For Experts on Spain
 

Hey:
I am planning on going to Barcelona in Mid March, and I am planning on making my own trip instead of buying a standard itinerary from a travel agent.
My plan is to fly into Barcelona, maybe stay there for 3 nights and then travel to Seville and Madrid. I wanted advice from people who may have done this before. What do you recommend as the best and cost efficient way to travel through Spain. Also, could you advise me of any other cities I could visit. I am planning on spending 10 days total, also would no tmind taking a side trip to Paris for two days.
Thanks everyone

If you are traveling from Barcelona to Sevilla, by all means try to stop in Granada for one night. The Alhambra is spectacular!

I usually travel in Spain by rail although for some routes I think you really might do better flying. One of those is Barcelona-Madrid. Why? Because Spanair and Iberia compete head-to-head on that route which usually means one-way fares are fairly low if you book in advance. Iberia runs a more or less shuttle service which cannot often be booked way in advance (at least on their website). Flight time is about 1 hr 10-15 minutes one way. Rail takes about 6 hours currently (soon to be faster) and that's on the fastest services.

You'll usually do better (cheaper) booking through the airlines' websites rather than using Expedia, etc.

Madrid-Seville is served by high-speed AVE rail service (2 1/2 hours one way) usually w a stop in Cordoba on the way.

Seville-Granada is a three-hour rail trip.

Busses are sometimes a more viable option than rail; others may comment on this for you.

Have a great trip.

We were in Spain this past June and while we went in the reverse direction it still applies.

Check Iberia for flights. If a flight comes up expensive try 1-2 hours either side or even 1 day either side. We flew from Granada to Barcelona about 55 Euros for two of us.

The same goes for Barcelona to Seville if you choose to skip Granada.

In my opinion, while Granada was a pleasant surprise, the Alhambra wasn't as spectacular (still very worth the visit) as I would have thought. I was more impressed with the Alcazar in Seville (closed Mondays).

From Seville to Madrid you can either try for the cheap airfare or take the AVE high speed train that runs every hour.

I agree with the others. For 10 days, I'd fly into Barcelona, 3 days there. Fly to Granada (I got a cheap flight on Iberia). Spend 1 night there to see the Alhambra and the Albaican part of town, train to Sevilla, 3 nights there. Then train to Cordoba to see the Mezquita (spend 1/2 day there), then train on the same day to Madrid, with last few days there. Fly home from Madrid.

With 3 days in Madrid, I'd probably suggest a day trip to either Toledo or Segovia. And I would skip Paris this trip. Too far away.

Hope this helps!
Karen

Thank you so much guys. Would you guys reccomend any particular hotels, which are pretty central and will be under $100. Also, if it is not to much to ask for, what were your sample trips in Spain. How should I chart my trip in Spain in terms of cities. What are like the must see cities in SPain.
Thanks

Check out Plaza Mayor Hotel in Madrid and Hotel Amadeus in Seville.

One of our regular posters here can advise you on your mode of travel between Spanish cities.

elaine in Spain stays mainly on the train.

I spent a week between Barcelona and Madrid and took an Iberia flight from Barcelona to Madrid. We took a day trip from Barcelona to Montserrat, and a day trip from Madrid to Segovia. I've heard that Toledo is awesome as well.

I believe the train from Madrid to Barcelona was about the same price as the plane and is much shorter; of course you also have to account for the wait in the airport. Check out renfre.es for Spain train information.

Sorry, but Madrid-Barcelona is at least 6 hours by rail until the new high-speed link is completed between the two. You can check on the Renfe site to see if this is still the case. The airfare could very well be less than $100 depending on when you fly.

A day trip to Montserrat from Barcelona is easy to do, and popular; you can do it by rail and also buy an all-inclusive rail/funicular ticket that covers the trip up to the monastery itself.

Thanks Intrepid; I noticed that I mis-spoke on my previous post. I meant to say that the plane is much faster than the train. The flight time from Barcelona to Madrid was about an hour.