Andalusia experts: Pls validate my decision to fly to Granada
 

Scored two Iberia award tickets from LAX to Madrid connecting to Granada for end of April 2019. I will come back for full itinerary advice, but before I "buy" the tix please validate this is good choice! With Granada not being on fast train line, seemed like best to start with furthest (and hardest to reach) destination by air and work our way back to Seville and Cordoba, ending in Madrid. I'm purposely avoiding crowds of Holy Week and the Seville April Fair (which is in May this coming year).
Comments on wisdom (or not) or pros or cons of starting in Granada that may have escaped me? Don't know about you, but it's that first commitment to a trip that starts me second guessing!
Many thanks!

Seems like a great plan - end up in Seville or Cordoba and take bullet train back to Madrid - now about trains - booking early at Renfe can yield nifty discounts - check www.seat61.com for lots on this - general info Spanish trains check www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.ricksteves.com. High-speed train line to Granada should be open soon but still a longer train trip.

If the tickets and timing works, I think starting in Granada is a great idea! Also, I am one who likes Granada more than most, so I would stay three nights, or two minimum and leave late in the afternoon on day three. There is a lot to do in Granada, music, caves, good food, history, etc. The hills and olive groves above the Alhambra are lovely for walking and have great views.

Many folks here say they took bus Granada to Cordoba or Seville while the trackwork on line to Granada still means part way by bus - but again check schedules as when high-speed link opened trains may be as quick or quicker and trains IME are always more comfy than buses.

There is just about 0% chance of the rail link to Granada being complete by next April. 2020 is more likely. But don't let that affect your decision to fly to Granada. It's a relaxed, less frantic place than Seville and with Alhambra, you have a wonderful introduction to the Islamic history and art in Spain. The slow pace of life is also ideal for getting over your jet lag. I suggest you stay at least 3 nights.

I see nothing wrong with starting your trip in Granada. Then you could take the ALSA bus to Seville. Last September we took the bus from Cordoba to Granada, and then from Granada to Malaga. It is clean, modern, air conditioned, and very comfortable. Granada is less crowded than Seville, so I agree with Alec it is a nice place to start. Seville is very, very crowded. I also recommend spending at least 2 nights in Granada, if not 3 nights.

So glad for the validating comments so far. The plan is 3 nights in Granada.
Will come back with planning thread for rest of itinerary.
And please weigh in with any further thoughts about this plan.
But sounds like no one has any “down sides” to this plan and my instinct for “upsides” seems to be validated!
in order to end in Madrid, this seems much more efficient then landing in Madrid and immediately getting train to Cordoba or Seville.

That’s what we did back in March. San Francisco to Madrid and then continued on to Granada by air . From there we took the bus to Malaga, car rental on our way out to Antequera and Ronda before dropping it off in Seville. Then Cordoba by train and ended our trip in Madrid for three days before heading home. Worked great for us! Enjoy your trip- we fell in love with southern Spain.

@efar99 could you share the number of nights spent in Cordoba and Seville and how it worked out for you? Don’t think we’ll have time for Malaga.
But one option is to drive from Granada to Seville with brief stop in Ronda on the way. It’s an expensive one day rental but would give us a “taste” of the countryside.

I think your plan sounds great. We really enjoyed our time in Granada, particularly because we didn't just do the Alhambra but were able to explore more of the city.

Alison, we spent 2 nights in Cordoba and 4 nights in Seville. I wouldn't spend any fewer nights. An extra night in each city would give you more time for wandering, but it's not necessary.

In Seville, we saw the Real Alcazar, Cathedral, Casa di Pilatos, Maria Luisa Park, Plaza de Espagne, and spent some time in Triana and 2 markets. Also went on a horse drawn carriage ride. Saw a Flamenco show.

In Cordoba, we visited the Mezquita, Alcazar, Palacio de Viana, Roman Bridge, and a market. it woujld have been nice to have an extra day for more wandering around the Juderia.

You can click on my name to read my trip report, if you wish.

Hi Alison- we spent five nights in Seville, including a day trip to Jerez for the horse show and some sherry tasting. We then took the train to Cordoba for two nights. We really enjoyed our time in Cordoba. I think it would be great to drive from Granada to Seville with a stop in Ronda. It’s beautiful country and easy to drive. Try Kemwel for your car rental. They are a US based consolidator with great prices and excellent customer service. It only cost us about $120 for three days with full insurance coverage. If you decide to go that route get a small car-some of the city streets are very narrow! We were lucky to have three weeks for our trip so we had a chance to linger. YMMV.

Another yes vote -- fly into Granada and try to spend at least 3 nights there. Book your reservations for the Alhambra as soon as you can, preferably a full day followed by an evening visit to the Nazrid Palace. If the gardens are open in the evenings when you are there, consider them for the evening before your daytime visit.

And BTW, no need for a car to visit Ronda.

I won't comment on the rest of your itinerary until you post about it.

@karenwoo of course I’ve already read your trip report. Very helpful. If I recall correctly your TR for Barcelona and CB was also helpful to me unless I’m confused.
@efar99 thx for tip on kemwel. Good to know since a cursory look didn’t find any reasonable rental cars.
@kja Will look forward to your comments when I’m ready for itinerary advice. We have 2 options and I’m gonna guess everyone will recommend the one with more days in each place!
thx for the input so far Fodorites!

Alison, I'm happy to hear my trip report for Madrid and Andalucia was helpful to you. And you are not confused. I also wrote a trip report in 2010 for Barcelona and Costa Brava. It might have been under my former screen name, kwoo. At some point I inadvertently changed my screen name when I was changing my password.

Want to add that we also use Kemwel when renting cars in Europe.Their prices are reasonable.

@KarenWoo and efar99, WOW. thanks so much for pointing me to Kemwel. I have used autoeurope in the past and Kemwel is showing much better rates. And Karen, I used your TR heavily for trip to BCN and CB. You can see my trip report from 2017 for that area -- it was one of our best trips ever. That's why we're now going to So Spain! I was in Andalusia and Madrid in 1980 and not so taken with it. But so enjoyed this past trip to Spain (although a very different region) that we're trying again! And Karen, the other coincidence is that we'll also be visiting kids/grandkid on sabbatical in Provence, so adding that visit to this trip. But i think we'll take the train from Madrid to Avignon TGV rather than flying to Marseilles like I see you did. By the time we factor in time to and from the airport, the 7-hour train ride seems to make more sense.

That's a long train ride Madrid to Avignon - nearly as long as Marseilles or about the same. Anyway book those tickets as soon as possible on www.oui.sncf for cheapest rates - have to change in Barcelona so book first part at Renfe - Spanish Railways site. Flying would not nearly take 7 hours - reconsider that IMO and cheap flights could be about as cheap.

@PalenQ there's a direct train everyday from Madrid to Avignon TGV, 1:25 p.m. arriving 8:43 p.m. A dummy reservation for August shows 61 euro senior fare. The flight to Marseilles is 1.5 to 2 hours on RyanAir or Iberia, but with getting to MAD ariport early, etc, and Marseilles being further from our destination staying somewhere within 30 minutes of Nyons, train seems like logical choice. But when we know exact dates and air schedules are posted we can revisit. This is 10 months away! But so appreciate the input. If others have ideas for better ways to get to sort of "northern" Provence or Drome area from Madrid would love to hear them.

Well I am a big train booster and if fine with that long a ride great. I'd consider taking earlier train to Barcelona with a simple change there and arriving earlier if same price and if not been to Barcelona consider a day there and shortening that train trip a few hours. Did you find that fare on Renfe or www.oui.sncf.com or some other site? Just curious.