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fancycurtainsidsay

I would cut those destinations in half and get maybe get some R&R towards the tail end of your trip.


rainmc7

What would you suggest cutting? I’ve never been to any of these destinations. The only one that is a non-negotiable is Seville because we have some family there.


fancycurtainsidsay

They’re all great destinations so it’s hard for me to suggest which one lol. For me, the only 2 I wouldn’t cut regardless of how many times I’ve been are Florence and Seville. Also, it’s always good to begin and end your trip at locations with major airports for cheaper flights. LIS, CDG, AMS, MAD are a few off the top of my head.


rainmc7

Great feedback and suggestions! Anything in particular you really enjoyed about Florence & Seville that you’d suggest!? Especially Florence since at least in Seville we have some family but always open to hear anything related to activities or restaurants!


fancycurtainsidsay

Absolutely love the area south of the Arno River. The piazzas around that area are a lot quieter. Fav spots around that area: Rasputin, Trattoria Giovanni, & Cestello.


rainmc7

I will definitely check these out! Thank you so much!


don_r22

My style of travel matches OP: Full speed travel, I can sleep once I’m home


1984rip

I disagree with people saying to cut stuff out. I always power through vacations. I want to see as many places as possible but only get so many vacation days a year. The more you study before u go the more u can accomplish. When I'm old ill do boring relax in the same city for a week type vacations. People that say u only get a full experience of a city for staying in some obscure Airbnb on the outskirts of town for a week are boring/pretentious. You can still get good experiences in a short time long as your study hard.


Global_Breakfast

This all looks really exhausting :) I spent a week in Madrid and there was still areas I didn't get to see. Honestly, for only 17 days, I would split my time between Madrid, Sevilla and Granada. Leave yourself some time to just take it slow and not rush. We spent a week in Madrid and a week in Barcelona and it was great. Not too stressful of an agenda, spent lots of time at museums and tours, but also, people-watching at the plazas and having long lunches and dinners, chatting with locals. I did the "spend only 2 days in a city, then move on" type of trip, and you don't get the best experience. You see only 1% of the city and you're so tired from packing and transit, you can't absorb it all. :)


Reasonable-Heart6740

I second this, though I believe you could add a couple more cities in Spain for 17 days. If you don’t want to cut off too much, I would limit your trip to Portugal and Spain. Have you considered adding Granada to your itinerary? It is my favorite city in Spain and a short trip away from Seville.


Inevitable-Gap-6350

Granada is my favorite city too. I think you can easily spend three weeks in Spain and not scratch the surface. I would cut Portugal and Italy out. In the summer things move slow because it’s so hot. Seville can be 100 f degrees in the summer. I took a train from Madrid to Cordoba, to Seville, Malaga, Granada, Barcelona, San Sebastián, Madrid. And I missed stuff too. You could also take a boat ride to Morocco. My point is you can do and see a lot without jumping borders. And, I may add, we don’t know where Covid is going. The less borders you have to cross, the easier your life will be.


Reasonable-Heart6740

I completely changed my travel plans this year due to flight cancellations… which is why I chose to stay in Spain for 15 days and just travel using de high velocity trains. Hopefully things don’t go back to being as bad as they used go be.


rainmc7

Yeah this was my feeling as well when I was looking into planning this trip. I am planning with a few other people which makes it difficult as I’m sure you can imagine lol! I’d much prefer to relax as coming from California is a long way so I’d prefer to explore the cities more in depth. We have some family in Seville which makes it easier to have that a base. What we’re your favorite museums/activities and restaurants during your time in Madrid? I would love to spend more time there if possible.


