Am planning a trip to Spain for this time in 2005. Will spend about 7 nights prior to departing on a Med cruise out of Barcelona.

We've been to Spain before and given all the buzz about Seville (and from my own research thus far) are considering spending at least two nights there. I know some have said they could "happily spend a whole week" in that city but as much as we enjoy hanging out in Europe I'm not sure ceramic tiles can hold our interest that long...but we've been wrong before!

I'd appreciate any OPINIONS (because I know that's what they are) as to how many days to spend (if at all) in Granada and Toledo. We don't feel the need to cram everything in because we know we can go back another time (as this trip will be a return). We enjoy architecture, museums, and in the case of Spain would enjoy seeing some non-tourist-oriented Flamenco if it exists. Prefer to travel by train or bus but could also fly between cities, too.

At the end of all this will travel to Barcelona for at least one night and avoid staying in Madrid (this time) entirely.

I know this is vague but appreciate any thoughts. (Yes, we already know it will be very hot and we don't need any wardrobe advice.)

Thanks very much.

I think the Alhambra and Generalife is one of those "must see" things for any serious traveler and it alone justifies going to Granada, in fact may be the only reason for going to Granada (that'll likely bring down the wrath of someone, but, as you say, it's only my opinion). We also spent some time at the cathedral, but a little bit of cathedral-peeping goes a long way with me. I'd recommend arranging your itinerary to spend one full day in Granada, most of it at the Alhambra and the rest looking at the Alhambra from the old quarter of the city on the other side of the ravine.

Toledo is another matter. We almost didn't plan to go there, but changed our minds when a friend just about demanded that we not go to Spain without seeing Toledo. I now agree with her. You simply must go to Toledo. I'd plan on a couple days - not that you need that to "see everything" but just because it's such a great place to soak up the ambience of a different culture and get the feeling of traveling back to the Middle Ages.

Thanks very much for the advice.

Hi TopMan,

In 7 days, you can see all three. I stayed in Sevilla for 3 nights, but only had 2 full days because the first day was spent in Cordoba.

I really enjoyed Toledo, but I didn't stay overnight, I daytripped from Madrid. For 7 nights, I would stay 1 night in Toledo, stop in Cordoba on the way to Sevilla, spend 2 nights in Sevilla, 2 nights in the pueblos blancos, and 2 nights in Granada before flying to Barcelona. My favorite pueblo blanco was Ronda. If you don't want to do the white towns, and go directly from Sevilla to Granada, I'd spend another night in Sevilla and maybe do an overnight in Cordoba. Depends how much you like to move around.

The Alhambra is amazing. I was only in Granada for 1 night, but I felt a little rushed by doing that. The Albaicin is a fun neighborhood to walk around in - very hilly!

By the way, the reason I mention Cordoba is that it is not easy to get directly from Toledo to Sevilla. You should take the bus to Toledo from Madrid, and then from Madrid the train to Cordoba to Sevilla. The bus is the best way to get from Sevilla to the pueblos blancos or Granada.

Definitely look to fly from Granada to Barcelona. Iberia and Spanair often have cheap flights. I did this for about $30 back in February.

For "nontouristy" flamenco, try the show at Casa de la Memoria in Sevilla. It is 3 people, lasts about an hour, and is in a small courtyard. It was wonderful.

Hope this helps a little.

Karen

I agree with Flyfish. We were staying a half an hour outside Granada and drove in for the day--arriving about 10:30 am and leaving about 11:30 pm. It was more than enough time. The only reason we stayed past dinner time was because we wanted to see the Alhambra at night (over-rated IMO). The day tour was much, much more interesting. Howewver, it was lovely to sit up on top of the hill in the Albacin and watch the sun setting. Other than that, Granada didn't really do a thing for us. We were flying out of Madrid and had a rental car so we stopped for the night in Toledo before going to the airport the next day. We only had one afternoon in Toledo and really, really regretted that we did not have more time there. We too had debated about going there after hearing that it is basically a tourist town. We enjoyed Toledo and would return. However, they do roll up the sidewalks about 6 or 7 pm. We spent 4 enjoyable nights in Seville, and we didn't visit one tile shop. We found plenty to keep us occupied.