amla

Our family of four (parents, teenagers) is traveling in and out of Madrid December 27 to January 4. We're fairly frequent travelers, and by now I know more or less what we like, the balance of cities and museums to smaller towns and hikes, the kinds of sites we all enjoy. We definitely move more quickly than would be ideal, but we like seeing lots of places with the kids for now. Our current plan is to take the AVE to Seville upon arrival and spend two nights there (Dec 27-29), then head to Granada on Dec 29 for three nights (including New Year's Eve). On Jan 1 we'll make our way back to Madrid.

We'd like to visit Italica (and possibly the dolmens at Antequera) and were wondering whether it would make sense to rent a car and drive between Seville and Granada, starting with Italica in the morning and going through Antequera or (alternatively) through Ronda? If we rented a car, we'd have to park it in Granada (bad), but then we could also do some exploring on Dec 31 (we're planning to visit the Alhambra on the 30th). We could then return the car in Granada (I assume) and take the train to Madrid, or keep it and drive to Madrid (perhaps via Consuegra--windmills!) and spend the night of Jan 1 and all day Jan 2 in Toledo. Thoughts, ideas, advice welcome! Thanks in advance for understanding that we're trying to keep everyone happy and engaged, and staying in one place for a week isn't what we have in mind for this trip, although we've done it before and it would be lovely someday!

PalenQ

Well just about trains - book long-distance trains yourself online at Renfe - Spanish railways site for discounted fares much cheaper over waiting until there - www.seat61.com has loads of advice on doing that - general info Spanish trains also BETS-European Rail Experts and www.ricksteves.com. Seems like car between Seville and Granada is best for your plans - I'd cut a night off Granada and perhaps stay in a place in between Seville and Granada.

efarr99

We recently spent two nights in Antequera on our drive from Malaga to Seville and really loved it. The dolmens were really interesting and El Torcal just outside of town was amazing. We hiked in the otherworldly limestone formations for a couple of hours. Also enjoyed our day in Ronda. I’d choose Antequera over Ronda if I had to.

amla

Thanks, PalenQ! Will definitely book trains online. Staying a night somewhere in between Seville and Granada (where?) is appealing, but with New Year's Eve/Day closures to contend with, I'm concerned about timing. We could perhaps push our Alhambra visit to December 31. [We had been hoping to do an evening visit on Saturday December 29 and a day visit December 30, but I think getting there in time for an evening visit on December 29 would be pushing it. Evening visits in winter are only offered Friday and Saturdays. Please weigh in on evening visit versus leisurely paced drive!]

Do you think the route from Granada to Madrid is best done by train?

amla

Thanks, efarr99! Good to hear about Antequera--our kids enjoyed visiting the passage tombs at Newgrange in Ireland and we thought the dolmens would be interesting for them. A hike would be great, too! I just googled El Torcal--wow.

PalenQ

Granada to Madrid definitely best by train.

efarr99

I would choose the leisurely drive over the night visit to the Alhambra. We loved the night visit in addition to the day visit but we had loads of time- you don’t and you can’t do everything!

margo_oz

I can't speak to the leisurely drive, but we absolutely loved the night visit to the Alhambra - such a different atmosphere, Worth it every time!

annhig

We drove up to Granada from Malaga and parked our car in the huge Alhambra car park opposite our hotel the Guadalupe which got us a bit of a discount on the car park. It also put us right opposite the Alhambra so we had no problem getting to the night time visit which we loved as well. Just a thought.

amla

Thanks, everyone! If the dates were a bit different, we would definitely opt for the night visit as well--and depending on how much the tickets cost, we might try to get them anyway, in case the weather is bad or our plans change. We're hoping, since it's winter, that the day visit will be slightly less crowded than during peak season (although I'm not sure whether winter break will be much better). But it sounds as if we would love Italica and Antequera/el Torcal, too and definitely don't want to feel like we're racing against the clock that whole day.

Parking in the Alhambra car park would be convenient! We have reserved an apartment at Casa de los Neveros with a view of the Alhambra (since we will be there NYE, we splurged a bit) so it can't be that far.

IMDonehere

You will not be able to book trains on RENFE or any booking agent until 62 saye before the first leg of a trip.

The tradition in Spain on NYE is to stuff 12 grapes into your mouth every time the clock strikes. No significance, just a silly fun tradition that teenagers should like.

amla

Yes, IMDonehere--it's one of the things I'm most looking forward to! I grew up with the 12 grapes tradition (I'm Cuban-American, with grandparents from Spain). Every year I pack little baggies of 12 grapes for each of us to eat on NYE, wherever we are. It should be fun for the kids to not be the only ones eating them for once! I read somewhere that they hand out grapes in some towns--has that been your experience?

I expect another flurry of planning to happen 62 days before we travel