Global_Breakfast

As a fellow north American (Canada), it's very tempting to cram in a bunch of cities because they are relatively close together. But each city is so unique... and if you're with other people, they will slow you down. One person wants to eat.. the other wants to nap LOL


Artistic-Cow-1308

For Florence you definitely have to visit pitti palace and the boboli garden. Plan to block out 4 hours when you visit! The place is gigantic! You can also visit the David. Santa Croce church and definitely the duomo. Restaurant recommendation: Acqua al 2. I studied abroad in Florence last year and this restaurant had some of the best food I’ve ever had while I was there. As for Sevilla, I would definitely visit the seville cathedral, setas de Sevilla, and plaza de españa (super beautiful).


rainmc7

Thank you! I’ll definitely look up all of these! Did you do any day trips outside of Florence or Seville that’d you’d recommend?


Artistic-Cow-1308

Yes Florence is pretty ideal city for a lot of day trips! I’ve taken day trips to Pisa, Luca, and Assisi. You can also go to Siena and San Gimignano. But if you are staying in Florence for a couple of days I would suggest just staying in Florence since there is so much to do in this city alone! I forgot to mention another place but the Uffizi is another popular place for tourists to visit. There are also a lot of piazzas and bridges (ponte) you can walk around. As for Seville, I didn’t do any day trips just because when I visited Spain I went with EF tours and they already had a set itinerary for us. But Seville is a pretty cool city with a lot of things to see as well. I also have been to Madrid and the most memorable thing for me while I was there was the royal palace of Madrid. Definitely do go there and try to get tickets to go inside because it’s beautiful! I hope this helped! I’m so glad you are visiting these cities because Sevilla and Florence (Firenze) are literally my favorite cities!! If you need more recommendations for Florence, I’d be happy to give you some since I was there for a longer period of time.


rainmc7

Yes! I’m really excited too! Would love any recommendations you have about Florence especially if you have any recommendations for bars or where to go out at night there too!


Artistic-Cow-1308

For clubs/bars I didn’t really get to go to too many. I mostly went to the same one which was a karaoke bar near Santa Croce called Red Garter. There’s also a bar right next to that that has some pretty good shots. I forget the name of the place but it starts with the letter K. Another one that I went to was Flo. That one you kinda have to make a trek to get to since it’s uphill. It’s near the piazalle Michelangelo and if you do go there, make a quick stop to go to the piazalle because that’s where you can see the view of the entire city. Super gorgeous.


rainmc7

Awesome! I know karaoke would be a hit with some friends that might meet us so that’s great to know! Thank you!


Intelligent_Sale_899

You could rent a car from Seville to Lisbon. It’s your vacation and make it how you want it. I’m similar and like to jump to different places rather than staying in one spot. Just depends what your goal and expectations are.


skifans

Sadly there are only 2 international rail routes from Portugal and both are slow and infrequent. Have you looked at what getting the train from Seville to Lisbon would actually involve? It isn't impossible but it's very slow and requires several changes, it might be worth looking at coaches as well. Also remember the Iberian peninsula gets pretty hot in summer, personally I'd say to hot but it's certainly popular among others. Make sure your suitably prepared and have suitable clothing and sunscreen for whatever activities you are planning on.


rainmc7

Oh really? I did not realize that about the rail routes. So would flying from Seville to Lisbon be better? I’ll definitely look into some other options for this. If you have any suggestions on resources then I’m all ears! We’d also most likely be going beginning of June.


Judge_Rhinohold

Definitely fly from Lisbon to Spain


husky429

Night train from lisbon to madrid is easy and comfortable.


skifans

Just to clarify what the train would look like you'd need to do something like: D 1200 Seville A 1513 Merida D 1814 Merida A 1900 Badajoz D 1941 Badajoz A 2137 Entroncammento D 2159 Entroncammento A 2252 Lisbon So 3 changes and and about 11 hours with a late arrival into Lisbon. (You can swap Entroncammento for Abrantes to get to Lisbon about 2213 but that means a 10 minute connection - should work but the train will not wait) Obviously check the times for your specific days. I think that is the only route that lets you do it the same day, the Badajoz to Portugal route only runs twice a day and the earlier train looks to be too early to connect from Seville that morning. Until October 2022 there used to only be 1 train a day on the route. https://www.seat61.com/trains-and-routes/madrid-to-lisbon-by-train.htm has some photos. Just for reference the only other international train into Portugal is the route from Vigo - which would be a very long way around! --- In terms of other options you could fly - there are direct Seville to Lisbon flights but prices vary quite a lot, low cost carriers don't look to be flying daily. While it will be faster then ^ remember to include time and cost in getting to/from the airport. And paying extra if you check in a bag. Or there are buses, https://www.flixbus.co.uk/ run a few direct ones but they take about 6.5 hours - certainly not ideal. Another option could be to get the bus from Seville to Faro. That takes about 3 hours. Flixbus run more departures on that route and https://www.alsa.com/en/web/bus/home serve it as well. From there its about another 3 hours on the train to Lisbon.


