Jaen Experiences? (vs. Cordoba)
 

Has anyone been to Jaen and if so, what was your impression and experience? We have a week (of a 3 week trip in Spain) in Andalucia and we are thinking of spending 3 nights in Seville, 2 in either Cordoba OR Jaen (staying in the Parador), and then 2 nights in Granada. Any thoughts on the middle portion would be appreciated.

thank you,
Jessica

Same answer I gave on your Lonely Planet post.

Go to Cordoba ! Jaen has nothing much aside from the Parador.

If it's Jaen <u>or</u> Cordoba, then it probably has to be Cordoba. Last year we did both and loved staying in the Jaen Parador for one night, (which we never left), but we also had plenty of time in Cordoba.

Less than an hour drive from Jaen are Baeza and Ubeda. That could be an alternative to Cordoba, depending on what you are looking for. Very sleepy, fewer visitors, full of Renaissance architectural gems. But no Mezquita, of which there is only one.

Thank you! I've been reading about Ubeda also, so thank you for corroborating.

If you settle on Cordoba, have a car and want to venture out for a day, consider Castillo de Almodovar and Madinat al-Zahra. We did both in one day with no trouble.

https://castillodealmodovar.com/historia
http://www.andalucia.com/magazine/en...d4/madinat.htm

But there is also plenty to see without leaving town.

BTW, we stayed in the Eurostars Palace hotel in Cordoba because that's where we picked up our car. It was easy to walk from the hotel to the old part of town, but it was located on main roads so you didn't have to navigate narrow streets, and they had convenient on-site underground parking. We were pleased there.

I have some photos from Cordoba here, if you have some time to waste:
http://nelsonchenkin.zenfolio.com/corodoba

Also, make sure you find maitaitom's trip report. Actually here it is:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...spain-2015.cfm
http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/chap...lous-mezquita/

Have a great trip.