Fellow Travellers:
Submitted for your approval and any input you can offer, my Spain/France journey as follows.
I am a single traveller, mid twenties but "mature" for my age (read: bar and club scene has lost its luster). I want to enjoy as much as possible of Andalusia with my 10-day Eurail Pass.
Arrive Madrid 1 May 4 days
Toledo May 5 (how do I get to Cordoba on train/bus?)
Cordoba May 6-7
Sevilla May 8-11 (any advice on day trip or overnight to Cadiz or Jerez de la Frontera, especially guided tours since I am travelling alone?)
Tenerife May 12-13
Granada May 14-16 Night Train to Barcelona
Barcelona May 17-19 NT to Paris, rent car
Rouen, Normandy D-Day Beaches May 20
Mont St Michel May 21
Paris May 22-24 NT to Nice, rent car
Riviera (St Tropez?? Where to sleep cheap?)
Nice May 26, Fly out in the morn.
Any advice, recommendations, warnings, travel stories, anything is greatly appreciated. My boyfriend just called me from Rome, told me that everything was closed today because it was a Nat'l Holiday. Dont want that to happen to me!
Thanks and Godspeed!

Parisgrl,

You'll get lots of good advice from Andalucia experts here. Although I'm not an expert, I'll give you some personal thoughts after my two trips to Andalucia (and other parts of Spain) recently. I'm just a couple of years older than you. You can also take a look at two of my partial trip reports. (Search under "Spain Trip Report." My post is the one titled "Spain Trip Report (Madrid, Toledo, Seville)." A more recent report is under "Brief Trip Report-Spain (Granda, Seville, Madrid, Salamanca)."

Keep in mind that different things work for different people, but here are a few suggestions.

1. It looks like you are going to spend four nights in Madrid. I love Madrid, and would probably suggest that you take advantage of the nearby possibilities for good day trips, since in my own opinion four nights in Madrid proper without day trips might be a bit much. In fact, despite the fact that the Toledo sunsets are supposed to be beautiful, I would combine the Toledo trip as a day trip from Madrid on one of the four days. The first part of my trip might look like this: four nights in Madrid with one day trip to Toledo and possibly another day trip to another place of interest to you nearby. (I have to confess I am biased because I don't personally like switching hotels after only one night in a place, but many travelers appreciate the one nights they have spent in small towns, etc.).

2. I would again combine the Córdoba visit as part of a 4 or 5 night stay in Seville. You can take two days to explore Seville (or longer), and take a full day trip (just 40 minutes via high-speed train) to Córdoba, and another full-day trip to Jerez de la Frontera, also easily accessible by train. Cádiz itself is also an easy train ride (in fact, some trains stop at Jerez on the way to Cádiz).

I can't comment on Tenerife, but two nights in Granada sounds good. I personally took a train from Madrid to Granada (very long) and then went to Seville from there, but other more experienced Andalucia veterans might have some better ideas.

Whatever you decide, enjoy! Sounds like a great trip!

MMM

Forgot to mention, May 1 is a national holiday in Spain, and I believe that May 2 might be a local holiday in Madrid.

MMM

I trouble with a Eurail Pass is that you want to get your money's worth. The Barcelona to Rouen segment is very long!

If I were to take the trip, I would either start or end in Paris and make side trips to Rouen.

I would then see if I could get a cheap flight to Malaga and explore Jerez, Gibraltar, Melilla (Spanish North Africa), etc.

Thanks guys for the valuable information. Thing is I have already booked hotles, hostels, pensions in all these places so I'm kinda stuck with the itinerary (except for Paris, where I lived so I can afford to take daytrips from there.) Also, read somewhere that if you cross over to Grbraltar from Spain, they might consider that going out of country and may require a Visa to get back in. Anyone know the story with this? I am an American but I am flying from Vienna so I'm in the EU already, will I have any problems?

MMM gave you great advice. Other possible day trips out of Madrid include Segovia and El Escorial. To get from Toledo to Cordoba by train you need to take the train back to Madrid and then board a Cordoba train. Thankfully, all this is at Atocha station.

lweber:
I was afraid someone was going to say that.
I think you guys are right, though, a day trip might break up the monotony.
I'll look into El Escorial and see whats up.
Thanks.

cordoba is a nice day trip from Sevilla (about an hour I think) but it's also worth spending the night.

If you haven't already purchased a Eurail pass, i think you'd do better with two Flexipasses, one for Spain and one for France.

El Escorial is definitely worth a day trip, its magnificent austerity is really something to behold.

I wouldn't bother to rent a car in Nice - the trains and buses to other Riviera towns are pretty cheap and convenient.

Unless you've already paid for your hotels, you could probably fudge with the dates and switch up your itinerary a bit.

Waaaah! I wanna go!

I did the trip to El Escorial and it was the most boring, gloomy place imaginable!

Toledo, on the other hand, was a wonderful surprise. I would have loved to stay longer. I did the trip with a tour group - so you are herded through a bit. You could probably do it yourself with a good guide book. Catch the train from Madrid.

Cordoba, Granada, Seville - all wonderful

I have been in Gibraltar from Spain. Leaving Gibraltar, the Spanish customs are sometimes slow on purpose in order to make a political statement to the British Government that they are unhappy about Gibraltar. As far as visas, check the government websites. I think Americans do not need visas by either country.

I think the UK considers Gibraltar as a British colony so Americans or other countries which there is not a likelihood of illegal immigration for jobs have no trouble entering or leaving. The same as for Spain. The technicality, I believe, is that Spain does not consider Gibraltar to be part of the EU (which Britain is a member state).

Allow 1-10 minutes to travel to clear customs to Gibraltar. Allow 1-45 minutes to clear customs going to La Linea, Spain.

Everything you need of Tenerife in:
www.abouttenerife.com and www.tenerifealacarta.com
You can find good prices asking for charters fligths from Tenerife to many spanish cities in the mainland in any local travel agency.Toyo