Hi all!

I have a trip to Spain planned in end of September. Im wondering though if I should change Granada to 2 nights and Malaga or Costa de Sol area to 3 nights?
My current itinerary is the below:
Arrive and depart from Madrid
Day 1 - overnight in Madrid - (get in really late)
Day 2 & 3 - Cordoba 2 nights
Day 4-6 - Granada 3 nights
Day 7 & 8 - Malaga 2 nights
Day 9 & 10 Madrid 2 nights

Since we dont like big cities, Im wondering if we should stay in Nerja or Benalmadena where it might be more relaxing instead of in Malaga? Or should we just take a bus to those beaches and stay in Malaga?
I also was really wanting to take a day trip to Ronda from Malaga, which is why Im wondering if I should change our Costa de Sol part to 3 nights instead of 2?

Also any hotel or beach suggestions in Costa de Sol would be really appreciaited! We are looking for relaxtion at the end of a busy trip

Thanks!

Granada to many including me ain't that awesome to rate 3 nights - put another day into Madrid and day trip to Toledo perhaps. Seville to me is the highlight of Andalusia - skip Malaga perhaps and stay in Seville, only 2 hours by train to Madrid - anyway book trains far in advance to garner discounted fares - Renfe - hard for some to get to work - www.seat61.com has lots of suggestions on booking your own tickets thru renfe and other sites with similar prices - general info trains www.ricksteves.com and BETS-European Rail Experts. Ronda is a picturesque town being located on a deep gorge but little to really do besides gawk at that - oh nice enough town but I'd spend your limited time elsewhere. Malaga is great too but Seville to me is a must.

We spent three nights in Granada ... and loved it.

Check out Chapters 6 - 8 (with photos) of our 2015 trip. There's a lot to Granada that is not the Alhambra. I'd take a day off Cordoba and add to Madrid.

https://travelswithmaitaitom.com/spain-2015/

I also loved Granada. We spent four nights happy nights there. Malaga was a wonderful surprise too. Very relaxing and beautiful. We spent three nights there and could easily have spent another!

We loved Malaga; however, I would choose to visit Seville instead of Malaga if I didn’t have time for both cities.

Im leaning toward 2 nights in Granada and 3 in Malaga now.
Would you recommend staying in a beach near Malaga instead of actual Malaga though? We arent looking for the skyrise crowded beach, but something relaxing.
Also, will end of September be too cold for laying out at the beach?

Two nights in Granada gives you time for the Alhambra and few or none of the city's other treasures. I'm glad I had 3 nights = 2.5 days in Granada.

Malaga is a neat old historic city that all scrubbed up in recent year is great. I'd stay there - especially if you don't like modern seaside resorts. I too would opt for Seville instead but for relaxing with beach time Malaga.

I'd definitely keep the 3 nights in Granada. One day for the Alhambra and a day-ish for other sites.

>>Granada to many including me ain't that awesome to rate 3 nights - <<

Curious when you were last in Spain Pal? Who are these 'many' who think Granada is nothing but the Alhambra?

I was paraphrasing comments from others on Fodors - many like Granada as a city and many have said two nights was enough. It ain't that Granada is not neat but other places even neater - depends on how much time one has for Andalucia.

How I wish people would either speak only from their own experience or be clear about it when they are summarizing what they think others said! I know one Fodorite who regularly says he found little to see in Granada beyond the Alhambra; I know many of us report that we found more than enough to keep up happily busy for 3 nights. I'm not saying what view is right or wrong, but IMO, it surely would help to know the basis for observations about timeframes.

Granada as many say is great but OP's penchant for smaller towns... Granada is not a Madrid but in many ways a large busy city (which is fine with me) - ca y'est!

I wiould highly recommend Nerja, we visit there each year and its the perfect place to unwind and relax. The beaches are lovely especially burriana and the town is pretty. Its not built up like other places along the coast but its got a lively atmosphere. Its 45 mins from Malaga and upto Granada is about an hour.