Winter trip to spain advice
 

my sister and i (27,25) have been taking a trip for the past three years for new years. this year we were thinking about spain. we are just getting started with the planning and have absolutely no specific decisions made. i was hoping to get peoples suggestions on where to go.
I have seen some suggestions for a trip to madrid and seville, but i have also seen barcelona, valencia and costa del sol mentioned. we are only able to be away for 6 nights, so all suggestions would be welcome.
Does 3 nights in madrid and 3 nights in seville seem reasonable to people? should we be going to barcelona instead?
we love to just wander around a city, eat the food, go to museums, maybe some walking tours, etc.
i would just really appreciate your opinions.
thanks so much!
joanna

Well, you have lots of options in Spain, but for museums, food and wandering, along with late, great nightlife, Madrid would be good. The only thing is the weather -- can be cold in winter!!

You will probably get some good tips from the fodorites who live/spend much time in Spain year round (I've never been there in winter...)

When young Europeans want to party hard they head down to Spain....enough said :-D

Your plan sounds like a good done. Have fun! Be safe!

Hi joge I think that weather should be a consideration since you are traveling during the winter, I would go to Madrid and then Seville, leaving Barcelona for a next trip.
Or if you prefer Barcelona and Seville leaving Madrid for another trip.
Having said this keep in mind for the future that Spain is full of wonderful, wonderful smaller cities and little towns all worth a visit.

Both Madrid and Barcelona are said to have amazing New Year's celebrations, and I know from personal experience that both cities are wonderful. However, if you are going to be in Spain on the 6th of January (Reyes) or for the night before, then Madrid is best, as the King's day traditions are thicker there. Seville is also a great idea if you are doing Madrid.

It will be cold, but there are so many things to keep you warm in Madrid: great food, excellent coat shopping (second best only to Iceland), chocolate con churros, mantecados, turrón, wonderful interior spaces (the Prado and Reina Sofía). . . Anywhere will be cold at that time of the year, really.

i'm noticing that if we wanted to fly into seville, we would have to transfer in madrid anyway.
would it make more sense to just stay in madrid the whole time and take a few day trips by train? one to seville and possible one or two others to anywhere you might suggest?
any ideas about where to stay in madrid that is safe and of a moderate price would be appreciated.
thanks!
joanna

or should we go to barcelona instead?

If you are going to stay only in one city, then choose Barcelona.

For winter especially, I personally would choose either Madrid or Sevilla over Barcelona. While Barcelona is a young person's town, I feel that the appeal of Barcelona is very importantly its seaside location, and that the time of year you will be there works against that.

For six nights, Madrid offers you some of the finest museums in Europe, an amazing nightlife and easy access to places like Toledo, Segovia, the Escorial, etc. You could easily spend six nights there with day trips.

That said, given the availability of cheap flights and the fast train, it is possible to arrive in Madrid in the early morning and be in Sevilla by lunchtime. So if you wanted, you could spend at least 5 nights in Sevilla, which will be warmer and cheaper than Madrid, and which is a much easier city to enjoy in a short time. In Sevilla, you could take a day trip to Cordoba by train, and I would suggest that you return to Madrid early enough on your final day in Spain to visit the Prado.

I am taking my daughter who will turn 16 years old Dec.28 to Madrid, I never been there, we are leaving dec.24. and coming back Jan.4. We have lived in California for years and of course do not have anything warm to wear, but we both looking forwaward to this wonderful trip. I have booked tickest today and I do not even have a clue what we are going to do, but i am sure there is so much there to see.