DeeW

I would appreciate suggestions re fine tuning this itinerary. Obviously we are locked into reservations for flights and hotels for much of this, but please note specific questions. This is an attempt at somewhat slower travel than some of our previous trips. I know that we might be short changing ourselves with just two days in Madrid but there is always next time. Having said that, would it be a shame to steal a half day from Madrid to zip out to Toledo on the high speed train?
Thanks for your ideas.

Day 1 Arrive Madrid, stay close to airport
Day 2 Fly to Granada in A.M. (Spanair 4 Euros each before taxes!) Hotel La Casa Morisca for 3 nights
Day 3 Granada-have reservation for Alhambra
Day 4 Granada
Day 5 Pick up rental car in A.M. Leisurely drive/exploring. Stay Nerja or Frigilano? Not necessarily prebooked but any suggestions of nice places? (100 Euro range)
Day 6 -13 Time share @Mijas. Day trips to Pueblos Blancos. Any suggestions for not to miss day trips?
Day 13 Drive to Vejer (205 km) with stops in Gibraltar and Tarifa. La Casa del Calife, Vejer.
Day 14 Drive to Cadiz, maybe Arcos? Hotel suggstions? Other towns better place to stay?
Day 15,16,17 Considering driving a ways into Portugal. Suggestions re: nice seaside towns and hotels? Night of 17 back to Spain, in vicinity of Seville.
Day 18, 19 Seville. (drop off rental car A.M. of 18th) Hotel Amadeus two nights.
October 20 Cordoba ( by AVE in A.M.) Hotel Gonzalez)
October 21,22 Madrid (by AVE from Cordoba early A.M) Hotel Europa two nights
October 23 Fly home.

enroute

Looks good. In Arcos I like the Parador or (cheaper) La Casa Grande.

pavfec

We drove from Seville to Lagos, Portugal for 3 nights on our trip in 2005. It took about 3 hours tops. Lagos was a nice town and in a great location for beaches (tons on the Mediterranean coast and close enough to the Atlantic coast). I've heard good things about Portimao, Sagres, etc.

For your trip, it's definitely doable, but stick to the Algarve.

DeeW

Thanks, enroute. I just emailed La Casa Grande regarding availability. And thanks pavfec for your comments about Portugal.

ribeirasacra

If you travel to Portugal make sure that the insurance of a Spanish car covers taking it across the border. Some companies do not do this because it makes the initial booking fee lower.

ComfyShoes

DeeW,

Day 5: Consider visiting Nerja Caves. Frigliano was recommended to me highly but I lost my way and never arrived

Day 6-13: Must visit Ronda, Malaga, Village of Mijas (are you there or Mijas-Costa) and Jerez. Also, perhaps, Marbella? See associated discussions and recommendations at:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34954915

and trip report at:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35001438

Day 15 through 17: I had done a fair bit of research on Algarve region in Portugal but decided not to go. Still, Albufeira, Lagos, Sagres, and Villamaura come to mind. Albufeira is highly touristy (so I am told) and if that doesn't appeal to you, smaller towns may be better. Best to post a separate thread on Portugal portion of your trip to seek specific recommendations.

I know you will really enjoy it

artlover

Looks good to me with a few suggestions--can you get an open jaw ticket into Malaga and out of Madrid? You'd be better off, even with the great Spanair flight.

Catch the caves in Nerja, and as to places to stay, Frigilano (sp?) is very close, so might as well stay in Nerja. I like the paradores (www.parador.es), so might be worth checking that out.

I'd add Ronda to you list, but suggest you take the "milder" route there and back.

We stayed at Hotel Europa in Madrid and would not stay there again, though others like it.

DeeW

Thank you for your helpful insights. I have added the Nerja Caves to Day 5, and will be plannng to sleep in Frigiliana.I think I am spelling it correctly now- that will help in finding it!!
ComfyShoes, was there a particular reason that you abandoned a potential side trip to Portugal after having done a fair bit of research on the Algarve? Your suggestion for me to do a separate posting on Portugal is good. Thanks for that. I read your trip report. Awesome!
Does anyone have an opinion on whether or not Antequera would be a worthwhile daytrip from the Mijas area?

ComfyShoes

Thanks for the compliment, Dee.

Yes, simple reason to not do Portugal. As it is, we ended up doing TEN different cities in Spain in a matter of 18 days and drove thousands of kilometers. Algarve is a very pretty area, and we felt we simply won't have been able to do justice. Spain is a large country, and with much to offer. Finally, note that we went with two kids. Slightly different travel pace than just amongst adults.

That said, you are there for some extra days, and since you don't plan on spending much time in Madrid, YOU may be able to do both.

josele

It is best to stay in Nerja and go to Frigiliana as a morning and lunch trip. Hotels in Nerja you have the Parador, and very near the Paraiso del Mar which I have read several good reviews here, and has parking as well. Both have good restaurants. A must is having a paella at AYO, by the beach, looking from the Balcon to the left.

Revulgo

My suggestion is consider Ubeda & Baeza, two neighbouring towns with great architecture.
http://geneura.ugr.es/ubeda.html

annie4

How did you make your reservations for the Alhambra?

enroute

"How did you make your reservations for the Alhambra? "

Try this:

http://granadainfo.com/ticketsalhambra.htm

DeeW

I had planned to reserve through the Alhambra website, but the Morisca emailed back when I made the hotel reservation and asked if I would like them to reserve at the Alhambra for us.

DeeW

Josele

Thanks for the paella suggestion. I must confess that i wasn't sure what paella is, so I googled it. Now I am googling for paella recipes for dinner tonight!

littlemountain

Ah, I see the sly influence of Rick Steves at work in your itinerary. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Not sure I would detour into Portugal in this trip. Sevilla is a place, once I was there, it was hard to want to leave. But if you head for the Algarve, I endorse the Lagos suggestion.

Tashulina

Nice trip you planned, but 2 days in madrid are not enough to visit the city. My suggestion is either to stay more in madrid or to travel to Toledo or San Sebastian. The two cities are smaller that madrid and you will have more time to visit them.You can find some infos about san sebastian at http://www.nidolanguagetravel.com/de...san-sebastian/, cost of living, weather issues and more.

DeeW

Many thanks for your suggestions. All are being considered.

CathyM

I agree with the previous poster on skipping Portugal.

Cadiz provence is probably my favorite part of Spain. I'd consider staying in Cadiz, Jerez de la Frontera, El Puerto de Santa Maria or Sanlucar de Barrameda on days 14-16. This is a wonderful "sherry triangle" area with great food, friendly people - the soul of Spain. You could easily hang out in this area before heading to Sevilla. Arcos is another easy daytrip from any of these cities. I'd definately spend 3 days in Sevilla.

artlover

Another thought--surprised no one's mentioned this yet--try:
http://maribelsguides.com/