I am in the process of planning my first trip to Spain for April. I will have 20 nights in addition to arriving in and departing from Spain. I travel lightly and do not mind changing hotels or traveling between cities as long as I can spend at least two nights in a place. Earlier this year I spent 3 weeks in Italy and stayed in Roma, Perugia, Bologna, Padova and Milano and the trip was heavenly.

My main interests are Art and Architecture and I like to spend considerable amounts of time museums and churches. I will most likely devote 2 days to the Prado museum. My plans are to fly into Madrid and out of Barcelona. My preliminary itinerary is as follows

7 nights in Madrid – possible day trip to Segovia or Salamanca (train to Toledo)
2 nights in Toledo (arrive late, leave early) (train to Sevilla)
4 nights in Sevilla – day trip to Cordova and minivan trip to 3 white villages (I read about this trip in Rick Steves) (train to Granada)
2 nights in Granada (fly (?) to Barcelona
5 nights in Barcelona

I would appreciate any comments or suggestions. Thank you.

We were in Spain in May of this year and did a similar trip except instead of Madrid we went to Nerja for a week at the beach. Your trip sounds marvellous. You can do Toledo as a day trip too then maybe stop in Cordoba on your way to Seville then continue on to Seville. This will give you more time in Seville and a smoother itinerary. Also I would recommend a daytrip from Barcelona to Monserrat by train.

Also I think you have to return to Madrid to take the train to Seville from Toledo so further support for doing Toledo as a day trip.

Thank you Lily. I was wondering about the overnight in Toledo but so many people on this board and others have commented that Toledo is very magical after dark.

Ah, a good reason to stay over in Toledo then. Overall your trip sounds wonderful.

Apart from the truly wonderful art museums, my wife and I found Madrid to be a disappointment. If you do spent 7 nights in Madrid I'd certainly make the side trips you mention. If not, I'd spend less time in Madrid and more in Barcelona.

We stayed 7 nights in Madrid and liked it a lot ( only one day trip - to Toledo. One night is enough there)

People tend to stay around central \ touristy areas of Madrid like Sol , Grand Via and Santa Ana - they are noisy and jammed with people.

Spend part of a day a day in wonderful Retiro parks, walk around elegant streets of Salamanca barrio( every high end store imaginable, tree lined streets and great restaurants ), visit the area around the Palace at night.
Fly to Barcelona ( only 50 euros) and spend 7 night if you can. We stayed 8 and never left the city - so much to see!

Hi, roadlesstraveled -

Your plan sounds pretty good to me!

I'm one of those who loved Toledo after dark and am really glad I chose to stay there for a couple of nights. (I loved it during the day, too!)

I also loved Salamanca, but think I would have been frustrated by an effort to see it as a day trip from Madrid - there is SO much to see there. You might consider spending a night or two there.

It sounds like 2 of your days in Sevilla are "spoken for" with a day trip to Cordoba and another to the white villages. That won't leave you much time in Sevilla itself. You might consider shifting one night from Madrid to Sevilla, depending on what you decide to do about Salamanca.

Given your love of art, I trust that while in Madrid you've also considered visiting the Thyssen-Bornemisza, Reina Sofía, and perhaps also the Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales.

Hope that helps!

Thank you all for your responses. After reviewing your comments and gathering other input, I have tentatively added another day to Barcelona and Sevilla. I am still trying to decide if I want to do an overnight in Toledo; it sounds very special but I am concerned that I would have to backtrack to Madrid.

Kja - I was glad to get your comment on Salamanca. While I know I would love Salamanca, it did seem a bit ambitious as a day trip. I think that I will put it on my list of things to see on another trip to Spain. I most definitely have the Thyssen-Bornemisza, Reina Sofía and the Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales on my list of must sees.

My revised itinerary is:

7 nights in Madrid – day trip to Toledo (train to Sevilla)
5 nights in Sevilla – day trip to Cordova and minivan trip to 3 white villages (I read about this trip in Rick Steves) (train to Granada)
2 nights in Granada (fly (?) to Barcelona)
6 nights in Barcelona

I would appreciate comments on this itinerary. Rhank you again.

Sounds very good!!!

