Our Andalusian adventure has in the planning cycle for over 20 years when we first visited Spain. It was one of the places that did not sync with a work trip and we kept putting it into our “when we retire bucket. We had a work event in Poland and committed to fitting it into the trip. There are a few options for seeing the region.
Andalusia Region
Andalusia is a region in southern Spain with a rich history and culture. It’s known for its unique architecture, including the Alhambra Palace in Granada, the Mezquita in Córdoba, and the Cathedral and Alcazar in Seville. To say this area is popular for tourists is an understatement. Spring and early summer are the peak seasons to beat the heat. This is why once you decide where you want to go and how you need to ensure you can get tickets.
Travel Options
Tours from Madrid or Barcelona – Many tours originate in Madrid or Barcelona and end up in another. These would have been convenient, but since they tend to leave on Monday, making getting to our business meeting impossible.
Self-Drive Tours – This would have been our preferred mode if we were younger and seems to be one of the more popular options. You can make a loop from place to place. We did not want to repack every day so we ruled it out.
Central Base City and Day Trips – Another popular option is to use Sevilla, Granada or Malaga as a base and take the train or on day trips to different spots. This was a leading option and we ended up choosing Malaga.
Malaga as a base
A friend told me they stayed in Malaga on the coast, which worked well for them. As I researched, many blogs said this was a solid option: taking the train to the key cities or booking day tours. This seemed the perfect choice as it would allow us to unpack once, take advantage of United’s direct flights from Newark, and get bonus points for being near enough to make a day trip to Gibraltar.
It turns out that using Malaga as a base is not as easy as it sounds for a short trip. There will be no issues if you are there for over a week. The first challenge is that not all these day trips go daily. I needed to review them and see which days they went to each destination. I needed to create a matrix of what days of the week they went and went to book them.
Andalusia, especially Alhambra, is very popular. They have limited tickets for each day, and many of them are booked by tour agencies. Booking more than three months out of the day trip to Alhambra, the tour company had no tickets. It was fine; I learned how to book the train and found the first train out was fully booked. We got the second to get us into Granada at 11 am and a short Uber to Alhambra for a noon tour. The last train back is at six PM, giving us some time after the main event to look around. The total cost of doing it ourselves with the train, Uber, and locally booked tour was a fraction of the day trip cost.
As with Seville, going on the tour, we had an option of either the Cathedral or Alakazar Palace. We wanted to see both. I could find tickets with guided tours to both but could not make the train work. I found the company offering the tour; that is how I learned that resellers were reselling the affiliate’s tour. We could go with them and do the castle and rather than lunch and free time for shopping, we can book our cathedral tickets and just need to meet the tour after. That worked perfectly and in the end was cheaper than the multiple affiliates.
For Gibraltar, many offered the tour, but none were on Sunday, the day we had allocated. I found a private tour on an affiliate site that went to Gibraltar, and we could hop over to Tangier Morrocco. I did about a dozen searches focusing on the amazing guide people referenced and found and found the company. This tour page was not listed on their site. After a few back and forth on WhatsApp, it was their tour, and I was talking to that guide. We have booked this one.
Cautions and Considerations:
Tickets
For the key sites, especially Alhambra, getting tickets can be a challenge. You CANNOT show up at the venue and try to buy them. It is like buying concert tickets. They go fast, and local tour companies tend to buy the majority of them. You must attempt to buy them the moment they are available and then plan to buy them from a tour agency.
If you do use a tour agency, use one that will guarantee tickets. or book them the day they are available. For Seville Cathedral, I booked them after midnight when they were available to ensure we got the time the tour company suggested. This is critical for Alhambra as they limit the number of visitors for the day and tour windows.. When I tried to book Alhambra tickets, none were available for two months. They limit the number of visitors for the day and tour windows. For Seville Cathedral, I booked them after midnight when they were available to ensure we got the time the tour company suggested.
Fast pass and front of the line – I await our visit to see if these are real. Many tour companies offer them, and their wording is very cryptic. None of the venues themselves offer them. People have commented on Reddit that they bypass the ticket purchase line. They had fast pass tickets but were told to wait in line for their tour time. Those around them bought direct or non-fast pass tickets and entered simultaneously.
Alhambra Ticket: There are many options, mostly to suck more money out of your wallet. Essentially, you are buying a few things. You can review the official Alhambra ticket website for their options.
- Access to the Alhambra complex
- A timed access to Nazrid Palace
- A tour guide if you wish
Trains
Booking the train was challenging, too. We used Trainline instead of the Spanish rail website because it was easier. Be careful with search filters on these sites; they can be confusing. The earliest train was fully booked, and the system suggested a train that seemed to be early morning but not the night before.
Tour Companies and Affiliates
This is the most frustrating part of the planning process. The search results are infested with tour options and travel bloggers suggesting even more options. As already noted, we had a fixed set of days and specific destinations, which meant sorting through all of these options to find day tours from Malaga to the destination.
I have no problem with affiliates and have booked many tours with Viator and Get Your Guide. However, I try to avoid them, as we have had a few issues with delays and cancellations or no information on where to meet the tour, so we try to book directly. This was the first time I saw so many people reselling other reseller tours. Some tour aggregators list the tour companies they book, but some do not. I did various searches using the descriptions and specific guides to find the original tour provider.
Communication – Whatsapp
Using WhatsApp is essential in Europe, as many tour companies prefer it over email for quick communication.I would get answers almost immediately by WhatsApp and days later by email.
Power Grid Issues
We’re aware of recent power grid issues in Spain and Portugal, so we’re preparing by carrying cash, ticket printouts, and power blocks. It’s not really helpful if the mobile grid is down, but we can access the info on our device.
