Help with 3-week itinerary for Spain/Portugal
 

Hi everyone,

I will be visiting Spain and Portugal for about 3 weeks. Wanted everyone's input in terms of how I've allocated my time. I will be going with my partner and we are both in our mid 20's. We're interested in sightseeing, architecture, culture, food, beaches. This is what I had in mind:

Day 1 - Land in Barcelona around 11am
Day 2-4 Barcelona
Day 5 Train to Madrid in AM
Day 6-7 Madrid
Day 8 Train to Grenada in AM
Day 9 Grenada
Day 10 Train to Seville in AM
Day 11-12 Seville
Day 13 Bus from Seville to Faro/Lagos?
Day 14-15 Lagos
Day 16-19 Travel to Lisbon on Day 16 AM
Day 20 Train to Porto in AM
Day 21 Porto
Day 22 Fly home from Porto in AM

Any changes/suggestions? Also would like any suggestions regarding must see/visit places/restaurants in these cities!

Thanks

Your time is very limited for the Algarve. Whichever town you choose, that is all you will see. Lagos does offer boats tours of the local sea caves and has beaches within walking distance. Perhaps that would be the best choice.

https://flic.kr/p/2grQDAZ

Are you sure you can see / experience what you want with your proposed itinerary? It seems very ambitious to me. For comparison,

• I wanted 5 full days in Barcelona + time for day trips.
• I wanted 4 full days in Madrid, 2 full days for Toledo + time for day trips.
• The Alhambra itself normally requires 2 nights in Granada; if you want to see more of that city, you'll need another night.
• I wanted 3 full days for Sevilla + 2 for Cordoba.

Maybe your plan will work for you -- but I'd encourage you to make sure you know what you want to see and have confirmed that you can do it. And note that many things in Spain are closed for part of Sunday, all of Monday, and a long mid-day break on every day.

Good luck!

Compared to many people I'm considered a rather fast traveler and I would hate that itinerary. You are changing locations every other day. Giving you one day to sight see each place. And most of them are large, 'significant' cities. And not all that close to each other. It's one thing to do a road trip and drive an hour or two to a small village and then to another one a day or two later. But Barcelona, Madrid, Lisbon, - they 'deserve at least a three days each. Even Seville, Granada and Porto could keep you busy for several days. I would definitely drop several of your locations.

I agree with others that this is a very rushed trip. I think you need at least 3 days/4 nights in Seville, which is a gorgeous city architecturally with lots of important historical and cultural sites.You have omitted Cordoba from your itinerary, which is another important Andalusian city. The Mezquita in Cordoba, Alhambra in Granada, and Alcazar in Seville, are all amazing sites. Some people visit Cordoba as a daytrip from Seville. However, I think it deserves 1, 2, or 3 nights to appreciate its beauty, history, and culture.

You really need to purchase a few guidebooks, such as Michelin Green Guide, Rough Guides or Lonely Planet to see what interests you and how much time you need for each place.

I haven't been to the Algarve but I have heard that it takes a long time to get from the Algarve to Lisbon, so perhaps it's not worth it to go there on this trip?