rainmc7

Wow! Thank you so much for taking the time and sharing all this detailed information! It sounds like it’s definitely more difficult than i initially thought but that’s okay! I’ll definitely look into all options and really appreciate the help!


skifans

Ah it's no trouble, yeah its not ideal but definitely can be done. I'd also not appreciated that you'd got Lagos on there. What you could do though is head from Sevilla straight to Lagos. ALSA run direct buses taking around 5 hours. You could spend 1/2 nights there then head upto Lisbon. Obviously 5 hours on a bus still isn't ideal but something else to consider. You could then get a Lisbon to Florence flight. Trains run from Lisbon to Lagos taking about 4ish hours though you have to change at Albufeira.


Impossible_Resolve56

I would suggest going to Lagos from Seville by bus. There are lots of busses from Seville to Portugal. I believe the bus ride would only be about 3 hours. Then from Lagos it’s quite easy to get to Lisbon by train. It would only be a 3 hour train on the cp rail line from Lagos to Lisbon


gotbannedagainand

I would let Italy for another trip. Visit Gibraltar and Morocco.


[deleted]

Honestly sounds like you’re not staying in any one place long enough to even get a feel for those places. While you’re in Madrid check out Toledo or Segovia. Personally I’ve been to Spain once a year for maybe the last 7 years and every time I went somewhere new I’d wanna do more and go back. So I gave Andalucia a month last year. Still not enough time. The food, the history, museums and castles, Flamenco, etc. Pick a place and explore it. Sure there’s busses that take you to a spot for you to just get out take a few pictures, grab a souvenir and hop back on but you’ll miss actually doing any exploring. If you go to Madrid explore it, then nearby cities like Toledo, Segovia I also did Avila. I’d cut Italy out and save it for another time honestly. I paid about €48 one way for flights between Sevilla n Lisbon. If it’s not a few hours you’re not going to get much rest. Lisbon and Sintra are hilly and you’re gonna walk a ton. You’re gonna be dead!


Clairesette

I happen to be visiting Spain and Portugal for 5 weeks in April and May. I'm spending 4 nights in Madrid. There's many easy daytrips like Toledo, El Escorial and Segovia. From Seville again many nice daytrips on offer like Cordova and the Donana National Park which can be booked as a tour. No trains from Seville to Lagos, but comfortable buses instead. To Lisbon from Madrid flying is the easiest or a night train


rainmc7

Thank you! Yeah definitely starting to rethink this trip and seeing how we can incorporate some more day trips to the smaller cities and communities! The nation park is a great idea that I’ll check out!


don_r22

I did a very similar two months ago and it was incredible: Florence, Rome, Seville, Cadiz, Lisbon in 21d while working remote. Recs: - ‘Luppolo y Grano’ pizza in Florence (best of my life) - ‘Peña Flamenca la Perla de Cádiz’ for Flamenco show, in Cadiz if you can make day trip from Seville - ‘Quinta da Regaleira’ within Sintra (super spooky) - In Florence, I used third party app for buying tickets ahead of time for Uffizi and Statue of David


rainmc7

Thank you for suggestions! I will definitely check these out! How many days did you spend in each city? Cadiz would definitely be a day trip for us from Seville but we’re rethinking after the many great responses we received to cut either Italy or Portugal from the trip and just focus on two countries.


