going to Marbella end of June, 07. Should we fly into Lisbon and drive or Marbella or should we go to Madrid and drive down. On the way back we plan to spend 2 full days before our flight back to the States. Which city would be the better choice - $$$ wise they are both about the same.

Tough call, they are both great cities. By a slim margin I will go for Lisbon because I'm a big Portugal fan. But you can't go wrong either way.

In terms of $$$, or should we say €€€, I remember Lisbon as being less expensive.

Lisbon is cheaper, yes I am too lazy for car drives (even as a co-pilot) so I will go for Madrid, which is nearer. Anyway, in two days you only have time to scratch the surface in any of the two cities. June is a great time in both them also. Central Summer can be too hot !!

As I said on the other thread, Madrid makes much more sense to me. This answer is based on distance and trans border charges.

I think I agree with Lobo, even though if I had only two days, I'd rather spend them in Lisbon than in Madrid, just because I think Lisbon is a much more manageable city and easier to get a feel for in two days than Madrid. What I don't know is whether the car rental charges will be greater if you cross the Spain-Portugal border than if your rental is just from Spain.

Distance-wise, I think Lisbon is probably a bit farther, not much in mileage (about 50 km), but maybe in time, since you won't be on superhighways the whole time as you would be from Madrid to Marbella.

Lisbon is a much less expensive city than Madrid, from hotels to restaurants to shows. I would estimate the differential at about 25%, maybe more.

I love both cities (I've lived in both) and I think you can't go wrong either way. But if you tell us what it is you want to do in those two days, we can give you a better idea of which city better meets those requirements.

Sinkevich, I checked with Via Michelin and I got those figures:

Marbella/Granada - 180 km and 2.15 hours
Marbella/Seville - 260 km and 3 hours
Marbella/Madrid - 600 km and 7 hours
Marbella/Lisbon - 720 km and 7.5 hours

Adding the trans border taxes, and an available time of 48 hours, I don't think it's wise to make Lisbon.

You need to check with rental car companies. So far I haven't found one charging less than 200Euros to drop a rental car that you picked up in Spain in Lisbon. If you find one that does't have a drop off charge please let me know. lenbro

was in lisbon and madrid 2 years ago. 3tayed 3 days in lisbon, took the overnight train to madrid and spent 4 days there. I would agree that the prices were very similar, and both cheaper than most of western europe. I preferred lisbon- like someone said above, it's smaller and more manageable, yet it's packed with stuff to see. For 2 days, you can't go wrong with either city.

P_M: well, I finally found something you and I have in common. OUr love for Lisbon and Portugal. We lived there for two years, in the late 70's, and it IS a wonderful country.

AND: we are both Texans, but that's about it......
(and we are both caring people, but probably in different ways)&gt!!!

Not to hijack, but mari5, please give some thought to what you told joram. I'm sorry if I was unkind, but I just can't relate to the idea that he was even partly to blame. Thanks.

Both are great and with plenty to see. I'd go for Lisbon, though. It is not only cheaper but also a more relaxing, more picturesque city.
It also depends on the attractions that both offer and what kind of things you like visiting. I suggest you read about both cities in this Fodors website or browse through guidebooks.
An excellent Lisbon site I always recommend is www.golisbon.com

As the co-owner of the above mentioned site http://www.golisbon.com and the sole owner of a similarly named site about Madrid I'd like to thank the previous poster's recommendation and add my 2 euro-cents to the discussion.

Lisbon & Madrid are indeed very similar and both have a lot to offer the tourist. I don't think I would agree with the difference of 25% in costs, though - Lisbon is fast catching up with the rest of Europe in terms of prices, unfortunately.

Travel-wise, I would say it would be much easier to drive down from Madrid - the highways are good and I'm sure it won't even take the 7 hours mentioned by Michelin.

But if you're eventually flying to Marbella, can't you ask the travel agent if it's possible to fly first to Lisbon or Madrid and then fly-on from there a couple of days later? It would save that long drive and might not be too much more expensive.

I live in Madrid and spend my weekends in Lisbon, so I'm reluctant to choose between the two. I'd therefore say your decision has to be based on the travel and/or cost and this respect it looks like Madrid wins.

Roger.