I've just got the bare bones going so far, and it might all change if I can get our Madrid frequent flyer tickets transfered to Seville or Malaga, but here goes:

(We aren't really into big cities and art museams. We like quaint towns and good food and nice scenery and my husband is a history buff)

Thursday, March 29, arrive Madrid am
Drive to Cordoba. Spend the night in Cordoba.

Friday, Drive to Seville
Friday night, Saturday night, Sunday night in Seville.
Sunday bullfight.
(I know all the Easter stuff starts that week, should I rearrange Seville so we are there for more of it?)

Monday, Cadiz
Spend the night in Cadiz

Tuesday drive to Algeciras and catch boat to Tangier
Tuesday night in Tangier

Wed. boat back from Tangier, spend night in Malaga.

Thursday, Go to the beach, see Nerja, but where to spend the night? Push through to Granada, or to back to Malaga, or find somewhere in between?

Friday, Granada, spend the night.

Saturday, see Jaen, Baeza, and Ubeda on the way back to Madrid. Stay at a Madrid airport hotel.

Sunday fly home early am.

Too much? Too little? It is more hotel swapping then we like, but we want to see so much.

I would leave out Tangier. That is such a fabulous country but Tangier will not give you the best impression..leave Morocco for another time to free up more time in Spain.

Is Tangier to Morocco what Tijuana is to Mexico?

Still, the alure of touching another continent is strong.

If we skip Morocco, I think we'd add another night in Malaga to make sure we fit in Ronda.

Cordoba is a nightmare for parking, but well worth the visit. Look for a hotel with parking within walking distance of the Mezquita etc. We stayed at Hostel Lineros. Very basic but extremely quaint with heavy moorish influence. Underground parking opposite hotel.
http://www.hostallineros38.com/html/english.html

Thank you for the hotel suggestions. I haven't booked anything anywhere and we leave in less than a month! I don't know where my head has been, but it certainly hasn't been on this trip. I think my two young ones have stolen my brain. (And they aren't going on this trip.)

We traveled in Spain a couple years ago and, during our stay in Malaga, did a day trip to Tangier. I know this can't be considered "seeing" Morocco, but it was one of the highlights of our trip, and I would strongly recommend it. We arranged for a great guide beforehand, that we found through another post. I don't know if he's still available, but his email is [email protected]. Tangier did not feel at all like the Tijuana of Morocco, but it may be because we had a guide and felt we saw more than the tourist section. I think if you went without a guide, you might get a very different impression.

Cool, thanks! We had a guide in Rome and we definitly saw more. I will e-mail him.

If you are going to overnight in Morocco do yourself a favor and spend it in Fez or Rabat, each can easily be reached from Tangier by train, bus or grand taxi (just make sure of the price and how many people will be in the car). There has been quite a bit of discussion on this forum (as well as in the Africa section) on Morocco and you may find it worthwhile to hunt a little.

I would consider Tangier to be the Tijuana of Morocco.
Now I realize that others may diagree, and if you are with a local, anyplace in the world can be interesting.
I would concentrate on Spain..there is so much more to see in that country and you can do Morocco another time when you can get to the really great places that contry has to offer, including Fez and all the rest.

Certainly do more research and reconsider the Tangier portion.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34935903

Okay, we've decided to cut out Morocco. Just not enough time to do it all. We are adding another night in Malaga because I forgot about Ronda. I think it is all coming together!

Okay, rooms booked and new plan:

Thurs., March 29, am arrive Madrid
Pick up car and drive to Jaen.
Spend the night at the hilltop fortress (cool!)

Fri. Drive to Seville with lunch in Cordoba
Maybe spend the night in Cordoba, maybe push on through to Seville

Fri. to Mon. Seville
Dona Maria Hotel
Bullfight on Sunday

Monday, Drive to Ronda
Staying at cool Ronda Parador

Tuesday, Ronda area

Wed. Drive to Malaga
Spend night in Malaga at Amanhavis Hotel

Thursday, Drive to Granada
Spend two nights in Granada at Alhambra Palace

Sat., Drive back to Madrid and stay by the airport

Sun. am go home.

How does that sound???

Are we nuts for just getting lunch in Cordoba?

I had some great meals in Cordoba, so I wouldn't call you nuts for stopping there for lunch. Whether you should do anything else there depends on your interests. I loved the Mezquita and understand why many people put in on their "must-see" list. I also loved the gardens of the Alcazar in Cordoba, and roaming around its charming narrow streets while peeking into courtyards. Hope that helps!