erictravel

My wife and I are planning a trip to Spain the end of September for 8 nights. This is our first time in Spain and are having trouble deciding on which cities to visit.

We are thinking:
Barcelona - 4 nts,
Madrid - 4 nts (with a day trip to Toledo)

However, I am hearing that Seville is really nice (and Alhambra is a nice day trip from Seville). Adding Seville might be difficult, as we didn't want to travel too much over a 8 nt trip. Some, have told us to skip Madrid, if we are not able to work Seville into the mix.

We are not big museum people, per se, just want to enjoy the local attractions, walking tours, shopping, and taking in the cities.

My wife prefers to just go to Barcelona and Madrid.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

stevewith

For most people, the attraction of going to Madrid is its outstanding museums, plus its sophisticated food scene/nightlife scene. It is a city that was largely re-made in the 20th century, but not along the lines of Barcelona, but more along the lines of other European (and American) capital cities.

Sevilla has retained far more of its antique historical architecture and atmosphere. It is not possible to "daytrip" to Granada from there, but you can visit Cordoba, which has spectacular sights.

Toledo is also a fantastic historic place to be, although quite small.

Might be easier to give advice if people knew which airports you will be using and what time of day you are arriving and departing.

BigAleinstein

If you do not like museums you can go to Barcelona and Sevilla.

Besides Iberia take a look at Vueling.

http://www.vueling.com/EN/

BigRuss

<<and Alhambra is a nice day trip from Seville . . .>>

The Alhambra is not really a day trip. It'll take you about 7 hours round trip (about 3 for bus or train each way, plus transport in Granada, plus returning to your abode).

And see if you can go to a soccer game (football match). Madrid and Barcelona are only the homes of 1/2 of the top four teams in Europe . . .

erictravel

Thanks so much for the responses.

when I mention day trip to Alhambra, I meant from Seville.

We are still leaning towards Barcelona/Madrid only...with day trips from Madrid.

...Unless, Seville is that nice, and worth changing things around. It comes down to Madrid vs Seville.

Thanks so much in advance.

Egbert

Seville is nicer than Barcelona or Madrid. Barcelona and Madrid are both incredible. I would just split your time between Madrid and Barcelona. Seville is much smaller than either.

MaloBalo

I'm not a museum geek either and I still loved Madrid a lot. You have tons of "local attractions", some great shopping areas, really good food if you only research a bit, great options to simply sit down, lay back and enjoy, at day, at night, in different locations, be it crowded or not, downtown, in the pulsating LaLatina or a park like the Retiro.

And I can't say it all about Barcelona. As much as I liked some stuff, for me Barcelona was a mixture of all the big European cities and did not have much of its own vibe. It has still plenty to offer though.

So while people around here have vivid discussions whether it's Madrid over Barcelona or vice versa, everybody loves Seville. Steve points it out pretty well why this is the case. That being said, having only eight days, I'd skip all the transit and focus on Barcelona and Madrid. The next time you opt to travel to Spain, you will have a great deal of things to combine in Andalucia then, which you should already be looking forward to now.

BigAleinstein

As much as I liked some stuff, for me Barcelona was a mixture of all the big European cities and did not have much of its own vibe.
____
It is odd how people view things. To me there is a sense of style and joie de vivre in Barcelona that is rarely seen. The art of Barcelona is not in the museums but in the streets and the modernisme of Gaudi and Puig infuse the city. Where else do people dance their traditional folk dance weekly? Where else do you have a vibrant and enticing 800 year old market?

It is interesting what each sees and does not see.

MaloBalo

What you refer to as odd, I'd call humane. It's great people view things differently, experience one and exactly the same thing on a whole different level, otherwise we would probably all live and dine at exactly the same place, which would be pretty boring if not horrifying to me. I loved the Boqueira btw.

erictravel

Thanks so much for the replies.

Right now, we are keeping the trip to Barcelona/Madrid. However, we haven't purchased airline tickets yet, until we are absolutely sure.

Any additional suggestions/comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks so much in advance.

BigAleinstein

What you refer to as odd, I'd call humane

BTW, humane is when you treat a puppy with compassion.

robertcoon

When we went to Spain we did Barcelona, Granada, Seville, and Madrid. We really enjoyed Granada and Seville. the Alhambra is amazing and the Alcazar in Seville is also quite impressive. We loved Barcelona too. Madrid was just ok. Madrid seemed like more business and museum oriented to us. We prefer shopping, some historical sights, eating, and cafe life.

If I recall we took an overnight train from Barcelona to Granada. Then regular trains to Seville and Madrid.

You could probably do 3 nights Barcelona, 1 night Granada, 1 night Seville, and 2 nights Madrid and hit all the highlights.

danon

Your schedule is just fine in M..O

Bedar

Yes, stick to your plan - 3 days Barcelona, 5 Madrid (time to visit Toledo and Segovia). Save Andalucia for another trip.

iris1745

www.maribelsguides.com for info

erictravel

Thanks so much for the replies. It sounds like we might have to save Seville/Grenada for another trip. We learned from previous trips, that 3 nts should be a minimum in a city (at least for us). Unless, I convinced my wife to do Barcelona - 3 nts, Fly to Seville for 3 nts (day trip to Alhambra (there are full day tours from Seville to Alhambra), then train to Madrid for 2 nights (with no day trips). Might still be too much traveling. Bedar's advice for 3 nts Barcelona, 5 nts Madrid is interesting. However, that won't leave too much time in Barcelona...as we would be taking the train from Madrid (or flying from the US), so the 1st day wouldn't be a full day.

Thanks so much, and any other itinerary advice would be greatly appreciated.

danon

Three night n Barcelona is basically two days......not enough time
Madrid is a great city especially if you are interested in art....

Unless you like moving around a lot and don't t mind hours on the road( a day trip to Alhambra)
I would stick to your original plan. Moving from Barcelona to Madrid will take half a day anyway.

iris1745

For hotels and good reviews of hotels www.booking.com/madrid

iris1745

and www.booking.com/barcelona

erictravel

Ok, thanks.

Will weigh the options.

I appreciate the suggestions/help.