olga

I have a couple of questions again: If we spend mornings/daytime sightseeing in Andalucia and drive between destinations in the evenings, is it difficult to find hotel/parking in, for example Sevilla, Granada and Cordoba at night? Should we try to move early in the morning and then do the sightseeing (that would be more difficult, I know from previous trips)? <BR>My second question is a follow-up of my previous post on daytrips from Madrid. My husband made a suggestion that instead of driving from Toledo to Madrid and keeping our car there for the trip to Avila or Segovia (Maribel correctly warned us that both are difficult in one day), we could leave Toledo in the morning and do a loop through Avila (he does not want to give anything up), Segovia and then in the evening return the car in Madrid and be rid of it for the rest of the trip. This loop according to cwlease.com is 4.5 hours of driving. We are used to strenuous sightseeing schedules, but is it totally unrealistic? <BR>Maribel, are you there? <BR>Thank you so much, everybody, for great info and help...

elizabeth

TOo funny, that loop from hell is exactly what I did. We got the car in Madrid, drove to Toledo, then to Avila and SEgovia and then back to Madrid for the night. DOn't be mislead that drive is way way longer than it appears on the maps (at least the route we took which seemed the best way to go). We didn't get back until after 1am. I was wiped for pretty much the rest of the trip. Overrated--Avila; but DO NOT miss Toledo or Segovia. Toledo to Avila took like 3hours and to SEgovia was not much better

Maribel

Hi Olga, <BR>Me again...Although your husband's suggestion seems perfectly practical, logical, sensible, I'm afraid that a Toledo/Avila/Segovia/Madrid loop just might be exhausting, as Elizabeth attests from her recent visit. The drive from Toledo to Avila up the N403 is easy, will take a bit over 2 hrs. (no "must sees" along the way) so you can arrive mid-morning, but you'll want to walk on the medieval walls (200 meters or so are open to the public-and you can climb them starting at the Puente del Alcazar, and you have to buy a ticket at the little stand), stroll the streets within the walled city, walk down to the pretty plaza below the Parador and take a snapshot of the myriad storks' nests, see the Cathedral (closes at 1) and drive out of town on the road to Salamanca to LAS CUATRO POSTES (the 4 pillars) which is the very best vantage point for taking great photos of the entire walled city. Just look for the tour buses-everyone stops here for "the definitive photo op". <BR>Then on to Segovia on the N501-N110-the trip should take about an hr., and again no "must sees", but once in Segovia, you'll want to tarry, certainly. It's a beautiful, graceful, pure Castilian town-actually Castilla at its finest, and the 2,000 yr. old Roman Aqueduct alone will keep you spellbound for a quite a while. (The restoration is now complete, I believe, no scaffolding-it once again carries water). And you'll probably arrive in time for lunch, which could mean a picnic at the "Merendero" down at the banks of the Eresma river and next to the 12-sided 13 c Knights of the Templars' Church of Veracruz (which deserves a visit itself) below the Alcazar. Here at the river you'll have a stunning view from below of this fantasy "Camelot" castle-be sure to drive down here for the quintessential Segovia photo. Or enjoy a meal at one of the "hornos de asar" or taverns with their centuries- old brick ovens for the famous Segovian roast lamb, such as "Candido" (at the Aqueduct), "Duque" (on the pedestrian street leading up to the Plaza Mayor) or "Jose Maria" (to the right of the square). And these lunches do take time..then you'll hit the sacred siesta hr. which shopkeepers do strictly observe; however the Cathedral and Alcazar do remain open. You'll enjoy the interior of the Alcazar, and if you have the energy, be sure to climb up to the top of the tower. Segovia is a town for wandering, for peeking into the fine Romanesque churches, for contemplation; it does weave a spell, and the Plaza Mayor is a delightful spot to sit at one of the outdoor cafes and have an apres lunch coffee and dessert. ("La Concepcion" has great coffee). I think you'll want to linger. Then you can retrace your steps on the N110 to the fast A6 and be in Madrid in about 1 1/2 hrs. But you'll miss the mountain drive through Guadarrama, the Bourbon Palace and fountains of La Granja, Phillip II's El Escorial and Valley of the Fallen. Yes, it can be done, but you won't be able to take in and savor all that the area offers. It's really up to you and your husband. <BR>Regardless of what you decide to do, I think you'll love the area. <BR>Regards, <BR>Maribel <BR>

