barcelona. Would love some insight on cool things in each general location, or cool day trips.

I believe we've settled on renting a car and having that be our main mode of transport. We both can manage public transport but we feel the car will give us freedom. Thoughts? Do you think we could get away with seeing (and experiencing!) more?

Thanks again!!

nytraveler

I would take a day away from Barcelona and add Cordoba in Andalusia (in it's heyday it was the most advanced city in europe).

But then I'm not a big fan of Madrid and think Barcelona is just OK.

If I were you I would check for info in the Let's Go Student guide and the Thorn tree section of the lonely planet web site - likely to have lots of "cool" stuff.

kja

That would be WAY too rushed for me -- I think you would be wise to consult some guidebooks to make sure you can see the things that YOU want to see and experience in the time you allotting, and taking into consideration the times when various places are closed (often Mondays, part or all of Sundays, and every day for a long lunch hour).

Toledo is easily seen as a day trip from Madrid (although I think it deserves more time than a day trip).

Like nytraveler, I consider Cordoba's Mezquita one of the highlights of travel anywhere in the world. You can see it en route to / from Sevilla (although again, I thought Cordoba worth more time than that).

You're skipping the Alhambra?

No need for a car -- there are high speed trains connecting most of these cities, and a car would only be an encumbrance in the cities themselves.

The Lonely Planet and Rough Guide are good resources.

Enjoy!

jpie

I think with only 2 weeks, driving is going to eat up too much time between the places you are most interested in. For example Madrid to Seville is 5 hours with no stops, so you basically sacrifice a day getting there and Seville to Barcelona is almost 10 hours. I think you might do better to take the train (or look into budget flights) and then rent a car someplace to explore for the day or take day trips from that city. That would also allow you to avoid any drop off charges and having to park in larger cities which can be tough. We did a driving trip through Spain 2 years ago but had a month to make the trip and it still didn't feel like enough time.