Spain/Portugal/Gibraltar - Spain itinerary advice?

Hi all,

My wife, my two sons (ages 12 & 10) and I will be vacationing in Spain for 8 days in mid-March. We are flying into Barcelona and will be flying out of Madrid.

Right now, our thoughts are to spend 2 nights in Barcelona (one day dedicated to the city and another to a day trip to Montserrat), then head either to San Sebastian or to Seville for two nights. We'd likely take the train if going to San Sebastian and would fly into Seville.

We're currently thinking that after two nights in either San Sebastian or Seville, we'd head to Madrid for three nights (with maybe a day trip to Toledo during that time) before heading home.

So, which city would you choose to visit in-between Barcelona and Madrid...San Sebastian or Seville? Or is there another town we should consider? Are we spending too much time in Madrid, or not enough in Barcelona?

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Bryan

I liked Seville. Have you thought about hopping over to Mallorca or one of the other islands instead?

Bryan,

After spending 6 nights in BCN last March, and after spending 5 nights in MAD a couple of years ago...... Catch my drift. ;)

We did the day trips you mentioned to Toledo and Montserrat.

If you're limited to 8 days, stick to BCN and MAD. Anything else is killing yourself.

Bryan,

After spending 6 nights in BCN last March, and after spending 5 nights in MAD a couple of years ago...... Catch my drift. ;)

We did the day trips you mentioned to Toledo and Montserrat.

If you're limited to 8 days, stick to BCN and MAD. Anything else is killing yourself.


Agree lots to see with only a few days

8 days really isn't much time. I agree with dhammer53. Stick with Barcelona and Madrid, especially since you will be travelling with family. This will minimize time spent packing and unpacking and give you some time to get to know each city. Then plan to return to see more of this great country. Have fun.

While you certainly can fill 8 days with BCN and MAD (especially with side trips), if you want to add another place, in March I'd go rather south than north.

I'd go with the three big cities, Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia, all fantastic. Plenty of time to get a really good taste of all three. Valencia is particularly nice for families with it's futuristic City of Arts and Science with it's jaw dropping architecture, aquarium and such. I'd go three, three and two on the nights, but that's just my travel style. So many places in the world to see and then you'll know which you want to go back to another time for a bigger bite.

I'd go with the three big cities, Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia, all fantastic.

If the OP sticks to his plan for 3 cities, I personally think that Sevilla would be more interesting. It would give him a taste of Andalucía. (Valencia and Barcelona are similar in lots of aspects.)

But I also think that the OP should rethink his plan, with only 8 "days" available. Since he will stay 7 nights only, he basically has 6 complete days, and he will spend 2 half days (or more) of that traveling.
And honestly, if you only plan 2 nights in Barcelona, why waste a day on Montserrat?

Hello!

My advice is to just go to Barcelona and Madrid. With 8 days, you will barely have enough time to truly enjoy all Madrid and Barcelona offer.

If you need advice on restaurants - especially in Madrid - let me know and I'll be glad to give you a hand!

Hello!

My advice is to just go to Barcelona and Madrid. With 8 days, you will barely have enough time to truly enjoy all Madrid and Barcelona offer.

If you need advice on restaurants - especially in Madrid - let me know and I'll be glad to give you a hand!

+1 agree 8 days is really not enough in one major city-IMHO

From Madrid, consider doing a day bus tour to Avila and Segovia, two fascinating towns that are also UNESCO world heritage sites (for good reason). The trips are reasonably priced, with English speaking guides, and your hotel concierge should be able to set you up with one. The one I did included lunch, but was a little more expensive.