Fodorites,
The more I read, the more I get confused .. everything about Spain seems so interesting, and intriguing. We will have 12 days in June (June 12th till June 23rd) and again 3 days in July (July 3rd to 6th). We will fly to Barcelona in June and fly out of Madrid in July. I am planning to spend the last 3 days in Madrid, and see whatever we can. We might not see many museums (or galleries inside the museums as we will have three children with us). My question is how to divide my first 12 days. Should we spend 5 days in Barcelona, then drive/take train or bus to Granada, see Gibraltar (I think it will be interesting to see the strait -- Can you really see Africa across the water), and then go to Seville. Is June going to be very hot -- should I forget Andalucia and go North Spain instead. I like history, architecture and enjoy other cultures (I am not a foody or beach person). Also should we skip Toledo or is it a Must see when we are in Madrid.

Thanks

June/ July is very hot in Madrid and Andalucia, but it does not bother some people.
From Barcelona you can fly Vueling ( cheap) to either Seville or Granada . There is more history and architecture in that part of Spain than in the (also beautiful) North.
If you are not spending a lot of time in Madrid museums, Toledo
would be an interesting day trip .

We were in Barcelona, Costa Brava, & Girona this past October and loved every moment of our trip. You can click on my name to read my trip report.

I definitely recommend 5 days in Barcelona. There is a lot of architecture, art, beautiful parks, lovely neighborhoods, etc. I haven't been to Andalucia yet, but hear that it is very different from northern Spain. you feel like you are in two different countries. My daughter told me that everyone should see the Alhambra before they die. With that said, if you decide that Andalucia & southern Spain are too hot for you in June & July, then I highly recommend the places we went to. We loved our drive through part of the Pyrenees and could have spent more time there if we had it. We didn't have time to go to San Sebastian either, but I think June/July is a perfect time of year to see SS.

Andalucía is fantastic. Why not go to Málaga on the coast, not too far from Gibraltar? 2 1/2 hours by the high speed AVE train from Madrid, and direct flights to both Madrid and Barcelona.

Genuine Andalusian atmosphere, excellent tapas bars, cafés, and perhaps the most easy-going people in all of Andalucía. Within three hundred meters in the center, you'll find the recently excavated Roman theater, the 8-11th century Moorish Alcazaba, the great 16th century Cathedral and both Picasso's birth-place and the new Picasso museum (2003).
A couple of articles on the city:
"Málaga: Authentic charm of an overlooked treasure"
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/ci...-treasure.html

http://www.andalucia.com/cities/malaga/home.htm

From Andalucía Magazine:
http://www.andalucia.com/magazine/en...ed2/malaga.htm

Go and have the freshest fish and seafood with the locals at one of the many seashore restaurants in Pedregalejo, some 5-10 mins with bus/taxi east of the city center.
http://travel.aol.com/travel-guide/e...a-restaurants/

Just 35 miles north of Málaga, you'll find Antequera. Known as the "heart of Andalucía" with its ancient dolmens/burial chambers, Roman baths, a Moorish fortress, Gothic churches, Renaissance fountains and baroque bell towers. Antequera was the first of the Granada emirate towns to fall to the Christians in 1410.http://www.andaluciacoastandcountry.com/antequera.html

Some suggestions for things to see/do:

- If weather is good, drive up to Torcal, just outside town, with views to Africa on a clear day. http://www.andalucia.com/antequera/torcal/home.htm

- La Colegiata de Santa María la Mayor, the first partly Renaissance-style church in Spain. Situated on a peaceful square (with a great little bar/restaurant in the corner) overlooking the recently excavated Roman baths and looking up on the 13th century Moorish alcazaba/fortress.

- The 5-6000 years old dolmens (burial places) on the outskirts of town, facing the mythical Peña de los enamorados/Lovers' rock
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cueva_de_Menga
http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news...le_18509.shtml

- The Museo Municipal at Plaza del Coso has arguably got the finest piece of Roman sculpture found in Spain, the Efebo de Antequera/The Youth of Antequera. Also a very interesting first floor that bear witness of the towns history on the border between Christian and Moslem Spain before the final takeover of Granada in 1492.
http://traveldk.com/andalucia/dk/mus...ipal-antequera

And it would most likely be great fun for the kids to visit the wolf park just outside town: http://www.lobopark.com/en

