Andalucia to Madrid
 

in may my wife and i are wandering the countryside of spain and portugal for a month. much of the trip is planned but still have 4-5 days unplanned. we are spending 5-7 days in the southwest of spain and plan to fly out of madrid. where might we spend the 4-5 days? along the coast? in la mancha? 1-2 places from which we might take day trips would be great.

thank you in advance for your help.

What area are you already visiting as the southwest of Spain? I presume that includes Seville, Cordoba, Ronda, etc? If so, I haven't been to La Mancha and only know it as where Don Quixote came from but thought it was flat and dry and nothing much there. Unless you are including Toledo in that description (I thought it was really not part of La Mancha).

Why not just go directly north from Seville to Salamanca amd the Castilla y Leon region? That's what I'd do. There is plenty to do around there for 4-5 days -- Salamanca, Avila, Segovia, Vallodolid. And it's not that far from Madrid, of course.

basis plans?? flying into madrid (3-4), basque region (3-4), galicia (3-4), portugal (9-10), andalucia (5-6), 4-5 ?????

You can do the 4 to 5 nights in Extremadura, prior to heading to Andalucia. Try something different and interesting (www.turismoextremadura.com).

It depends on what you want to do and experience. I would add the time to Andalusia so you have 10 days there. JMO.

IMHO you really need more time in Andalusia. It is not only unique in europe due to the moorish heritage but the cities are truly fascinating. I would give it more like 8 to 10 days to really see much.

if we were going to expand the time in andalucia to 8-10 days, what 2-3 cities would you recommend as bases for seeing the area? tend to like staying in smaller towns/villages and going into larger cites for exploring.

We stayed in Seville, Cordoba and Granada so we were on the spot to see the major sights. Also we prefer cities to little villages. We also visited Ronda, Jerez, Ubeda and spent a couple of days relaxing near Marbella (Puerto Banus) on the beach. Also saw Gibraltar - but this is IMHO a must miss - it took forever to get back to Spain and they practically took our car to pieces "looking for contraband".

<tend to like staying in smaller towns/villages and going into larger cites for exploring.>

In Andalucia, you should consider small Antequera (pop 40 000). Known as the heart of Andalucia or the crossroads of Andalucia, almost right in the middle of the Malaga, Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada rectangle. First of the Granada emirate towns to fall to the Christians in 1410 and as genuinely Andalucia as it gets. Here you'll find dolmens (some 5000 years old burial chambers), Roman baths, a Moorish Castle, Gothic churches, Renaissance fountains and Baroque bell towers.
http://www.andaluciacoastandcountry....era-spain.html

I love the terrace in the corner of the peaceful Escribanos square in front of the Real Colegiata de Santa María la Mayor, the first partly Renaissance-style church in Spain (built 1514-1550). Up here it's totally peace and quiet. Next to the recently excavated Roman baths beneath and looking up on the 13th century Moorish alcazaba/fortress. Great views over unique landscapes (the spectacular Torcal limestone mountain, the Lovers leap etc.) My favourite spot in all of Spain. http://www.wild-about-travel.com/201...ing-antequera/

antequera is one of my choices and i was considering arcos or jerez in the west

the more that i research i think that it might be better to begin in andalucia in early may while it is cooler and finish in galicia and basque in early june when there appears to be less rain. a good idea??

An excellent idea !

I agree -- that order makes MUCH more sense!