Need advice traveling to Spain
 

I am traveling to Toledo, Spain in late March to see my daughter. We are interested in seeing Granada, Cordoba, Ronda, possibly Seville. But I realize it is alot to see in a 10 day period. If you have a suggestion of the best of these to see, I would appreciate it.
We tend to prefer smaller, quaint towns, but have heard Seville is a must see thought it looks like a large city. There are 4 of us traveling, we plan to use the train system tho we are wondering if renting a car would be more cost efficient?
Can you give us your favorites of these choices?

Seville has by far the most to see. Ronda is cute - but is really little more than a village - and in a heavily mountainous area that takes a while to get to. Also - none are really near Toledo.

I think you need to have a look at some guideboooks and decided what YOUR must sees are. For 4 people I would think a train more practical that a car - we have always done road trips in Spain though.

I've done the train and the car on different trips to Spain. I really preferred driving.

I'd check out viamichelin to find out the distances and driving times between these locations and also check out the rail times.

I agree that there's much to see in Seville. We spent only one night in Cordoba--to see the Mezquita--but I underst5and that the town is worth a walking tour. We loved Ronda, but then we are fascinated with the geology of Spain, and Ronda's location is fabulous. The Alhambra in Granada is one of those places that should be on everyone's bucket list.

I don't think I've been much help.

If I were you, I'd do a rough tentative plan for visiting all these places, including travel time. People often say they'll spend one night here and two nights there, but they forget to factor in their travel time. Instead of the day they think they'll have in this place, they may have just half a day, or even less.

I always buy a couple of guidebooks which tell me distance between cities, train and bus service, etc.

I knew these questions sounded familar On Nov 9 you asked:

I am traveling to Spain w/my husband, 25 yr daughter, to visit my daughter in Toledo, Spain. I thought the Rioja wine area looked interesting, the town of Laguardia seems cool.
I was wondering if it would be worthwhile to head towards Sevilla and the southern areas of Spain. We prefer quaint, quiet towns rather than busy cities, if anyone has suggestions I would appreciate any help.

What was inadequate about the answers on that trhead?

I suggest you go to Antequera, the so called "heart of Andalucía" (placed in the middle between Málaga, Sevilla, Córdoba and Granada and easy to access by both bus, train and car.). A fascinating town with 5000 years old dolmens, Roman baths, a Moorish Castle, Gothic churches, Renaissance fountains and baroque bell towers just outside the spectacular Torcal nature reserve.

Be sure to visit the Museo Municipal and see what is arguably the finest piece of Roman sculpture found in Spain, the boy Efebo. 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. Antequera was the first town of the Granada Emirate to fall to the Christians in 1410.

If you go, you must taste the town speciality "Porra Antequerana", a kind of creamy gazpacho with toppings of cured ham, tuna and eggs. Why not have it at the excellent and traditional Restaurante La Espuela Plaza in the bullring?

http://www.andalucia.com/antequera/home.htm
http://www.andalucia.com/antequera/monuments.htm

Photos:
http://www.pueblos-espana.org/andalu...equera/220272/

A bit more on Antequera (population about 40 000):
"Guidebooks to Andalucia tend to focus on the justifiably world-famous cities of Seville, Granada, and Cordoba. However, the historic but far less well known town of Antequera is equally worth a visit and its relative lack of fame means that its essential Andalucian charm remains undimmed by coach parties and souvenir shops".
http://www.andaluciacoastandcountry.com/antequera.html

Photo essay and slide show:
http://www.fmschmitt.com/travels/spa...ueraStart.html

hi kimhe

what a great place - and I'd never heard of it.

definitely on my list for andalucia - thanks.

annhig,

Spent some unforgettable days there in 2007 during the Málaga en flamenco festival (Rocío Molina and Miguel Poveda in the renaissance church Colegiata de Santa María la Mayor).
http://www.andalucia.org/turismo-cul...aria-la-mayor/

Late March is the start of Holy Week (Semana Santa) in Andalucia, when many towns are packed with visitors to see the famous processions. Seville will be most famous (and crowded beyond belief, with 300% premium on hotel prices), but also Granada and Córdoba. So bear that in time when planning your itinerary. Holy Week will be from Palm Sunday (March 28) to Easter Sunday (April 4).

hi again, kimhe,

we spent a night in Malaga en route to Granada 3 years or so ago. we really liked it and would be keen to go back and spend longer there.

