gruezi

Why not head to Madrid or Barcelona instead? I loved Barcelona. Great city for young people too.

Momddtravel2

Back to planning seriously
I am toying with canceling the time in Granda & tacking it onto either our time on the coast or the apartment in Seville ...
Less moving & I have been reading mixed reviews on spending two nights in Granda ...

lincasanova

I think 2 nights in granada is fine unless you have paid apartment somewhere else and are forfeiting paid lodging. Visiting sites takes a full day at least and traveling part of another.

kja

To me, the Alhambra is one of the most magical places in the world. I would not have skipped it for anything. Of course that doesn't mean that you will feel the same. If you do go to Granada, then as lincasanova said, you really need 2 nights so you have the day in between to see the Alhambra (day and evening) and, if you have the time, some of the other treasures Granada holds.

joannyc

Really do recommend seeing Granada!

Momddtravel2

Okay... You all make me feel better.

No I am not forgoing other paid lodging. I have two nights @ AC Palacio De Santa Paula, Autograph Collection in Granda on marriott points... It would actually cost me to change it to add nights to the apartment in Seville & it does break up the trip from the coast ...

mayan12

If you are going to Spain and prefer smaller city type places I would definitely suggest Grenada or Seville. Beautiful places with much to offer. I would also personally choose Barcelona over Madrid. It has an amazing old port and from experience, I think it has a little more to offer, however, Madrid is still a fantastic place. I will post some city guides below for you

Madrid - http://www.timeout.com/madrid/
- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/de...eak-guide.html

Barcelona - http://www.cruisenation.com/barcelon...se-guide.phtml
- http://www.theguardian.com/travel/se...ona-city-guide

Seville - http://www.lonelyplanet.com/spain/seville

Grenada - http://www.lovegranada.com/

Hope this helps your decision!

kimhe

May is serious festival time in Andalucía and Madrid, and here are things to watch out for besides the Feria de Abril in Sevilla. These are all primarily local events that gives you a great opportunity to get under the skin of things and experience some of the local food, wine and fiesta spirit and culture.

You'll be in Córdoba during the famous patio festival in mid May: http://www.andalucia.com/cities/cordoba/patios.htm
http://www.cordoba24.info/english/html/patios.html

The Jerez horse fair/Feria del Caballo de Jerez goes on from May 11-18 and follows directly on the Feria de Abril in Sevilla. Very doable from both Marbella and Sevilla: http://www.andalucia.com/festival/jerez-horse-fair.htm
http://www.jerez.es/en/especiales/fe...he=1&tx_ttnews[calendarYear]=2014&tx_ttnews[calendarMonth]=5

You'll be in Madrid during the years greatest festival, the celebration of the city's patron saint San Isidro: http://www.spain.info/en/reportajes/...en_madrid.html

Momddtravel2

Wow - thanks Kim & Mayan!

JENANDSCOTT

We currently live 20 minutes from Sevilla and it's not to be missed if you like slower paced but culturally rich cities! In Madrid, I would recommend seeing the royal palace, the Prado Art Museum and trying the tapas in the Plaza Mayor. I would also recommend a day trip to Toledo - one of my favorite cities! This can be a full or half day option. Then a train to Sevilla is about 2.5 hours (renfe.com - the sooner you purchase the cheaper they'll be and I would recommend the first class area as it's more roomy, if you can book the "mesa" seats even better, just remember it's not always cheaper as you have to book all 4 seats). In Sevilla, take 2-3 days to really take in the sites (cathedral, alcazar, plaza españa, bull ring, I would even recommend taking the carriage ride around the city, did it recently with my inlaws and it's worth it). From there you can do a day trip to Rhonda (another beautiful city with exceptional views). We plan to go to Marbella this summer so no opinions yet, but everyone I know who has been highly suggests going! I would make sure to take a day trip to Gilbraltor (see the famous monkeys) and take the taxi tour around the island. From there you can take a ferry to Africa.

Other cities you don't have listed but are easy train rides from Sevilla and/or Madrid that I would highly recommend - Granada (book your alhambra tickets early, they do sell out) and Cordoba, especially if you enjoy smaller cities.

The food in Andalucia is amazing and so is the wine (rioja)…..I hope you enjoy your trip!