We are flying in round-trip to Madrid from San francisco mid-April for 2 weeks, and have yet to plan an itinerary. Any advice appreciated! I went to Spain 20+ years ago but this is the first time for my companion. We are both "veggie plus fish", and I've been reading the food advice with great interest, and how difficult it is to avoid meat..

This is what we are considering....

--2 days in Madrid leave by train for 3rd day for Andalucia. Is this practical?

--5 days in Granada, Seville, and one or two other places. We dont speak Spanish can we do this on our own or should we take a tour?

--5 days in Barcelona, get there from Andalucia by train

--Return to Madrid for last night

I've heard that it is better to fix itinerary and buy tickets early. Is it too ambitious to include Barcelona, Madrid and Andalusia in the same trip?

If there was one guidebook to take along, which would it be?

Also, with regard to hotels we prefer basic clean centrally located, I've heard they can be quite reasonable.

Thanks in advance!

Personally, I think trying to see Madrid, Andalucia, and Barcelona in even 3 or 4 weeks is too ambitious (though many people do it - or at least try to). I'd urge you to consider selecting just 2 of these areas. Just my opinion.

Not speaking Spanish shouldn't be a problem, though it will (of course) help to learn a few basic pleasantries.

The one guidebook I found most useful to take to Spain was the Rough Guide (good maps, good transportation information, comprehensive site information). You might want to look at a few others with different strengths while planning.

Are you committed to flying into and out of Madrid? You will have more time if you fly open-jaw.

It depends on your interests, but 2 days in Madrid (during which you will be dealing with jet lag) and 5 days in 3 or 4 locations in Andalucia sound rushed to me.

Hope that helps!

Thanks kja. We were originally thinking of just Madrid and Barcelona since we dont want to rush, but I remembered seeing the alhambra and wanted to see if we could fit that in.

I know Madrid and Barcelona are now connected by hi-speed rail. We already have round trip air to Madrid so are unfortunately stuck with that.

Is Madrid-Granada-Barcelona-Madrid a reasonable itenerary without too much time lost to travel?

If you wish to see Barcelona, go for it!
You may continue to Barcelona as soon as you lend in Madrid...fly or train
stay in Barcelona for 4 days
Fly Vueling( cheap ) to Granada...stay for 2 days.
if you like, train a to Seville for2-3 days
Train to Madrid from Seville for the rest of your stay.
This way you don't have to backtrack
or you can fly from Barcelona to Seville, stay a couple of days, train to Granada for
2 days , train to Madrid from Granada ( 4.5) hours. Home from Madrid after several days.

There are many possible combos.....

If you wish to spend more time in Madrid and Barcelona, skip Seville.
2days in Granada is sufficient to see Alhambra and other attractions .

I agree with kja - personally I'd drop one area and stick with 2 geographies in the 12 days.

I think it would be a same to visit Granada and not see Sevilla. I am slightly biased but mi-April is a wonderful time to visit Andalucia and 12 days would make a good Madrid/Andalucia combination considering you're already locked into the flights. You could do something like head to Sevilla first and spend 5 nights w/a daytrip to Cordoba, then 2 nights in Granada followed by 4 nights in Madrid w/ Daytrips to Toledo and Segovia. With the extra ay you could add a day to Madrid or Sevilla giving time for perhaps another daytrip.

If you really want to see all the places you originally outlined it will be pretty fast paced. 2 days in Madrid after you recover from jetlag will really be just one day in Madrid and no time for Daytrips. Then take the AVE to Sevilla. 3 nights for Sevilla is probably adequate but no time to daytrip to Cordoba. Then bus/train to Granada for 2 nights (good for Granada). I'd then fly versus train from Granada to Barcelona. 5 nights is good - you may even be able to do a daytrip.....but you may be pretty tired at this point from all the moving around.

Wow, thanks everyone!! I am inclined to the following, if anyone sees a fatal flaw....

--get over jetlag in Madrid (2-3 days)
--train to Barcelona: 4-5 days
--fly to Granada (per Danon, Vueling is el cheapo and beter than train): 2 nights
--train from Granada to Seville: 2 nights
--train to Madrid: final 2-3 days

Question: is it better to make train/Vueling reservations now, or can this all be done on the fly? If we prefer train from Barcelona to Granada (see scenery) is that best to avoid?

We are also assembling a list of veggie/fish reasonable and nutritious restaurants....we are not foodies, and not meat-eaters...is there an upscale chain or two (or, a sign or two) that one can count on to quell the pangs of hunger?

Cannot help with a chain, but fish, seafood and veggies tapas are available everywhere.