sadly I didn't even know that they had a flamenco festival. Was it a one off, or do they do it every year or two?

annhig,

They had in 2005 and 2007 and now there is the all year round "Málaga en flamenco":
http://www.malagaenflamenco.com/inicio_nuevo.asp

thanks, Kim.

not sure that I'l be able to take advantage of it any time soon, but it's useful to file away for future reference.

kimhe - i think you've OD'd on antequera. have visited half a dozen times, stayed there, researched there and yes it's nice but can't think it merits inclusion in a greatest hits trip like this

aduchamp1 - so poster has opened a second thread. maybe he/she wants more options

tunema - agree you need to plan the travel logistics and base them around your must sees...but sevilla is one of the world's great cities and as you'll be passing through cordoba it would be a pity if you don't overnight there

portuense,

he-he, might have something to do with this:
http://www.deflamenco.com/especiales...dex070908i.jsp

do you know, kimhe, it crossed my mind that flamenco might have something to do with it all...when are you next in jerez area?

Don't know, but hope to go in a not too distant future although it seems as if I wouldn't be able to go to the Jerez festival this year either. The local peña here in Oslo had a very nice visit a couple of months ago from the gaditanos Rosario Toledo and David Palomar and Daniel Méndez from Morón (Dani de Morón), and I hope to visit some of them in Sevilla/Morón next year. Then it would be perfect for actually my first trip to Jerez, I'll let you know!

do...i'm sure you know the flamenco scene in jerez is v vibrant and from what i gather, quite edgy. Of course Antonio El Pipa is on e of the big cheeses but there are plenty more. Have you seen Maria Jose Franco dance? She's quite an act...

tunema...i think it's doable to go from toledo by train back into madrid (half hour or so), then get to atocha station and cordoba is a couple of hours by high speed train. you could do a couple of nights there, go on to seville, do three nights there or add another and go on a white villages tour (though personally i don't think a lot of them - greatest hits; blink if you miss them; where was that? - you need to spend a bit of time in these places to absorb their unique atmosphere and see what should be seen (and eat and drink what should be eaten and drunk). If you don't fancy that you could get a coach (good connections) from seville to granada, do two nights there (you'll need best part of a day for the alhambra) then head back to madrid. all depends on how much time you want with your daughter unless she's coming with you. in that case she'll probably tell you two nights is enough in toledo.
anyway, it's doable but you might be better sticking to cities and lwaving ronda and the real white towns for another trip simply because getting to and from them would be tough given your time constraints

portuense,
Haven't seen here live yet, but looking forward to do so. Had a very strong near-Jerez-experience on a concert with José Mercé in Nerja back in 2004. Hope also to see Antonio's aunt Juana la del Pipa soon.

kimhe...i saw juana giving a class a few years ago - that was something...I've seen a few older dancers taking classes, normally of very good dancers. it's really interesting as an 'outsider' (ie one who has three never mind two left feet and is basically the wrong sex) - you do get a very different, technical prospective from a performance

portuense... guess you've seen this clip of Antonio's grandmother Tia Juana, fantastic. As her daughter said, "she was a cathedral".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVK395ilU2k

Just saw that Juana la del Pipa will perform during the Jerez festival on the 6th of March together with Dolores Agujetas and La Macanita, perhaps have to make new travel plans...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQnc5eyjQoA

Hi Tunema,
I visited Spain in June 09.
12 days- I spent 4 days in Seville. It was just right.
It is verrrry beautiful. We stayed at Hotel Alcazar- Beautiful view of the church, Alcazar and gardens, right across Bario Da Santa Cruz, very close to bus station.
Don't miss the Flemenco bar "La Carbonaria". Locals and tourists both come here. Out of the world. Above all--No entrance charges, wine for 2 Euros.
We fell in love with Seville. spend at least 3 days there. You can do day trips to Cordoba and Ronda, jerez from here.
Best luck.

Kim I saw Antinio El Pipa & his crew here & loved them.

Does Tunema like flamenco...??(What's not to like but well you never know..)

amsdon,
Well, the thread started to sort of live a life of its own...

yes, sort of organic...where can we take it now? spanish booze anyone? football? customs? coffee (i can bang on for ever about this one)...

Stumbled upon this place last time in Málaga. Must be the best place for coffee and chocolate con churros ever!
http://www.casa-aranda.net/

i've been there too - v good. wonder if josele is a regular...

mind you, as i've said before, for me nothing beats cafe con leche (en vaso) y un mollete con jamon serrano y aceite. In fact just back from this morning's edition - another new location on my unending quest to find el mejor desayuno de andalucia...

