Andalucia: Seville, ??, Granada: Destination/Driving Quex
 

Thank you to all who answered my initial post re: putting together a quick 9 -night trip to Andalucia for this April. Really helped me to get a plan going. Based on your responses & some add'l research, I know I want to start in Seville for 3 or 4 nights, depending upon the accommodations I can find. We'll take a train up to Cordoba for a day trip while there.

Then we'll rent a car and drive the Pueblo Blanco route to Granada. BUT this is the part that I'm starting to freak out about. I looked at the link to the route that someone posted but it just seems to list the towns, not the #s/names of the highways/streets you should take. Someone else provided a link to viamichelin but when I clicked on 'recommended' for the route from either Arcos de la Frontera or Ronda, it takes me down to Marbella and all along all those resort towns on the coast before swinging up to Granada!

Looking at the map, I figured we'd stay at either Arcos d.l.F. or Ronda (again depending upon available accommodations, or perhaps just grab someplace to stay as we're mosying around in that area), then go up on the road that goes past Grazalema & Zahara to the A-384 highway, then take that east to Granada.

BUT then I read a blog by someone who was complaining about how terrible & windy the road was that they took from Granada to Seville, saying it definitely wasn't for the faint of heart or weak of stomach. While I'm not the former, I definitely AM the latter (easily get carsick with windy, mountainy driving). So now, what should I do?? Any help??

Again, thank you so much for any guidance you can give...

hi paradise lover,

I think you may just have discovered why michelin sends you via Malaga!

but if you explore the via-michelin site a bit more, i think you'll find that you can ask it to do any route - you just have to put in the places you want it to go "via".

so give it your parameters, and it should give you a route with road nos, distances, timings, restaurants etc.

hope that helps,

regards, ann

Southern Spain is quite mountainous - and the White Villages are just that - small mountain villages. And getting from one place to another can require substantial driving on very winding, twisty mountain roads - on which the locals drive at quite high speeds. (We're usually fast drivers, but had to pull over a couple of times to let locals pass us on the road from Ronda back to the coast.)

And if you see a rusting piece of construction equipment at the side of the road that makrs a spot where one of the workers building the road died.

Over New Years we spent 9 days in that area. Flew into Madrid and home from Malaga. Spent 2 days in Madrid, 1-Cordoba, 3-Seville, 3-Granada, all via train and took a bus to Malaga for the flight home. Worked very well.

hi paradiselover, forget what you have heard about road travel in spain. apart from a few rude drivers, traveling on the road is - basically - hassle-free. most roads are well-constructed and well-maintained. this applies even for country roads. my brother drove the cordoba-ronda route three weeks ago and he did not experience any problems. so don't worry about renting a car - it is convenient and inexpensive (compared to the rest of europe, gas prices are extremely low).

as for your intended itinerary, i would re-think about your one day stay in cordoba. as a cordoba lover, i can strongly recommend to consider at least two days there. apart from the great mosque, there's so much to see and do that you will hardly be able to make it within one day. an amount of cordoba info in english is available at www.cordoba24.info. i've been there frequently, and each time i go there i may be sure to discover something new off the beaten path. i hope this info is helpful and wish you a great time there ...and no wind while driving :o)

Holly that is a great little website. I have made a list of sights to see when we return in Oct other than the usual attractions. As it happens we have a diverse group & some of those are inexpenive.

Have you been to the castle just outside of the city?
Can you tell us more about visiting that? How much time would you allow for that?

Fully agree with Holly on state of roads. We have had some windy days, but nothing unusual. That thing of the rusty pieces marking the spot..., well, I never heard about it, really.
I make road indications with the names of towns along the road, something you can see in your map. Road numbers is something I never rely on as usually the same road has several niumbers depending on the region. If you tell me your basic itinerary around pueblos blancos, I'll give you my road. I have posted a recent trip here, titled "Pueblos Blancos trip", try to find it.
(BTW, am I the only one displeased with the new layout?)

Josele yes I feel lost here too so good to "see" you here.
I do feel lost on this new site but hoping it will get more familiar soon.

I was also looking for your list of fav "tunes" for the road remember that one? Where is it?(sorry to hijack)

Sounds like the op is going to Cordoba then wants to go to Granada via pueblos blancos?

Hi amsdon, glad to see you too. There is a long post under steve_james re: the new layout, if you can find it!
What do you mean my list of fav tunes for the road?