We did a similar trip last June but we had 21 days. I went with my two 20's daughters and their favorites were Segovia, a small side trip from Madrid, and Nerja, a small town near Granada on the beach, and San Sebastian, a small surfing town north of Madrid. My idea for you is 3 days in Barcelona, take the train to Granada for 1-2 days, drive to Nerja for a beach day or 2 (we stayed at hotel in plaza full of kids)-it has a beautiful beach, restaurants right on the beach and cute shops, then drive to Rondo, a beautiful town in the white villages and then drive to Madrid. Lots of museums in Madrid but our favorite was the Modern Art Museum, and the park with the lake was fun too. If you have time for a side trip, Segovia is a short train away and has wonderful sights and food.

I think you already have a decent idea, a couple of my own suggestions: I am biased but I do think that Granada is a "must see" in Spain. While I think that Gibralter is not really worth a visit.
Coming from Barcelona to Granada, is a long enough bus or drive, It could be broken by a stopover in Valencia or somewhere else along the coast. Cartagena is fantastic as well. You can also check Renfe for the train, I have never done the trip but I believe there is a 12 hour overnighter train.
June in andalucía does get warm. But it is usually still quite pleasant (much nicer than end of July or August, when heat really kicks in)
Nerja is a great beach town, but during summer months is very much that, a beach resort.
Ronda is also worth a visit, imho much more interesting than Gibralter, maybe the most interesting hotel I have ever stayed in there: "el frente arte".
Madrid, yes definitly worth putting a couple of days aside for museums (Reina Sofia = modern art, picasso, dali etc. and Prado = old masters. Thyssen a third option)
From Madrid there are a few good choices for a day trip, Toledo as you mentioned, Segovia (with old roman aquaduct) or my favourite would be Salamanca. But any one of those three are almost equal distance from Madrid and equal interest for a day trip.
The last thing is that if you are a fan of modern art, from barcelona you might consider a day trip to Figueres where you can find the Dalí museum, a truly fantastic surrealist experience.

All, Thanks for your wonnderful ideas. kwoo -- I had already printed and file your trip report so I can read it few times and highlight it (Excellent trip report). Kimhe - Thanks for all the pointers, I am checking them out. GranadaInsider -- I want to see Granada, may be stay in the caves accomodation. I do not know why, but I want to see Gibraltar (I read so much about the strait and I taught my kids about it last summer -- strategically very imp and possibly lots of British Influence -- so might just go there for a day trip to see). Thanks a lot and if you think of any other tips, please let me know.

I think you're trying to see way too much if you want to visit Barcelona, Madrid & Andalucia in 12 days. I'd try to limit to 2 geographies otherwise you're going to be quite rushed.

I agree with Cathy, try I would stay in Madrid, Barcelona and surroundings to better enjoy the trip.

Nearby Madrid you could visit Toledo (gorgeus and perfect for a day-trip) or maybe Segovia. And nearby Barcelona you could visit many things for day-trips, such as Montserrat Mountains, sparkling wine tasting routes, going to the beach in costa Brava or Costa Dorada...

Cathy, chloesmithm: I will have 12 days in Barcelona and Andalucia in June (June 12 till 24) or 11 full days because of jetlag ands stuff. I will have at least 4 days in Madrid in early July ( 2nd till 6th).
Right now I am planning:
5 nights in Barcelona -- so I have 4 full days
3 nights in Granada
3 nights in Sevilla
With one night spend somewhere else..
May be I can fly Barcelona to Granada by Vueling

Any suggestions -- I might try to visit Ronda, thinking of renting a car in Granada but not sure if we return it in Sevilla, then how expensive it will be -- should we do bus instead?

Thanks for all your suggestions.

We stayed in Granada for 3 nights ... I would suggest two.

Toledo as you mentioned, Segovia (with old roman aquaduct) or my favourite would be Salamanca. But any one of those three are almost equal distance from Madrid and equal interest for a day trip. "

Salamanca is almost 2.45 hours from Madrid. Toledo and Segovia - 1/2 hour by AVE plus a short bus ride.

I'm iwth danon - take a night from Granada and add to Sevilla. If you have an extra night I'd consider adding an additional day to Madrid, Barcelona or Sevilla. There's plenty to keep you busy in these cities but if you like there are all kinds of daytrips you could do. This would give you flexibility in your trip to decide as you go.