Olga

Thank you, Elizabeth and Maribel, I have to think it over; I am currently tempted to drive to Madrid from Toledo, get rid of the car, and just to a bus day trip to Segovia. We can't do it all in one trip, I guess... <BR>How about my first question? On the days that we have to move to another town (esp. in Andalucia), can we do it at the end of the day, in the dark? Will we be able to find our way to the hotels? <BR>And another question? In the towns that we are visiting on the move, is it safe to leave our luggage in the trunk (not that we'll have another cboice)? I vaguely remember a post about not leaving stuff in the car... <BR>This forum is so wonderful; I can't imagine how to plan a trip without you guys! <BR>P.S. I have to share my little victory: I couldn't find any good accomodations in Sevilla but kept calling Las Casas de la Juderia and they suddenly had 2 available rooms which I booked!

Maribel

Hi Olga, <BR>Me once again...Sorry I forgot about your first question. If you're traveling in June or later on in the summer, it won't get dark until about 9 or later, so you can do your heavy sightseeing early, do your driving between destinations afterwards and probably still arrive at your hotel well before nightfall, depending on the distance. <BR>The inner cores of Granada/Seville/Cordoba, the Moorish "Golden Triangle" are, alas, difficult to negotiate-they were built as labyrinths- maze-like quarters, with tiny, narrow, winding streets, barely wide enough for a car to slip through or to walk a chihuahua and parking spots the size of bath mats! Don't be alarmed if you get lost, perhaps more than once in the same day, or the same hr. (we still do). My husband, a Spaniard, once got our mini-van quite stuck in a tiny Seville plaza, and it took the whole neighborhood and a good half hr. to extricate him. If you find yourself circling the same plaza again and again, just hail a cab, give the driver the address of your hotel and have him lead you there. It will save time and frustration. Because your hotel, the Casas de la Juderia, is tucked deep in the Jewish quarter (Barrio de Santa Cruz) on one of its narrowest streets you should head for the Avenida Mendenez y Pelayo,turn on to Santa Maria la Blanca, look for the church of the same name (should be indicated on your map) and look for a uniformed attendant at the square who'll take your car and park it for you. A Fodorite, Monica Richards, did a post on this maneuver. Just make sure you have detailed maps of your cities. If you're staying in the Jewish Quarter (Juderia) of Cordoba (don't remember your hotel there), you'll face the same challenge. <BR>If you get lost it might be wise just to park in the Quarter wherever you can, call the hotel and have an attendant come take you there. <BR>In Granada we'll be spending our first night at the Hotel America on the Alhambra hill (easy to find) and the second deep in the Albaicin (Arab Quarter) at the Carmen de Santa Ines. When I made our reservations, the manager told me simply to go straight to the Plaza Nueva and call him, and he'd send someone to rescue us because we'd never find it on our own! <BR>In Seville we're staying in the Jewish Quarter as well at a tiny place "Casa 7", and the owner instructed me to just leave the car in the parking garage at Cano y Cueto, the first street to your right as you turn into Santa Maria la Blanca from Avenida Mendendez y Pelayo. <BR> <BR>As for leaving luggage in your trunk while touring-it's unavoidable, but try to find a monitored parking lot or garage ("Parking vigilado"). For example, when we make stops in Ronda, Nerja, Jerez, Marbella or Puerto Banus, we head straight for the "parking vigilado" pay lots and feel more secure. The next best thing is to leave your car in the parking lot of a Parador or in front of a large luxury hotel where bellhops are constantly coming in and out. <BR>The only thing that we leave, on purpose, inside our car within full view are a couple of local newspapers. This is our inexpensive theft protection. The local press or a sports or bullfighting magazine ("El Marca"/"6 Toros 6") identifies us as natives, not tourists, even though we drive with Madrid plates. <BR>Hope this helps. <BR>Maribel

frank

Seville is beatiful, don't miss it, but don't park on the street with non-Seville plates. <BR>I've seen cars with Madrid plates with little signs in the windows saying "I'm actually from Seville, leave me alone! <BR> Maribel's tip about leaving a local paper sounds good! <BR>Dont even think about driving round the barrio using a map, you'll get lost. <BR> Also, if there is a big fiesta on you may park your car in the morning & came back in the evening to find it trapped in behind 2 solid lines of cars. <BR>(happened to us on Good Friday once) <BR> If you try to see too much you end up not really seeing anything. <BR>