Car travel in Andalusia
 

Our tentative itinerary in Andalusia is
4 nights Seville
2 nights Ronda
3 nights Granada
We will be renting a car for 5 days in the middle. On our drive from Seville to Ronda we would like to see sights along the way like Arcos and Jerez. From Ronda to Granada we might stop for a short time in Nerja. On these drives we will have our luggage in the car. How is the security in the smaller towns? I was just trying not to backtrack to some places. Should we just stow our luggage in the hotels before doing day trips and not risk it? How secure are parking garages?

I would stow the luggage in the hotel. Maybe I'm overly cautious, but I wouldn't leave luggage in the trunk of the car.

I don't know about security in parking garages, but I wouldn't bet my luggage on it.

Ae you not visiting Cordoba - IMHO way more fascinating than Ronda?

We traveled with luggage in our trunk twice and had no problems - but we only left the car in places with an attendant - and preferably with the trunk back against a wall or a tree.

Leave nothing visible in the car. One time we had a bag of garbage on the floor of the back, and a back window was smashed in an effort to get it. Luggage in a closed trunk should be OK.

If you're renting a car with a large enough trunk then you shouldn't have any problems, just don't leave anything sitting on the seats other than a current copy of El Pías, Diario de Sevilla or better yet, ABC.

When parking in a public garage, back up into the stall, against the wall, so that it is impossible to reach the trunk. Some public parking garages have security cameras, but not all. If you're parking on the street (when possible), park in a busy area.

If you're using one or two central locations, in addition to Ronda, as a base for your 5 days of touring by car, then it would be best to leave the luggage at the hotel.

Why ABC in particular ??

ABC is the favorite newspaper of the current government.

Thanks for the tips. I forgot how tight parking spaces are in Europe. Backing the trunk against the wall is a good idea. I have a pacsafe wire mesh that I might use on this trip as well.

And we will go to Cordoba as a day trip from Seville as many people have suggested.

Three large car parks in Nerja, two underground. http://www.nerjatoday.com/nerja/parking/

All are close to the beach front, the town center and some great local restaurants where you could have a three course lunch menu with drinks included for some 8-10€. La Marina and El Pulguilla are two of my favourites in town. Both are typical of the region and very popular with both locals and tourists. The freshest fish and seafood, but also lots of other goodies. Both serve delicious free tapas to choose with every drink of whatever in the bar area.

La Marina: http://www.guideofnerja.com/pages/gu.../marina_en.htm
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaur...Andalucia.html

El Pulguilla:
http://mynerja.com/view/bars/cerveceria-el-pulguilla/
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...Andalucia.html

+ABC is the favorite newspaper of the current government.+
And that is meant to make you "safe"??? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjhKpGjg9Yo

:-)

Jerez and Arcos are not on the way from Seville to Ronda. You can drive from Seville towards Puerto Serrano, reach the A-384 and consider continuing to Ronda or turning right and visit Bornos and Arcos. These towns are relatively safe if you leave nothing in plain view, it takes just one crook to spoil your holidays. Take care not to open a full trunk when parking, someone might be watching.
Jerez is too far, and I unsafer.
If instead you opt left for Ronda, you can detour to Zahara and continue to Grazalema and then Ronda, these towns are small and safe, but follow the above precautions.

kimhe, thanks for the Nerja information. Good to see there is plenty of parking available there.

Josele, thanks for the feedback on relative safety of the towns. If we have time we might make a separate day trip to Jerez and Arcos from Seville. My wife really wants to see the equestrian school.

I think like most visitors, we are trying to see too much. The car however allows us more flexibility to wander.

We did an identical trip!: 4 nights Seville (w/ day trip to Cordoba), 2 nights Ronda, 3 nights Granada. Picked up car for remainder of trip as we left Seville. Here's the trip report:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ember-2007.cfm

I should say also that we had no theft issues - we put EVERYTHING in the car trunk.