Spain to Italy- Are we nuts?
 

Okay, I can imagine the huffs and sighs that will most likely be coming my way, but I really need to get some opinions on a possible travel itinerary we are (thinking) bout doing beginning August 19 and ending September ist.

My wife and I have traveled europe before (although much when we were much more young and spry and able to sleep anywhere and on anything). Now we are older (it's been 20 years since that trip) and have two children 12 and 14. We caught a really good airifare that lands us in Madrid and we will be spending 13 days altogether. We are going to rent a car, so we will be driving the entire time.

Initially, we were thinking about landing in Madrid, spending a couple of days, then driving to Paris. We have rethought that and are thinking od driving to Italy instead, since the kids really want to see Italy.

We are thinking thus:

Two days Madrid

Two days Barcelona.

One day: Drive to Florence (area) How long will that realistically take? Driving, that is.

6 days: Maybe rent a house in the Umbria or Tuscany area and make that a base.

Day trips to Florence, Pisa, Siena ... here's the killer. Maybe driving to Rome or Venice (it would have to be either/or. This all is within the six day time frame. I'm also getting tired even writing about it, let alone doing it).

One day drivinf to in Nimes (just for a stop).

One day: Back to Madrid. Spend night. Fly out next day

My sense is that this is going to be too much. The problem happened because we booked the Madrid flight because it was so incredibly cheap. We probably should have flown into Barcelona to try this itnerary to make it more realistic.

Since I'm not sure about the road along the coast of southern France and the distance from Barcelona to Florence is about 450 miles, I'm not sure how long this is going to take. A full day of driving? I know that I can make it from L.A. to San Francisco in a little over 6 hours, but I'm getting the feeling that we won't be going anywhere near that fast along that route.

Anyway, Complete Lunacy or Somewhat Realistic?

I have a friend who told me that we've lost it and should just stick to Spain and Portugal. Problem is, the kids really want to see Italy and realistically, this will be the last time we'll probably get to go to Europe as a family.

Sorry to rain on your parade, but Mappy says that the total driving time from Barcelona to Florence, using the express routing, will be 11 hours 18 minutes. For a sedan, fuel cost will cost €113.70, and tolls will be €44.50.

Does not sound like the kind of vacation I would want to take with a couple of kids.

:-(

More rain coming, I'm afraid. Just for "fun" I checked coming back from Florence to Madrid. It is almost 1700km (Barcelona to Florence was 1088), it will take you 17 hours and 43 minutes and cost €176.30 for gas, and another €44.50 for tolls in France.

Check it out yourself on http://www.mappy.com/

:-(

Here's a planning tool: www.viamichelin.com. Lets you plan driving routes through Europe and calculate approximate cost. For Barcelona to Florence:

"Costs
193.87 EUR
Toll 89.15 EUR | Petrol 104.72 EUR
Time
10h35 which 09h56 on motorways
Distance
1087 km which 1068 km on motorways"

And from Madrid to Barcelona:

"Costs
81.21 EUR
Toll 24.15 EUR | Petrol 57.06 EUR
Time
06h13 which 05h40 on motorways
Distance
618 km which 600 km on motorways"

Others can comment on how realistic those driving times are, especially if you consider it is prime vacation time throughout Europe then.

If your family has their heart set on it, go to Italy. For that time and that cost you might consider a budget airline and fly directly from Spain to Italy. A few are www.meridiana.it and www.vueling.com or www.easyjet.com.

Or convince your kids that the cathedrals, art museums, beaches, plazas and Roman ruins in Spain are just as good (and less crowded). See this article http://www.spaintravelguide.com/6-be...-in-spain.html

Hello Lofboy, why not fly from Spain, after spending a few days, to Italy? You would save so much time driving. If your budget does not allow flying to Italy I would not even try to drive to Italy. But there is a ferry from Barcelona to Genova, Italy, not sure of the cost however. You could than train from Genova to Florence or whereever.

" Here's the killer...." Well, yes, but it's not the only one. Have you looked into the costs of picking up a car in Spain and leaving it in Italy? Talk about a killer!

And I can't even imagine (well, yes I can, which is why I bring it up) a roadtrip like that with two kids those ages, unless they were drugged.

If your heart is set on going to Italy, and there is no likelihood of returning to Europe any time soon, bite the bullet and fly from Madrid to Italy (Pisa or Florence, but more flights to Milan or Rome). The extra cost is more than offset by saving over 2000 miles of tedious motorway driving, tired driver and bored, fractious children.
Vueling.com fly from Madrid to Rome daily. For your family, leaving Madrid on Aug 20th and returining on 31st will cost you 600 euro for all four of you, plus 20 euro for each checked luggage.
You will then have relaxing 10 days or so touring Tuscany and Umbria. Renting a house or apartment is a good idea, but watch the cost - it's peak holiday time in Italy.

