We looked into flying home from Malaga but we would have to connect back through Paris with several hours layover and then still have a 9 hour flight to Chicago. Flying out of Seville connects through Madrid, and the flight leaves early in the morning so we would have to spend the night before in Seville. Flying nonstop out of Madrid just seemed simpler, and we thought taking the fast train might be more enjoyable than sitting around an airport. I briefly checked the rome2rio site and it looks like we could train to Madrid from Granada although you do have to connect through another town. It's about 4 hours.

Is it possible for you to visit Seville at the end of your trip so that you will already be there? And won't waste time backtracking to Seville. In September, we flew into Madrid, and we flew home from Seville, our last stop. We live in Boston. Our return flight was Seville to Lisbon, with a few hours layover, and then non stop to Boston.

If this helps with scheduling, our itinerary was as follows (after visiting Madrid and Toledo):

Córdoba - 2 nights
Granada - 2 nights
Malaga - 2 nights
Seville - 4 nights

Because you are visiting 2 places we didn't go to (Cadiz and Ronda), and because you need to be in Cadiz on a weekend, this might not work for you, but thought I would mention it.

If you stay with your current plan, you would take a bus from Granada to Antequera, then change to the train to Madrid. This is because the train tracks from Granada have not been completed yet.

Not clicking that link and advise others not to either. Have reported it. This person provides same link on multiple forums so guessing it is spam.

MoBro, I found that apartment on another website! It looks great and I think we will rent it. I know you loved it, but you didn't mention--is it quiet? I am a light sleeper and concerned about street noise in Seville (from tipsy people walking home late at night). Thanks

Just to elaborate on Karen’s description of the journey from Granada to Madrid. Renfe—the train operator—arranges the bus/train combo. You don’t have to book them separately yourself. Just book the train tix like you normally would. If by some miracle, the track upgrade is complete by then, then you’ll be able to travel all the way by train from Granada.

buckminster, it is on a relatively quiet little street. The apartments face into an inner courtyard, where our windows opened to.

The only sounds I heard were people in the courtyard in the morning, which was minimal. The windows are good, and there are indoor window shutters, too.

Where did you find that apartment? Or is it a different apartment in the same building? The building is small-ish, with maybe 8 apartments. Most of them were much bigger than ours. They all look fabulous.

When you leave the front door of the building, go to the left and find a small, out of the way area with great restaurants. We usually headed to the right, then discovered the left was good, too.

indyhiker, thank you for that clarification. I have looked at a couple sites and saw the train/bus combo. Right now, I am investigating KarenWoo's advice to rearrange itinerary so we would move Sevilla to the end of our trip. This means we would travel Cordoba to Granada, which I think is also a train/bus combo connecting through Antequera. I haven't been able to find any info on when the high speed rail will be finished to Granada.

Current version of our itinerary:
Overnight flight to Madrid
Train to Cordoba--stay 2 nights
Train to Grenada--stay 2 nights
Rental car to Ronda--stay 2 nights
Drive to Cadiz--stay 2 nights
Train to Seville--stay 4 nights
Train to Madrid --stay 1 night
Fly home

This is a faster pace than I would like, so I'm still considering changing it. I also am afraid I will be burnt out seeing so many churches, etc, which was why I initially planned to skip Grenada.

MoBro--found the apartment on airbnb. Homeselect is no longer the rental agency.

Don't worry. You won't be burnt out by churches. The famous Mezquita in Cordoba was a mosque, and the Alhambra was a palace, not a church. But, I would visit the cathedral in Granada where in the Royal Chapel Ferdinand and Isabella are entombed.
You could just take a direct bus between Cordoba and Granada and not bother with the train and transfer to the bus. I'd drive from Cadiz to Seville and stop by Jerez for some sheery and a horse show.

Buckminster, we took the ALSA bus from Cordoba to Granada (which Bedar suggests) because we didn't want to bother with the train and bus transfer. The bus ride was about 2.5 hours. The bus was fine; it's very modern, comfortable seats, and air conditioned. The bus we took did not have a bathroom so you have to make sure to use bathroom facilities before you board.

I know that some people on this forum have done the bus/train transfer and didn't mind it, but we chose the direct ALSA bus and were fine. No complaints.

Karen--Yes, the lack of bathroom is what made me hesitate.

Bedar, I was using the word "Church" loosely, I know some are/were mosques and palaces

Sounds like a good plan! Personally, I’d spend 3 nights in Granada -- the Alhambra can easily take a full day, so 3 nights would give you time for some of Granada’s many other treasures. But many people give Granada only 2 nights; it really depends on what you want.

As Bedar suggests, the styles of architecture and the purposes of the buildings in these cities are sufficiently different that I don’t hink you need to worry about burn out, and the Alhambra is, IMO, among the world’s most magnificent buildlings. That said, each of us is different….

Just hold the coffee before boarding bus!

I know, that's always my problem! I love my morning coffee...

One of our daughters lives about 2.5 hours drive from us and I often have to stop at a rest stop on the way!

If I remember correctly, there was an afternoon ALSA bus from Córdoba to Granada that has a bathroom. I think it’s called the Premier or Premium bus. On this trip, I always chose early morning or mid-morning buses or trains so that we could arrive at our next destination early enough to check in to our hotel, become familiar with the area or sightsee if possible, and have dinner. In fact, when we arrived in Córdoba from Madrid, we had time to visit the Mesquite in the late afternoon after having a late lunch.

I don’t like to leave a destination in the afternoon because that means leaving our luggage at the hotel (which is I know is doable), and walking around or sightseeing before our train or bus, but that means constantly looking at our watches, which I personally don’t find enjoyable. So that’s why we took the morning bus from Córdoba to Granada, and that bus did not have a bathroom. I believe if the trip is 4 hours or more, all the buses have bathrooms.

Sorry to be so long-winded . . .but you might be better off with the train/bus transfer. Or check the bus schedule to see if there is an afternoon bus that definitely has a bathroom, if this suits your schedule. I think we took the 11AM bus from Córdoba to Granada, and this one does not have a bathroom.

Meant to say Mezquita. Auto correct can be frustrating sometimes.

Why don't people turn off autocorrect ? It seems to be more annoying than helpful.

buckminster, that's interested it's on airbnb now. It was the cleanest lodging we have ever seen, so I hope they kept the same housekeeper.

We also took the train from Seville to Madrid. It's a nice train ride. Book in advance for best rates.

We also took the train from Seville to Madrid. It's a nice train ride.>

Yes AVE trains are amongst the most fastest and comfy trains in Europe - especially in first class. Scenery as in much of Spain unremarkable but it's only a 2 hour ride at speeds up to nearly 200 mph!).

Wow sure wish we had those high speed trains in the states. I could visit my daughter on a day trip!

I looked into flying out of Seville so we wouldn't have to spend our last night in Madrid (which I think Karenwoo suggested). The only thing I turned up connected through Madrid and cost thousands one way. There were also some that connected lisbon-Boston-Chicago (first leg on propeller plane), but we don't want more than one stop. So I think we will stick with our original plan to fly nonstop and spend last night in Madrid.