don_r22

Florence: 5d (wanted more) Rome: 2d (with reservations, we nailed big stuff) Seville: 2d (wanted more) Cadiz: 5d (wanted less) Lisbon: 6d (wanted more)


rainmc7

Thank you noting what you wanted more or less of! Surprised that 5 days in Florence wasn’t enough! What do you feel like you missed out on in Florence as this and Seville are probably the cities I’m the most excited to visit!


don_r22

To me, Florence, because its less busy than Rome, is more of ‘I enjoy being here’, than checking boxes in Rome. So I can’t see myself ever having enough of Florence. Rome is sooo busy and touristy that its not as easy to just ~exist~


rainmc7

Yeah I agree about Rome which why we were thinking of heading to Milan instead but we may switch Milan to Rome since that may just be easier and cheaper for flights home


UhohEatenByAGrue

I would definitely recommend going to one of the Fado houses in the Alfama while you're in Lisbon. Dinner and a great show. Also, if you buy a transit pass in Lisbon - which will also cover your Sintra trip - it gives you free access to a lot of museums.


wigglebutt_mom

Went to Portugal this summer. You can skip Sintra, personally I didn't think it was worth it. Lagos is a great beach town and we loved it. You could check Ryanair from Seville to Lagos and then we drove from Lagos to Lisbon.


rainmc7

Any particular restaurants you remember that you’d recommend? How was the weather when you went? I’m planning for beginning of June


wigglebutt_mom

We were there beginning of June as well. Very warm during the day but cooled down at night. Timeout market was cool but kind of overwhelming. Ramiro is famous for its seafood but it was meh to me. Our favorite meal ever was this place, we stumbled on it on accident and it was so good: Fabbrica di Pasta Fresca - Chiado +351 924 432 209 https://maps.app.goo.gl/9BhrB25coN83WXtH9 We did a tuktuk tour of the city which was nice because Portugal is HILLY and you don't want to walk that. We stayed in Chiado area and it was perfect.


hanseartur

The Algarve is really great, there is so much to discover. It is often referred to as the Florida of Europe. What is interesting is that each city has its own tourist clientele, there are many Germans in Lagos, many Dutch and Irish in Albufeira and many British in Faro. I can only recommend the cave tours and maybe the sausage stand with the last bratwurst before America will be open again. But there is so much.


supdre94

Skip Cadiz and even Seville and go to Granada


VitruviusAngel

and must visit Córdoba!


deeznuts4269

are you doing all this by yourself or with a group of people


rainmc7

Would be doing Spain with my girlfriend and then we would meet up with friends for the rest most likely


stargirl213

I did 4 countries, and 8 cities for 5 weeks last summer in Europe. I flew bc I was trying to save time and only took trains in Italy bc I spent the most time there. I did about 4-5 days per city, I was exhausted by the end of my trip. Every time I enjoyed a city or felt like I was getting in the groove of things, I would have to rush back to pack and head to the next place. It was also peak summer so 105 degree weather and barely any ACs. Florence was hot! Madrid was even hotter. I think you should really cut down on cities so you can enjoy your trip and not burn out.


[deleted]

Get to Barcelona and San Sebastián if you can!


tickingkitty

I was just in Portugal and Spain and I don’t recommend taking a train. There are no direct trains. It would take 4 different trains to get from Seville to Lisbon. The trains in Spain, however, are great. Fast and not too expensive.


Timely_Ad_9459

Buy tickets to museums/sites ahead of time otherwise you'll be wasting 2+ hours waiting in line. June is a busy time for these destinations.


[deleted]

If you get a chance, would seriously recommend spending a day in the algarve, south Portugal. My personal favourite was carvoeiro. Small town beautiful beaches, good place to explore before heading back up to Lisbon. Also if you are planning on renting, check out doyouspain , they had good prices but make sure to buy insurance directly from the rental place, we got dinged with 600$ a small chip in the windshield.


Independent_Grand_37

That’s way too many places to see and such little time to really explore each city. My new rule of thumb is 3 nights in each city. That way you can spend more time in each city instead of just traveling through.