End of August is the time when Europeans are coming home from summer holidays. The roads could be totally jammed.
The weather is very hot in both Spain and Italy.
Sitting in a car for hours doesn't sound like fun to me!
I agree with Laurie - stay in one country and enjoy!

do not fly to Spain just to drive to Italy. Check vueling.com for cheap flights from Madrid or Barcelona to Venice or Rome.

I visited Spain for the first time in September 2001. Prior to September 2001 I had traveled throughout much of Western Europe and in particular loved Italy. I began planning my trip to Spain wondering 1) if there was enough to do in Spain (I did't know much about the country) and 2) if I'd miss Italy and wish I were there the entire time. From the minute I landed in Spain all thoughts of Italy were erased from my mind. I've been to Spain 15 times since this first trip! While most people may not be as passionate about Spain as I am ;) I do believe your family will be pleasantly surprised by Spain and it would be best to focus your vacation on Spain. I wouldn't want to be driving from Spain to Italy with the limited time you have. However, if your family is determined to visit Italy I'd definately fly - but ensure you have enough time between flights.

If you want to do this the only way is to fly. If you look at viamichelin.com you will see that it takes about 11 hours of solid driving to get from Barcelona to florence. this does not account for stops for meals, fuel/potty - or the fact that you will likely run into heavy traffic along the Riviera that can add hours to you trip.

Frankly you have barely enough time to see some of Central and northern Spain.

If you really want to see any of Italy I suggest you get cheapo flight directly from Madrid to italy and back - rather than spend several incredibly exhausting days (of your very few on the ground) trekking to and fro Italy.

(And this i s from someone who is a strong advocate of road trips in europe and has done a lot of them. But never days like what you're contemplating. This is the equivalent of the NYC college kids who drive straight through to FL for summer break. But they share driving and don;t have kids along.)

Whenever I see a topic that asks "Are we doing to much?" or "Are we nuts?, the answer is yes, and then I read the post.

Some people think traveling is like sexual conquests or notches in a belt by a gunslinger.

No huffs and sighs, please do it and report back but please throw in Iceland and Istanbul as well.

there are nice ferries from barcelona to genoa that might work for you. they are more like modest cruise ships. swimming pool, etc.

I believe Grimaldi is the line that has them.

Why is this the only/last time you'll be able to travel to your family to Europe? Just curious.

If you want to stay in the cheap vein (like your flight) then it may be better to get a car and explore Spain. No matter what direction you head, there is amazing stuff. Don't go to Italy - do that some other time when you have a ticket to Italy.

My 2 cents. :)

I wonder why your kids really want to see Italy? At 12 and 14 there must certainly be ops in Spain to pique their interests.

I also posted a reality check about "too much driving?" for a trip I'm planning next spring, thinking ... "hmm, I can drive 500 miles from Sacramento to San Diego in 8 hours, therefore ... "

Good luck with your trip.

Your kids may have their hearts set on Italy, but Italy will be there and they can go on their own if you don't get there as a family. Spain is beautiful with many great sights, lovely beaches, good food, history, art, architecture, medieval towns, kind people, etc. It was probably the best surprise of my trips to Europe. I was in love with Italy, but fell in love a second time with Spain.

So, please be good to yourself & your family. Research more of Spain and have a great trip there. Enjoy the place you land in, rather than spending most of your time and lots of money trying to visit another place. You would be spending so much time traveling rather than enjoying Europe.
Really, think about how much each precious hour in Europe is costing you.

It may seem like a crazy way of looking at this, but really, think about how much each precious hour in Europe is costing you. Add up all your airfare, food, hotels, car, gas, etc. Divide it by the number of hours you have for sightseeing. Just for airfare, food, hotels, museums, etc. figuring 16 hours a day to be awake (and you can't possibly spend it all sightseeing), ten days on the ground probably costs $15.00 to $20.00 per hour per person. Average that to $17.00 per hour per person. Put four people in a car for 11 hours. That day has cost you $748 dollars, without including car rental, gas, & tolls. You would be doing it twice going back and forth from Spain to Italy. Do you want to spend that money sitting in a car, not actually seeing much or doing anything? Think what you could do and see with that in one place?

There are so many things to do & see in Madrid and close by. Visit Toledo and take a tram ride through the mountains to see the city at night. See the Roman aquaducs in Segovia, visit Isabel's castle and eat roast suckling pig. Row a boat in Retiro Park in Madrid. Look at the Mosque in Cordoba and climb the tower in Seville. If you are excited, you can get your kids excited. Many people on this forum really know what they are talking about and can help you have a magnificent trip to Spain.

Sounds like an awful trip to me. I've been to both countries and I might not ever make it back to Italy. I hope to visit Spain every year. I would either take the train to Seville, then rent a car and see Jerez, ronda, Granada, and Malaga. You could also take the train to Barcelona and spend 10 days in that area and up the costa Brava. You could take a ferry to Minorca for 5 days. You could also travel by car from Madrid to Galicia, Asturias and the Basque country. all of these would be amazing trips.