Don't know if train or bus is better from Granada - Seville.

If you can get tickets right now for M-B and S- M
you will get much better rate. They are not cheap.
If you are flying Vueling, purchase tickets now.
Not familiar with train travel B-G
Take a look at RENFE...Spanish train network
Warring
purchasing tickets on RENFE can be a challenge.

Food?? the dept. store El Cortes has a nice deli in MAD. There are small pizza by the slice places around and I found them good.(some veg.) Since you don't do meat you must get some pimentos padrone..Also in MAD the are sandwich shops with all kinds, pastry shops etc...Again good and reasonable, Tapas bars galore and again reasonable..Language will/should be no problem if you can point/gesture and smile. Many people within the shops will step up and translate..This has been my experience in my last 4 trips (MAD..BCN. and points in between)solo and definitly an aging senior. If you are concerned about the Spanish responces for what you owe, etc. have a pen and small note book to have the clerk write the cost. As far as jet lag goes I am never affected but I'm sure that has alot to do with how hyped I am about being there. I really suffer when I coam home with wiothdrawal however.

sorry, warning...

You are severely shortchanging Sevilla IMHO. I'd budget 4 nights at least. Yu may consider starting in Sevilla for 4 nights then 2 nights Granada, 4 nights Barcelona and 3 in Madrid. Still too much moving around in a short timeframe at least for me.

Personal preference, but I would spend more time in Madrid or Barcelona than Seville
especially if you like art , architecture ,and a big city vibe.

Hi-I just booked renfe on patrabax for rt madrid/sevilla for late may. very small fee but was able to book well in advance of 62 days. even with this advance purchase, i was not able to get the most deeply discounted fared.

plambers - Did you check the renfe site? They're showing plenty of deeply discounted seats the end of May when you're traveling. I don't have much trouble with the renfe site these days.

I disagree with 'danon' and would have liked additional time in Barcelona over Madrid. But I'm a huge Gaudi fan since that art is not accessible in other cities/countries. Your itinerary though is fine within the time frame. Do an extra night in Seville so you can stop in Cordoba en route to/fro Madrid. We had 8 hotels in 19 days: Barcelona 3, Madrid 3, Cordoba 1, Seville 3, Jerez 1, Ronda 2, Granada 2 and Marbella 3. Only drove upon leaving Seville. Arrv'd in Barcelona and flew back to Madrid from Malaga for departure.

One must-see place you're omitting is Toledo, which you can do as a day-trip from Madrid. I agree with CathyM about Sevilla, but one place in Europe we hope to go back to one day is Toledo.

I went to the renfe english website, seems reasonably clear but the design does not inspire confidence for someone accustomed to amazon.com!! I am hoping to book tomorrow to try and get best fares.We are traveling 3rd weel of April.

I figured out the obvious: if you want to go from Barcelona to Granada or Valencia, you have to pass thru Madrid. Question: does anyone know if you have to change railway stations?

If not, here is what I think we will do....

--land in Madrid, spend 3 relaxed days recovering and sightseeing
--go roundtrip to Barcelona, 5 days
--connect in Madrid one-way to Granada....no overnite in Madrid....assumes no change in train station
--spend 2 nights in Granada, then train to Seville
--one nite in Seville, then back to Madrid for final days.

Questions:

--does the same Madrid station service all trains?
--should I buy all tix now, or can some of the wait?
--should I buy tix for attractions (such as, Alhambra) now, or later?
--any special discount "tips"?

Thank you!

Only one major train station in Madrid- Atocha. As for your itinerary, IMO if you are only spending one night in Seville, I would drop it and add on to another city. By the time you take the train from Granada to Seville, find your hotel etc, there won't be much time left to sightsee. If it were me I'd drop a day or two from Barcelona or better still save it for another trip.

As for food, if you can eat seafood and/or chicken, it's better, but every restaurant has at least one or two vegetarian items. A fallback is always the tortilla espanola-surprisingly good.

Very affordable seafood heaven in Barcelona. Self-service La Paradeta has four branches around town: http://www.laparadeta.com/

http://www.oh-barcelona.com/en/blog/...estaurant-3426
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...Catalonia.html

Do as the Spanish and have your main meal at lunch time, most local restaurants will have a great value 3 course meal with drinks included for some 8-12.

why not fly Barcelona - Granada?
Going back to Madrid ( 3 hours) and continuing to Granada ( 4.5)
will take all day!
Vueling has cheap flights.
Fast trains are expensive unless you buy ahead of time and get discount tickets.
http://tickets.vueling.com/ScheduleSelect.aspx

I just picked May 15 for example.
I would book evrything right now