I have gotten some great feedback from friends all over. And done some reading. My heart still leans toward Seville.

Someone who lived in Spain a few years said that five days is a long time to be in Seville and that in those days I could also see Granada & Cordoba. I don't want to just rush through too many places.

I am going to look into airfare the next 2 days to see if it would be cheaper to fly to Madrid a take a train down to Seville or to just fly there directly. I live in Los Angeles.

Agree on Seveille. Much more charming and a lot more to do than in Madird. And much more typical of what is different about Spain.

(Madrid reminds me of nothing so much as Chicago - bit city with lots of tall gray stone office buildings and tons of chain stores/restaurants, traffic, noise and dirty streets. But not the bustle or heart or soul of New York).

So now my itinerary looks pretty much set.

May 23rd 11:40AM
Land in Madrid - My intention is to catch the first train to Granada.

Check into ??????? -- Need some hotel recommendations trying to spend around $100 per night

24th
Tour Alhambra and perhaps some more of Granda.

25th
Leisure morning around Granada
Catch afternoon/evening train to Seville (?)
Check into ???????
Walk around Seville at night

26th
Tour Seville

27th
Leisure in Seville

28th
Early morning train back to Madrid
Check into ?????
Leisure in Madrid

29th
11:30 AM flight back to States

Yep, very short, but it is all I can afford to take off right now.
Any thoughts or suggestions on must sees in any city, as well as hotel recommendations?

hi wayne,
Click on my name and check out my trip report. I just got back from Seville & Madrid. Unfortunately, i didn't have time to go to Granada so I can't help you with that. But you can see my suggestions from my trip report on the other 2 cities. You heart steered you right - you will love Seville!

Hi Waynehazle

We were in Granada for two nights a few weeks ago and stayed at Hotel Casa del Capitel Nazari . It was a small Reinnassance palace built in 1503 and is in the old Albaicin area right below the Alhambra. Our double room was 87 euro per night - an absolute bargain! You'd love the place.

http://www.hotelcasacapitel.com/

In Seville we stayed at Hotel Montecarlo and loved it too. Superb location and again the rates were great at only 85 euro a night for the room. It's a converted Seville gentry’s house in a quiet street in the city center. It has an internal Andaluz patio, is near to the river and only a just a 5 minute walk from the cathedral.

http://www.hotelmontecarlosevilla.com/

Hope those help.

Joe

Visited Granada, Madrid and Seville last June. Favorite out of the three, hands down Seville. However, I did love the Alhambra. We stayed at the Hotel America within the Alhambra walls, it should be close to your budget. Rooms very small (only about 17), but you can't beat the location. In Seville we stayed at the Hotel Cervantes, which had a pretty spacious room, around 100 Euros, not too far from the cathedral. In Madrid stayed at the Hotel Mario, about 100 Euros and just a few minutes from the Palacio Real. Enjoy!

do take a carriage ride first thing in sevilla to get a feel for the city and relax, enjoying the view.

My favorite places in Spain all start with "S":
Seville
Salamanca
San Sebastian
Segovia

When we were in Seville, we booked with Seville Walking Tours (sevillewalkingtours.com) and Conception (Connie) for a half day tour of the city and then a half day tour of the cathedral. She was fantastic and I'd recommend her in a heartbeat for a great overview with the details and local flavor you just can't get with a guide book.

the web site doesn't work for me :(

Waynehazle

We used the same company two weeks ago and it was a superb tour. Try this address:-

http://www.sevillawalkingtours.com/

Just tried it and it's working OK.

joe

Hola Wayne!

Sounds like a great plan to me. Just a couple of suggestions:

To avoid disappointment and long lines, reserve your tickets for the Alhambra in advance at alhambratickets.com

In Granada we stayed at the Parador and in town at the REINA CRISTINA (great breakfast with homemade pound cake with cinnamon). In Granada, when we were there, tapas were free: order a drink and you get a free plate of tasty goodies.

On your way from Seville to Madrid do stop off in Cordoba to see the Mezquita. You will not be disappointed.

In Seville, we've stayed at the Alfonso with a special deal and also at the Amadeus http://www.hotelamadeussevilla.com/
excellent location, take breakfast out at a bar nearby.

Be sure to see the Alcazar in Seville, we prefer it to the Alhambra.

Bon voyage!

I will post my complete itinerary this weekend.

I am going to try to reserve my Alhambra tix tonight. Is it fine to buy tickets and self-guide? Have other bought tickets and just paid a guide there?

Same question for Mezquita & Alcazar.

hi, wayne,

when buying alhambra tickets, do, do get tickets for the night tour as well.

the experience is quite different to the day time one, far fewer people, lovely scents from the gardens, supremely romantic.

allow about two hours, then have a late dinnner [something spain is very good at].

you could finish the night with a flamenco show! [we didn't and I wish we had - your hotel will steer you to one].

good luck,

regards, ann

I have to say I'm pretty jealous you are going to Granada! We only spent one day there, and I so wish we could go back. You will have to much fun! I took a good amount of my pictures at the Alhambra, so make sure your memory card has space. You'll want to take a picture every time you turn around.

By the way...hello everyone! This is my first post!

hi, mesale,

welcome.

when were you in Granada?

regards, ann

Just went to the main ticket website and it seems tickets are sold out for the day I want.... Saturday the 26th.

There is also the option of paying more for the guided tour, they probably have tickets reserved for those. Has anyone done the guided tour?

hi, wayne,

bad luck about the tickets. We didn't do the guided tour but if that is the only way to get in, I'd go for it. you can probably cut free once you're in there if you want.

any luck with evening tickets?

regards, ann

Hi all! I was in Granada last summer, around mid July. It was actually a chartered day trip from our base in Marbella, so, fortunately, we didn't have to worry about tickets being sold out for the Alhambra. The hotel got them for us! But I will tell you, we didn't have a choice but to take a guided tour because that's what was included. We ended up loving it! Our guide was very informative and not at all overbearing, and he spoke English pretty well, too! :) They take you around the grounds and the building. They also give you time to walk around by yourself too. I'm not sure if our tour was any different b/c it was a group, but that was my experience!

In Granada right now.

What I did yesterday was do the tour with the guide, which was fine. After 2.5 hours my wife was tired and went back to the hotel. I then bought the audioguide system and walked all around the Alhambra again. So I got to experience it twice.

I really do prefer going solo with a audioguide and I highly advise that.