Since you arrive in Madrid first, you will need a day to get over the jet -lag and find your way around the city.
It is a big city but if you are a walker (and staying in the center), most places can be reached on foot/.
We are not big on visiting palaces, but one in Madrid is something to see.
The flights within Spain are cheap ( we flew Barcelona to Granada on Vueling for 40 euros) .

Hi, again -

In case it makes a difference, I think it should be very easy to travel between Madrid and Toledo - there are frequent trains and buses, and it doesn't take very long.

AVE from Madrid to Toledo takes about half an hour ( buy tickets ahead of time - we could not get them for the same day in October))

I'm still wondering why you wouldn't consider seeing Cordoba on your way to Seville as the AVE train stops there. If you leave Madrid early you could get to Cordoba well before lunch - it's two hours from Madrid on the AVE train - then see the Mezquita and spend some leisurly time then head to Seville - forty five minutes from Cordoba on the AVE.

BTW, we flew from Barcelona to Seville on Vueling for twenty euros all taxes and fees included. Vueling also flys from Granada.

I saw the Rick Steves tour of the white villages too and was tempted as it looks quite good. In the end though we rented a car to drive from Seville through the white villages to the coast and did a daytrip to Granada then flew back to Barcelona from Malaga again on Vueling for twenty euros.

Thank you all for your responses. danon- I am planning in a central location because I love to walk and enjoy being on the ground to really get a feel of a city. I was thinking of doing a hop on hop off bus tour the first day to get over the jet lag. My friend of mine also highly recommended the palace and it is on my list.

Thanks for the information on the train. In exploring the web site for train timetables, I was pleased to see so many trips to Toledo. I will be able to go early and stay late.

Lily – are there lockers at the train station in Cordova so I could store my luggage while I explore the town? If so, that is an excellent suggestion.

Thanks again. I will so be posting my preliminary hotel choices and would welcome any comments.

no problem. Enjoy!
We got back from Spain ( Barcelona, Granada, Madrid with a day in Toledo)in Oct. and cannot stop talking about it.
Already thinking about another visit!

danon - know what you mean. I already have a list for my second visit.

Oh roadlesstravled, good question! I didn't think of that. Not sure if there would be lockers but most Spain train stations do have a place to keep your luggage for a fee.

The Sorolla Home and museum is very worthwhile so after the Thyssen, Prado,and Reina Sofia it became a favorite. It reminded me of the easy atmosphere at the Frick in NYC. The architecture of Madrid is phenominal. I'm sure you'll like Toledo. I went to Segovia and Avila also hilltop towns.

Just a few thoughts:

1)I'd take a day or 2 off of Madrid and spend the night in Salamanca. As another poster mentioned, this is a long day trip.

2)I'd still try to spend the night in Toledo or at the least visit during the week avoiding the weekends.

*Personally I'm not a big fan of Madrid and 7 days is too much particularly when you are heading to Sevilla and Barcelona (in my opinion).

3)Regarding the luggage lockers in Cordoba: there are lockers and they are likely open. I encountered issues with the luggage lockers in Girona. The tourist information booth indicated they were shut down for security (as were most of the lockers in Spain). Given the volume of travelers that do a daytrip to Cordoba on the way to Sevilla I'd venture they're open. You could email the Office of tourism in Cordoba to confirm. If they're open it definately makes sense to daytrip on the way and not have to backtrack from Sevilla. Also will save money and the AVE is expensive (as far as train travel goes).

4)Have you consider taking a night away from Sevilla and instead of doing a day trip to the white villages, spend the night in Arcos or Ronda and drive into Granada? You could rent the minivan and travel from Sevilla to the white villages (ie. Arcos, Zahara, Grazalema). Spend the evening in Ronda and then drive to Granada. This way you'll have more time in the white villages and although you'd loose a night in Sevilla you'd already planned a full daytrip to the white villages anyways.

5) With your interests in Art and Architecture I'd consider potential daytrips from Barcelona: Girona (one of the best preserved Jewish quarters in Spain, typical Catalon stone city, beautiful!), Besalu (small, typical Catalon stone village. In the Most Beautiful villages of Spain book), and Tarragona (incredible Roman ruins and a beautiful setting overlooking the Meditteranean).

Surprized no one has mentioned Segovia yet--IMO a do not miss as a possible daytrip from Madrid, though I really enjoyed staying overnight there as well as overnight in Toledo. Agree with Cordoba as a daytrip too--the Mesquita is well worth a visit.