Ok, flights are booked: Flying into BCN 9/20, and flying back through MAD on 10/2. A friend who lives in Europe and is a frequent traveler recommended this itinerary via rail, so I thought I'd see if anyone had any thoughts/disputes/fatal flaws:

Barcelona (including Las Ramblas, Gaudi, Sitges/Garraf)
Girona
Valencia
Granada
Seville

One thing I did want to do was to maybe spend a half day enjoying the beach culture in Andalusia (Malaga?)... beach-side restaurants, a little sun, wine, people-watching. Any thoughts on where to fit that in?

I know we have time before we leave, but I would like to start researching hotels, so would like to somewhat nail down an itinerary in the next month or two.

ANY feedback is appreciated!

How long in Barcelona ( Girona can be a day trip) ? other cities?
Do you plan to spend any time in Madrid?
Check the travel times and connections on RENFE...( Spanish rail)

We were thinking 2 days in Barcelona. Length of times in other cities is not set in stone.. 1-2 nights each, likely. Depending on recommendations, we may skip time in Madrid and spend most of the time in Andalusia

We are planning a trip now, and it is too late for me, but if i were to do it over, i would think long and hard about going to Nerja. It is a short bus ride from Granada and it looks like a perfect combination of beach and a small city/town.
It appeals to me, and perhaps others will comment and it might be worth looking into.
Enjoy

Barcelona, Valencia, Seville are good size places with tons to see
If you take a look and a guide book( Internet?) you might find what interests you and have a more
defined plan.
Posters on this Forum have their own biases and preferences.
Train travel between the cities you listed ( except Girona) is anywhere between 2:30 - 4:30 hours.
That does not include time to/ from train stations .
Vueling airlines flys between some of your listed destinations.

I'm finding the more I do research, the more overwhelmed and uncertain I get. Is the train ride scenic?

I think you're trying to do too much in such a short time, and moving around too much. I would't just spend 2 days in Barcelona, for example. I don't think you can squeeze in beach time in such a hectic schedule if it involves going to yet another city. Barcelona has a beach, actually, that would be more convenient, to do it there. But if you must do a beach in Andalucia, there are plenty around/in Malaga. But that isn't even on your schedule. I haven't been to Girona so don't know the draw, but you can visit Granada a day trip while staying in Malaga. I did.

It doesn't make sense to include Girona which is to the NE of Barcelona if you then intend to go south. Well, I"m not clear on how you intend to get between these places, I don't think Valencia is connected directly to Andalucia by train.

AVE From Valencia to Seville takes 3:50 minutes.

Erin, you said you wish to see Andalusia...What is there that you are interested in ?
People cannot help you , if you are not sure what you actually wish to see.

It was a loose itinerary recommended to me by a friend who lives in Europe. It is in no way written in stone, hence why I asked for thoughts/recommendations.

We would like to see the Alhambra. Enjoy coastal cities. Food. Wine. Spain isn't a small country, so there are a million things I'd love to see... but I'm realistic in knowing we don't have enough time to do everything we would like. Mezquita in Cordoba? Alcazaba? Costa de la Luz? Plaza de Espana? Arab baths? Alcazar? Ubeda and Baeza? Flamenco? Bodegas Ysios? Roman Ruins of Merida? We don't want a harried trip... yes, we want to see things, but also don't want to be rushing from place to place just to get everything in.

I don't know exactly how we expect to get from place to place... I guessed we'd figure that out once we figured out where we were going. Train or air, I imagine.

To see places like Ubeda and Baeza, you might need a car
Merida is a long way from Andalusia.
You have plenty of time to figure things out...

I'd spend 3 days in Barcelona, skip Girona, take an early train to Cordoba, Mezquita fantastic as rest of old town, then train down for 3 nts in Seville, then drive a southeast route through Pueblos Blancos (Arcos, Ronda) from which you can divert south to Marbella or Nerja, or just continue to Granada for the Alhambra (we needed two due to arrival time). If I had to skip a city, I'd skip Madrid. We did Barcelona/Madrid/Cordoba/Seville/Ronda/Granada/Marbella for 17 nights. Wish we had dropped a night from Madrid and added a night for Barcelona. We flew into Barcelona and flew home from Madrid thru Malaga. Standout city was Seville and standout seaside village was Marbella. Trains were easy to use, and driving from Seville to Granada seemed the most feasible way to go. It was nicely paced overall. The hotels in Seville & Marbella were also our favorites,small boutique style.

IMHO, skip Valencia. Madrid is worth the visit, even to just go to Toledo, one of the most glorious old cities anywhere, with an indescribably beautiful cathedral. The Alhambra is a world class sight and Granada is worth a couple of nights so you can visit the Alhambra both day and evening. Give Seville at least three nights (two full days), more if you day trip from Seville to Cordoba - an easy day.

You could fly from Barcelona to Granada.
After Granada, either rent a car or use the train to tour from Granada to Seville.
Drop the car, train to Madrid. Stop on the way and visit Cordoba if you did not do it as a day trip.
Train to Toledo.
Day trip also to Segovia from Madrid

Not so difficult as it seems.
Have fun with the research.

sassafras,
what is is about Valencia that you did not like?

There is no dislike of Valencia. It is the short time for the trip and the logistics of fitting in in.
The OP has only 11 days on the ground and already booked to arrive in Barcelona and depart from Madrid.
Below is a rough layout, to get a handle on time and travel and possibilities. Anything can be cut and replaced with something else, but if anything else is added, something will have to be cut, because this is already a fast paced trip. This is simply something more concrete to start working with.
Day 1, Barcelona - Arrive Sun. Sept 20, account for jet lag - walk in Guell park.
Day 2, Barcelona, sightseeing
Day 3, Barcelona, sightseeing - beach afternoon
Day 4, early flight to Granada, tour Alhambra
Day 5, pick up car, head to coast for a day
Day 6, coast & white villages, etc
Day 7, Seville ditch car.
Day 8, Seville
Day 9, Seville, day trip by train to Cordoba
Day 10, Train to Madrid, see Prado and Palace
Day 11, Madrid day tip to Toledo by train
Day 12, Madrid - Depart Friday, Oct 2
Now, think about what to add, take out, etc.

I agree with Aliced

"I'd spend 3 days in Barcelona, skip Girona, take an early train to Cordoba, Mezquita fantastic as rest of old town, then train down for 3 nts in Seville, then drive a southeast route through Pueblos Blancos (Arcos, Ronda) from which you can divert south to Marbella or Nerja, or just continue to Granada for the Alhambra"

Valencia is lovely, but it's too much in a short time with Barcelona + Andalucia. There isn't a high-speed train from Barcelona to Valencia, but the train from Barcelona to Cordoba and Sevilla is not too bad. Or fly Barcelona to Sevilla.

Andalucia alone is worth 10 days, or more. There's so much history, culture, great food, wine, white villages…