I have read many posts on itineraries, but would you help with this one, as well as transportation advice?
Hope to fly into Malaga( would this be best?) overnight from Hartford, arrive on a Saturday morning, flying home the next Sunday. We want to visit Granada, Cordoba, Ronda and Seville, in any order, spending the most time in Seville. To do this, would we (2 of us) be able to use public transportation? I love the convenience of a car,which we usually do, but would a car be a headache in these cities?( we are not fluent in Spanish and I'll feel like an idiot if we're lost and have to ask for directions all the time). Would you actually stay overnight in each of these locales, or do a daytrip to Cordoba or Ronda ?(the fewest hotel moves the better). Would public transportation end up being more costly than a week rental of a car? If we did rely on public transportation and tours, would we be able to rent a car for a day, to visit white villages, from our hotel? Would love to see some lovely coastal town or Gibralter, but would that be too ambitious? I know I'm asking alot and Thank you so much !

We did a trip in the 1st part of March a couple years ago. Every time I called Spain they kept reminding me that this was winter. Their idea of winter is a little different than mine. Of, course I live in Minnesota. We had flown into Madrid, so i can't help you with the Malaga tramportation part. I'm trying to remember the map of Spain, but I do remember that Granada is the most out of the loop of the places you are mentioning.

A car would certainly make the trip easier for you for portions and a real headache for others. No way in the world would I want a car in Seville, so what I would do if I were you is to arrange the trip so that Seville is at one end or the other. All you will need to do then is find public transportation from Seville to Malaga while you have a car rental with a pickup and drop-off in 2 different locations.

Here is a link to a trip report I made of this trip.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=2

There are plenty of trains and buses to get you from destination to desintation

Here's the URL of one of my web pages which describes our trip to Andalucia 5 years ago. We traveled by car and stayed overnight in 3 or 4 different towns for 2 or 3 days each. We traveled in March which is off season so we didn't have many problems parking except in Sevilla. You will also be traveling off season which should make parking easier in most places except perhaps on the Costa del Sol.

Perhaps my web page can help you in your planning.

http://www.travel.stv77.com/andalucia/andalucia.html

thanks for the information.
yes, late February there will hopefully be quite a bit warmer than Massachusetts! 50s will be fine !
sssteve, I couldn't believe the link you sent me ! It was the web info. I used, along with a couples' from Penn State, to start my planning. Your trip really inspired me. You used a car, they didn't. I like the idea of saving Seville for last and dropping off the car when we get to there. Any nice hotels near the RENFE? I'm also thinking a day trip to Cordoba rather than a stay. Would a day drive from any of these places,say Ronda, to Gibraltar then Cadiz be realistic ? Road conditions? Thanks so much !