A good breakfast place is essential, a pity that many travellers stays with a boring hotel breakfast when the culinary and social feast of a local Spanish breafast normally is just a block or two away.

kim, you have just expressed the single most important thing about visiting spain. i can only back you 100%. ban the buffet and make a break for the local bar.

for me nothing beats cafe con leche (en vaso) y un mollete con jamon serrano y aceite. >>#

ok, porthugese, i get the cafe con leche and the con jamon serrano, but what about the mollete and the y aceite?

is it " cafe with milk and a [piece of] bread with serrano ham and vinegar"? ??? surely not.

i agree about ban the buffet - they are mostly very samey and very expensive.

A mollete is a round roll (somewhat soft) originating from Antequera and typical for desayuno in Andalucia.

"un mollete con jamon serrano y aceite" would be with serrano ham and olive oil.

My favorite desayuno is when they have the tomato/garlic puree to spread on the mollete along with the serrano and olive oil (similar to pan con tomate in Catalonia). You've made me suddenly very hungry ;)

The only time I eat the breakfast buffet at the hotel is when it's included in the price (or free). Otherwise I love starting my day eating at a local bar, particularly in or near a market.

aha - thanks, Cathy.

I'd more or less got it apart from the aceite being olive oil - though i think i knew that somewhere in my brain.

I love pan con tomate, but I'm not sure about it for breakfast. chocolate con churros is more my "tasse de te".

that's the thing cathy...can't do the garlic if you needd to talk to someone at some point during the day! there is a certain appeal in rubbing raw cloves of garlic into an oiled tostada if your day is your own.
my least favourite breakfast option is manteca (lard - tripe) especially the hideously orange stuff "flavoured with tomato". Still, I know people who swear by it, especially builders and agricultural workers, who claim it gives them strength for the day (effect on heart unknown but can be guessed at).
And I've never had the luxury of a day where I have absolutely nothing to do which is why I've never joined the old boys in downing a glass (or two) of aniseed liqueur for breakfast. Frequently you see them knocking it back then marching out of the venta and jumping into a car...

What's lard got to do with tripe? Different animal: different bits.

Manteca, surely, is straightforward lard: rendered pigfat, and strictly speaking the fat that surrounds the internal organs. Sometimes flavoured - but it's never mixed with other offal, is it?

Tripe is bovine stomach lining, to be distinguished from the bits and bobs of gamier innards known in Spanish as tripas. Neither has any known deleterious effect on hearts or arteries

yeah yeah thanks for the lesson flanneruk - to be honest i wouldn't go near either of them which is why i couldn't remember what it was. either way you have to have a screw loose to spread it on your toast

I only like chocolate con churros, if the churro stands upright in the chocolate.

either way you have to have a screw loose to spread it on your toast>>

no turkey dripping for you then, portuense.

what a shame, it's one of the best bits!

Anyone for a carajillo?

I think there is a lot of good advice from previous posts. We have driven all over Spain however it is also wonderful to do it by train because this way you take out a lot of things out of your head. <<I agree you can go to Toledo by train or bus from Madrid, coming back to Madrid it is a short distance and then take the Ave Train to Cordoba and Sevilla. From Cordoba you can go to Granada not to be missed. To include Antequera is a good choice as well as other lovely cities or towns like Ubeda and Baeza etc. If you must go to Ronda you can drive there but I would leave it for another time. It is not possible to include so many places, so as someone said read a little about the different places, choose what appleas more to you and keep it to a short list. Seville is more important than the others and there is a lot to see and do. From Seville you can visit for the day other places too like Carmona only a short drive.
A guide book can give you a lot of information like pre booking some visits like the visit to the Alhambra in Granada which surely is going to be one of the highlights of your trip.
It would be nice to include a stay in one of the Paradores which are so unique and fun and offer all kind of promotions like Años Dorados for Seniors etc.

I'm a bit troubled by the fact that graziella has chosen to ignore the breakfast theme and gone back to the original topic...
and, er, no turkey dripping thanks. i'm not sure what will grace the christmas table in the portuense household this year. ideally it would be goose but fat chanced of getting one here...likewise pheasant. could probably hunt out a duck (not literally) otherwise it's a turkey but would have to be bought from the farmer. never tasted turkey like the ones they rear on farms here...