Hi, Iam so excited to be going to Spain. MY daughter will study in Salamanca for 3 wk then I will meet her for 8 day. I an thinking of doing 2 days madrid, go to Salamanca, rent car, go to Granada, Rhonda, Seville, Toledo, back to Madrid. Is this too much driving? How should I use my time? I figure she will see Madrid during her stay but want to show us Salamanca. What about Cadiz? Help!!I am frantic!

Hi Peg, getting some advice in under the wire since you are off for Sunny Spain within 2 days Not sure if you are overdoing it all with that itinerary. 2 days in Madrid is no time at all but I suspect you will be bitten by the "bichito Madrile�o" (little Madrid bug) and be back so it is a good intro to the city. Salamanca is a day trip although it is a good 2+ hour drive from Madrid, it is a really nice place to be at night so you may want to think about getting a hostel. On the negative side, it is absolutely packed this time of year with students and their visiting relatives , not to mention other tourists so you may not find a room unless you have already reserved. Also, be aware that parking in Salamanca is a nightmare, I went for a weekend a few months ago and it took us over an hour to find a parking spot near the old part of the city. If you are going to Salamanca, you will want to hit Segovia (on the way from Madrid) for at least a quick view of the amazing 2,000 year old Aquaduct and the old part of the city (a few hours should do it for a quick visit). Toledo should not be missed. As for the southern route, Sevilla may be out of the question and pushing the envelope a bit since it is not as close to Granada as people think. That may also rule out Ronda which would be a shame since it is a great village. If you have to choose Sevilla or Granada, SEE GRANADA this time around, it is AMAZING. I guess you could do it all if you zipped through it, it all depends on the time you want to spend getting to know each place. Go for it! Also, check out www.andalucia.org before you go if you can, great resource for the area, maps and all (site in English as well). One last note, in my humble opinion C�diz is not worth the trip, I was there in April and the only good thing about the city (aside form the beach, and there are much nicer ones in Spain) is the cathedral which is litterally falling apart these days. Skip it this time.
Saludos and have an amazing trip.
jer...
p.s. Don't forget to wave to me on my balcony when in the Plaza Mayor

Hi Peg,
I just got back from Spain a week ago. I highly recommend you visit Madrid and Sevilla for sure. You can take the high speed train from Madrid to Sevilla and you will be there in two hours. Segovia and Toldedo are day trips you can take from Madrid and are very beautiful. Granada was nice to but if I had to choose between Sevilla and Granada I would choose Sevilla. If you like to shop, Madrid, Sevilla and Toledo are good. Have a great trip