I believe paradiselover is having Cordoba as daytrip, and driving Seville to Pueblos Blancos.

I thought you had posted your favorite tunes on a long list? Perhaps it was Revulgo? Sorry but since we have not seen your photo here yet it is hard to remember your face..(hehe)

amsdon, i've been to the "castle". actually it is the ruins of an ancient palace (or rather a place town) known as Medina Azahara (town of zahra). and i can tell you this place is so stunning that it is worth the short trip. built in the 10th century by the caliph of cordoba. although it is in ruins and only a portion of the entire palace excavated, the site is just overwhelming. can hardly put it into words... as for the time frame, you should allow 15-30 minutes to get there (depending on traffic). i spent about two hours there which i think is fair. depending on your interest, one hour may be good too. if you're looking for beautiful picture opportinities, you should allow more time.

as for the road conditions in spain, i should add that the only thing being extremely disturbing (at least to me) is the size of signposts. these are sometimes so small that they are difficult to catch sight of. so a navigation system is a plus.

Holly - Can you recommend a place to stay in Cordoba? We will be there for an overnight in June and are looking for a nice place that isn't too expensive (under $200). Thanks.

We used Hotel Gonzalez -- hotel-gonzalez.com

Very reason and convenient.

Thanks Holly.

Ok, original poster here. I may have to repost with a different subject line to get attention. BUT, I am now on the verge of just forgetting about the whole trip.

I REALLY want to fly into Seville, spend 3 nights or so, rent a car or take a train to Ronda, spend 2 nights or so as a base to explore some of the Pueblos Blancos (esp. Arcos de la Frontera, Grazalema, and Zahara), then either take a train from Ronda to Granada or, only if the train is not currently available, drive to Granada.

BUT, I am finding so MUCH conflicting information, it all just seems, at this point, almost not worth the effort. PLEASE PLEASE help if you can (and especially if you have CURRENT on-site practical information).

ParadiseLover, driving in Andalusia is easy, roads are good, major cities are linked with motorways.
To prepare/calculate routes I usually use Guia Repsol, former Guia Campsa (http://www.guiarepsol.com/es_es/home/), which I also have in paper. I believe others are similar. Guides tend to indicate fastest routes instead of shorter/more picturesque.
Seville to Arcos/Ronda: exit Seville towards Utrera, A-375, continue till you reach road A-384. Then, to the right you get to Arcos; to the left you get to Ronda.
Or you can exit Seville on the Autopista del Sur towards Jerez de la Frontera, and after 90 miles take A-382 towards Arcos de la Frontera.
To travel the Pueblos Blancos you'll need the car, and read my post: write Pueblos Blancos Trip in the "search the forums" space above.
Ronda to Granada: exit Ronda towards Campillos, A-367. Pass Cuevas del Becerro and Teba. Before you get to Teba, but once you have seen the castle up above on the left, avoid taking an exit to the right to Malaga; continue straight ahead. This is a stretch named MA-5404 which has been recently paved and takes you past Teba with the reservoirs to the right, to road A-357 to Campillos, where you reach A-384 (road Jerez to Cartagena) direction east, till you reach motorway A-92 towards Antequera, Loja and Granada.

@ amsdon: it might be the case that you were referring to the almodovar castle (castillo de almodovar) 20miles/30kms west of cordoba? if so, i can tell you i've been there too and it's worth the short trip too. provided the weather is good (which is normally the case in october), you'll have a spectacular view over the guadalquivir valley. the castle sits on top of a mesa overlooking the entire valley. admission for adults is 5 euros, e.u. citizens are free on wednesdays (at least that is the information i have). it makes sense to combine visits of medina azahara and almodovar castle. in that case you should allow at least half a day to have enough time to enjoy.

@ kateny17: recommendable places to stay in cordoba are posada de vallina (http://www.hhposadadevallina.es) and hostal lineros (http://www.hostallineros38.com). at hostal lineros, however, you should ask for the new part of the house. another good one is hospederia lucano (http://www.hospederialucano.com). also good is hotel de los faroles which opened last month. ok, these hotels are not four stars or so, but the rooms are clean, and they provide the charm you probably expect while in town. you may find hotel information and pictures at the cordoba24 website too.

me again, sorry about the links that won't work (due to bracket). here again:
www.hhposadadevallina.es
www.hostallineros38.com
www.hospederialucano.com