First trip to Spain. Flying into Barcelona- 3 nights, train to Madrid 4 nights, train to Toledo for the day, rent a car drive to Cordoba, any suggestions for how long to stay in Cordoba? This is where the trip falls apart. We want to go to Granada and we are flying out of Seville to go home. Is 3 nights in Seville enough? What are the day trips from Granada ? Do you recommend going to Malaga? or Cadiz ? Or Ronda? We like to spend at least two nights in places but it seems like there is so much to see . Is 4 nights to many in Madrid? HELP!

Malaga is nice. They have the ruins of a Roman theater, a fortress on a hill, a great old city center, tasty food, and a nice Turkish-style hammam that I highly recommend.

I think two days is plenty for Cordoba. You'll easily spend a few hours in the cathedral-mosque. There is a hammam here as well (owned by the same company that owns the one in Granada) but unlike the one in Cordoba, it has pools. Highly recommended.

Four nights is fine for Madrid but you can probably feel that you've hit all the highlights in three days.

We stayed in Cordoba for two nights - it's a charming city, so if you have the time, it's nice to stay, but it doesn't require more than one night. Definitely try to visit the Mezquita at the end of the day - you will have the place all to yourself, which offers an incredibly different experience.

3 nights in Sevilla is good (although you may want to stay for 3 months) and I would also consider spending 2-3 nights in Granada - it's a great city with a wonderful vibe.

Have a great trip!

Madrid is one of our favorite cities in Spain, and we always like spending at least three nights when traveling through, and could easily spend a few more. There is always something to see or do.

Depending on the time of year, 3 nights should be enough, but it is also a good base for visiting Jerez and doing a day trip to Ronda.

<< train to Madrid 4 nights, train to Toledo for the day, rent a car drive to Cordoba >>

Stay in Madrid for 3 nights, take the train to Toledo and spend a night in Toledo. Rent the car in Toledo the next day to continue your trip.

Toledo is beautiful at night after the day trippers have left.

I rented my car with Europcar (outside the walls) through Kemwel.com or Autoeurope.com. Took a taxi from my hotel with my luggage so I wouldn't have to drive within the walls.

There are LOTS of threads on these questions on this board -- it might be very much to your advantage to read some of them. And keep in mind that NONE of us can tell you how long to spend anywhere, as it really depends on what you want to see and experience.

FWIW, I spent about 1 day in Segovia, 1 in Avila, 2 in Salamanca, 4 in Madrid, 2 in Toledo, 2 in Cordoba, 1 in the Poqueira Gorge, 2 in Granada, 1 in Ronda, and 3.5 in Sevilla (plus transit time).

IMO, Toledo and Cordoba are each worth at least 2 days and are each much more delightful after day-trippers leave. Ronda is also much after day-trippers leave, but I didn't think it merited a full 24 hours -- a few hours shy of that worked for me. I wish I had had more than my 3.5 days in Sevilla. I though 4 full days just barely enough in Madrid, but then I love museums and not everyone does. Be sure to book day and evening visits (in that order) to the Alhambra well in advance.

Good luck!

<i>There are LOTS of threads on these questions on this board</i>

Yes there are. Did the NYT or Parade do a story recently on Spain?

I was five days in Seville but II would have liked at least a week. One day in Cordoba was enough for me.

Thanks everyone. Everyone's thoughts are very helpfully.

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