If you want more Moorish sights, stay another day in Sevilla to make a quick trip to Córdoba (on the AVE high-speed train). Historians travel back in time to Granada's sprawling Alhambra or to Toledo, with its concentrated mix of art and history within small-town walls.
Post questions and answers about travel in Spain. The shorter Rick Steves Best of Spain guidebook focuses on Spain's top destinations and sights, is in full color, and is updated every other year.
By Rick Steves.
(With the exception of the Basque Country, the north is less rewarding per mile and day. If you like flamenco, Sevilla will shake your castanets. Get inspired with Rick Steves’ recommended places to go and things to do, with tips, photos, videos, and travel information on Spain. Before posting, please read our Community Guidelines.
To help you get started, I've listed my top picks for where to go in Spain, and outlined my plan for your best three-week trip.Depending on the length of your trip, and taking geographic proximity into account, here are my recommended priorities:This recommended itinerary gives you an idea of how much you can reasonably see in 21 days, but of course you'll want to adapt it to fit your own interests and time frame.Build your own itinerary to match your interests. )Another fine, short itinerary could start in San Sebastián, continue to Barcelona, Madrid, Granada (could add the beach village of Nerja here), and Ronda, and end in Sevilla. To allow time to explore Gibraltar, add an extra day between Tarifa (or Ronda) and Nerja. in Andalucía. Trendsetters linger in Barcelona, and art lovers are drawn to Madrid.
To return to Barcelona or Madrid from San Sebastián, figure it's roughly a six-hour train ride or a one-hour flight.If you have less time, you could end this trip in Granada or Salamanca and fly out from Madrid. His mission: to empower Americans to have European trips that are fun, affordable, and culturally broadening. How to choose? Since 1973, Rick Steves has spent about four months a year exploring Europe. So much to see, so little time. To help you get started, I've listed my top picks for where to go in Spain, and outlined my plan for your best three-week trip. For an exotic excursion, it's Tangier. Rick produces a best-selling guidebook series, a public television series, and a public radio show, and organizes small-group tours that take over 30,000 travelers to Europe annually.
Rick Steves Spain, the complete guide, offers more coverage of more destinations in a mostly black-and-white format, and is updated annually.
Explore Spain! So much to see, so little time. Spain.
Pilgrims pay homage at Santiago de Compostela and Montserrat, while sun worshippers bask at coastal Nerja and San Sebastián (a city fun for foodies, too). If doing the Camino by car, reverse the itinerary and start in San Sebastián.My recommended route assumes you'll fly into Barcelona and out of San Sebastián.
Photographers want to go everywhere.If you're a fan of Salvador Dalí's art — or want to make a pilgrimage to the holy site of Montserrat — allot an extra day in Barcelona for side-trips. If you're fond of quiet hill towns, get a good dose (or doze?)
If Tangier isn't on your bucket list, skip Tarifa and go to Ronda instead.This itinerary outlined above is designed for public transportation, but can be done all or partly by car.
How to choose? The best areas to rent a car are for Andalucía's hill towns (Arcos, Ronda, and more, in southern Spain), Camino de Santiago (east–west route in northern Spain), and Cantabria (chunk of north-central coast with beaches, mountains, and prehistoric cave replica), where sparse public transportation limits the efficiency of your sightseeing.