Ronda or Cadiz
 

Wife and I will be in Seville in September and will have a chance for a day trip to either Ronda or Cadiz. We are in our early 60s. What is the vibe like and what can we expect? Need some advice to get a fix on itinerary. Prior to this, we would have visited Cordoba, Bilbao, & Santander. Thank you

They are very different. Ronda is all about the dramatic gorge and bridge views with a compact hill town feel. Cadiz is a relaxed coastal day with beaches, sea air, and an easy stroll around the old town. If you want wow scenery, pick Ronda. If you want a laid-back seaside pick Cadiz.

Thank you for your comments. Not an easy pick for us. We love both. We may have to redo our itinerary and give them a day each. May not be wise to do both in one day.

For a day trip, Ronda.
In my opinion, no vibe to speak of.

To pick up the vibe, in Cadiz, you would need to stay at least a night.
We stayed for four.

Agree that you're not going to "get" Ronda if you only go on a day trip.....probably same with Cadiz....see if you can choose one and have an overnight.. Also look at Sanlucar de Barrameda for an overnight. Smaller and easy to "master" in a short time.

We've been to Spain several times, last time was 2016 walking the Camino Frances from Roncesvalles. Each time, we only get to visit Northern Spain. This time we want to experience a bit of the south. The plan is to make Seville our base for 5 nights, with one full day in Seville and day trips via train to Cordoba, Ronda, & Cadiz just to max out that part of the country. We are actually planning to do the CdS again a couple of days after Seville. I do understand we're not going to "get" them in a day. We may not be able to "get" them even if we stayed for 3 months. :-) .. Thank you all for your comments. Much appreciated.

Your trip, your call, but FWIW, I would find this trip terribly unsatisfying. Seville itself easily merits 3 full days. While many people visit Cordoba as a day trip, I was glad to have 2 full (and very busy) days there. A day might suffice for Ronda....

IME, very quick visits lead to very inaccurate impressions. YMMV.

Just a side note…Southern Spain can be very hot in September. 90F +

Agree 100%. We have gone to Cordoba as a day trip from Seville, and visited Ronda on the way from Seville to Granada. We felt one day ... a long afternoon actually ... provided all we needed from Ronda, while Cordoba could easily have provided enough interest for a couple of days. Can't really speak to Cadiz, as we did what would amount to only a drive-by there.

As for Seville, I'm unashamedly prejudiced. Have been there twice, for 5 nights each time, and would happily go back and spend many lazy days sitting in the sun and enjoying the great food, drink, and people-watching. And there's plenty of sites of interest to see ... Alcazar, Cathedral, Flamenco, Plaza de Espana, Jewish Quarter, etc. It is one of my favorite cities anywhere in the world.

Cadiz, El Puerto de Santa Maria, and Sanlucar…..beaches, tapa and sherry…and a few castles to explore as well.