Vanessaroo

Hello Fellow Travelers,
I'm planning a trip for two to Spain at the beginning of October (15 full days) flying in and out of Madrid. It is our first and we know that we can't do and see everything so we have narrowed it down, more or less to the following chaotic itinerary:

Madrid 2-3 days, Segovia 2, Pedraza and/or Rascafría 1 night and a day trip from Madrid to Toledo and perhaps, Cuenca. Another alternative would be to drive from Segovia or Rascafría to Rioja or even (going crazy now) Axpe?
Then take AVE to Córdoba spend one or two nights there and take train or drive to Sevilla for 1 or 2 nights.
This next part is when it starts getting a little confusing. I'm in the wine business so I definitely want to visit Jeréz, Sanlucar and Cádiz on this trip but I know that Granada is must and we want to also visit Ronda (Cueva de la Pileta) and for a free night hotel stay, Estepona on the beach. This part and everything else needs a little tweaking.

On of the many questions is, on the South leg of the trip, does it make more sense to go from Madrid to Córdoba then train or drive to Granada and then do Ronda, Estepona then Jeréz and finally Sevilla?!

Thank you in advance for your advice.
Vanessa

Sassafrass

We have always driven in that part of Spain, so can't give good advice on whether train would be better. It is, of course, a bear parking in cities like Cordoba, Granada and Sevilla, but driving from city to city was lovely.

Here are personal opinions about other things.

I would stop in Cordoba to visit the mosque, but would not stay over, certainly not for more than one night. I've spent a couple of days there and would rather spend it in Granada and/or Sevilla. I loved spending a night in Toledo; found it magical.

Sanlucar is one of my favorite places, beautiful plaza, beautiful beach, great food, few tourists. Try to spend the evening there and have dinner sitting in the plaza.

I did not find Jerez impressive, but you are into the wine aspect, so you will enjoy it.

Cadiz is interesting, but I am a bit of a History buff and a big Nelson fan, so wanted to see the area where goods were purchased for the Battle of Trafalgar, etc. If not for that, I am not sure I would have found it so interesting.

Segovia is also lovely, but I didn't stay overnight. I think that would be nice.

josele

You'd need a car to go to the Cueva de la Pileta in Ronda,. Besides, there are some wineries around Ronda you may like to visit.
The Cathedral-Mosque at Cordoba is a must, but you can skip spending the night if you are tight.
The train is fast (AVE)from Madrid to Cordoba and then Seville or Malaga. Driving is heavy and boring.

Vanessaroo

Thank you Sassafrass and josele for your helpful replies. I will definitely use some of your suggestions. Córdoba for a day trip makes a lot of sense and Toledo for a night, a good suggestion.

Ronda wineries are something we might explore, besides the fascinating Cueva de la Pileta.

Have any of you been to the Rioja region or Axpe in the Basque? If you have, how far a drive from Madrid to either of these regions?

Thanks!

josele

For the Pileta Cave, the website is http://www.cuevadelapileta.org/ make sure to scroll down and clic visit, for an audio.
The winery I have visited is Cortijo los Aguilares: http://www.cortijolosaguilares.com/ but there are some others.
Have not been to the ones you mention.

Nimra

Hey Vanessaroo,

We just got back from Spain. We flew in and out of Madrid too. The metro (train) is located within the Madrid Airport, which is really convenient.

We then went to Granada via bus (takes about 6 hrs) then to Cordoba (4 hrs) and back to Madrid (5hrs). The buses were easy to use and very nice.

We are sad we didnt go to Toledo. So do check that town out.

If you have any questions about the above cities, do let me know.

enjoy, spain is absolutely beautiful!!!

CathyM

Honestly with only 15 days and your interest in visiting Cordoba, Granada, Sevilla, Ronda, Jerez, Sanlucar, Cadiz and Estepona I'd focus solely on Andalucia. You've already got 6 days on your itinerary in Central Spain so that leaves just 9 days to visit all of these cities in the South. You could barely scratch the surface of these cities in 9 days.

If you want to visit the sherry bodegas in Jerez, Sanlucar and El Puerto most places require advance reservations. This may be difficult to do with such a rushed schedule.

Just my 2 cents.

lbelgray

Hey Vanessa, I'd imagine you're into food if you're in the wine business - no? I really recommend having a couple of meals in Cadiz, at least one at El Faro, standing up at their beautiful bar. It's an amazing restaurant.
Also, find the tapas place La Alacena in Sevilla. Very chic, and modern, great food, and an accent on excellent wine.

diguiseppi

any hotel suggestions for Madrid and Sevilla ?

Vanessaroo

Thank you everyone for all of your kind advice.

CathyM, I am revising my itinerary little by little, as we realize that we will be over-extending ourselves and as we want to do justice to the places visited.

Ibelgray, you hit it right when you imagined us being into food both restaurants sound great and we will at least try one of them.

Diguiseppi et al, I would also appreciate some suggestion for hotels in Madrid and Sevilla and Granada, as well. In Madrid, we would ideally be within walking distance to the museums but not too close to the busy Gran Via. Some place relatively quite and/or near the Parque del Retiro, preferably.

Is anyone familiar with hotels in the area of Campomanes?

Vanessaroo

Anyone stayed at AC Recoletos Hotel, Hesperia Hermosilla, Hotel Catalonia Las Cortes or Meninas Hotel?