I have a week at a timeshare in Spain in January. The choices I have are for Mallorca, Malaga, Denia and Cartagena. I'm leaning toward the last 2 because I'm not interested in the beaches. I imagine we'll rent a car and can take daytrips or even overnight trips. Any suggestions? How big is Spain anyway? Pardon me while I show my stupidity! My other option would be a week in December in the Austrian Alps in St. Georgen ob Murau in Kreischberg. I know it'll be chilly wherever we go, but, hey, we aren't paying for the room!

Mallorca centre is interesting and the bird watching to the north east is world class though better at other times

Malaga is very pretty with a nice cathedral a good museum and a good art gallery, Good train access to Seville to Cordoba and easy car access to Grenada. It should at least be warmish unlike Austria where is will be cold (snow etc)

Spain centre is pretty high up and can get cold though the coastal areas I've described are nice.

Other two in Spain, no idea.

What is spain (you all heard of wiki?)

anyway it's roughly 200,000 sq miles I think that means that Texas is 50% bigger. In the UK we measure things in "Wales", there are 24 Wales in Spain. I

I can only comment on Malaga....the old town is lovely.
We stayed for 3 nights and would gladly return . There is no beach time in Spain in Jan.

malaga gives you great access to sevilla and cordoba and white villages, as mentioned.

denia to valencia, alicante, altea and inland sites such as xativa.

Cartagena similar to denia .. but you are closer to granada also.

mallorca is a beautiful island with a LOT of variety.

Do not expect beach weather anywhere, as mentioned, in January.

I would take a look at comments about the timeshares themselves. I had to rescue my aunt and uncle from one in denia years ago.

You probably have an offer by the Club Hotel in St. Georgen - this a time share place- no restaurant _ December especially early in the month can find little snow and the major interests in this area confined to winter sports. Winter season really begind about Christmas.

Salzburg 150 kilometers and 2 hours away .

Klagenfurt and Graz about 1 1/2 hours .

In December, it should become dark by about 16:30 -- 4:30 PM so day sightseeing can be limited .

If not into winter sports , this not the best place in my opinion.

molker..??? I think you have posted on a Spain thread but answering about Germany/Austria

oops! Sorry. i forgot he also asked about there.. my fault. pardon me!!

OK, it sounds like I should definitely skip Austria in December. However, all of the comments make me waffle about Mallorca/Malaga, etc. versus Cantagena. Is there any downside to Cartagena? I still think that Malaga, etc. sound more beachy (I know it would only be LOOKING at beaches), but the Cartagena area seems better located to look for interesting other daytrips. Yes??? No???

I think your day trips from malaga, sevilla and cordoba and white villages are fantastic options.

you can make any of them "work"but the level or architecture and world sites to be admiring is MUCH higher level from your Malaga base.

Everywhere we have advised you to go form there is inland.

There are some nice small towns near Cartagena, but nothing that can compare to Andalucía in quantity, and sometimes, in quality. They are not comparable, although low key and usually with nice churches and plazas.

Good luck deciding.

Spain is sizable. The only two US states that are larger than its 206K square miles are Texas and Alaska. Texas is about 30% larger (Alaska is far larger than every European country not named "Russia"). So sticking to a region is a good idea.

Despite your objections to Malaga, it is near the major Andalusian cities . . .

I agree - Malaga.

Not for Malaga itself (which IS a lovely home base), but for the ease and convenience for visiting the other gems in Andalucia.

We were in Spain last January and found it relatively comfortable. A good leather jacket was all I needed, along with a hat to keep off the frequent rain.

If you stay in Malaga, consider taking the highway west and getting off for the Ronda exit. About a mile towards Ronda on the left is the Restaurant El Coto. Sunday dinner, which begins service at 1:00, is a super experience for carnivores. Warning, the Manzana Verde, which is complimentary after dinner, is virtually addictive and, so far, impossible to find in the US.

If going to Málaga, you should notice that there is a huge difference between Málaga city itself and most of the beach resorts along the coast in the large Málaga region. The first is wonderful, genuine and easy-going Andalusian atmosphere, fabulous sights, tapas bars, cafés, cultural activities etc., while the latter are often quite uncharming tourist machines of different sizes and standards.

I would suspect that the timeshare is not in Málaga city but in one of the resorts?

...and the daytrip options from Málaga are VERY hard to beat. The region, apart from beautiful inland landscapes, is full of the Phoenician, Roman, Jewish, Moorish, Gypsy and Christian history and culture.

A few of the huge amount of daytrip options:

World famous Alhambra in Granada (some 90 mins by car): http://www.alhambra-patronato.es/

The Mezquita in Córdoba, once the most advanced city in the Western world (55 minutes by the high speed AVE train or 2 hours driving). http://www.andalucia.com/cities/cordoba/mosque.htm

The 10th century Palace city Medinat al-Zahra, just outside Córdoba: http://www.andalucia.com/magazine/en...d4/madinat.htm

The Torcal nature reserve, just outside Antequera. Some 30-40 mins driving up to the top. http://www.absoluteaxarquia.com/areas/eltorcal.html
About going for tapas in Antequera. http://www.andaluciacoastandcountry.com/tapaspain.html

The quite spectacular prehistoric Nerja Caves, some 40 mins:
http://www.cuevadenerja.es/index.php?lenguaje=en

Beautiful Ronda: http://www.turismoderonda.es/indexeng.htm

And you are also fairly close to Sevilla (2 hours by car), the queen of all Spanish cities. http://www.andalucia.com/cities/sevilla.htm

Kimhe makes Avery good point.
Malaga
the, the town, is lovely. Unfortunately some people, even here, tend to confuse it with
the province.

You all have given me GREAT advice! I've never used a forum before and now I'm hooked!