Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

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SlimTim
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Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby SlimTim » Fri Jul 30, 2021 12:55 pm

Having owned East of Malaga for the last 7 years we’ve finally managed to parcel both girls off to University & finally retire and now it’s time to properly explore this beautiful part of Spain.
Having previously enjoyed the delights of Malaga and Granada last month we opted for a long weekend in Seville.
Oh my words I thought I’d died and gone to heaven ( well we were staying in a working Monastery ) at every hot street corner there was a visual delight.Just beautiful.Stunning.It stole my heart,so much so we’re planning to return in September to celebrate my 60th.
This time we will be travelling by train as opposed to car which we never used on our first visit( so lucky to grab that free parking place in the old town)
Before then we thought we might squeeze another long weekend away and a few nights in Cordoba ,hopefully by train and wondered if anyone had any advice or tips to make this visit special please ?
Though I’m tempted to spend the rest of my days visiting Seville can anyone else recommend some other gems in this crown of beauty that is Andalusia?

Many thanks

elusive
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby elusive » Fri Jul 30, 2021 1:05 pm

Cordoba is like a mini seville. If you love seville you will love cordoba


Medina azahara just outside of cordoba is a must vist imo if you like history. Its the ruins of the palace of the umayyads. Has a lovely visiter centre and they bus you up to the ruins (more than ruins) but you will prob need the car though theres probably buses that go there from cordoba centre.

Other places i would recommend are carmona which is near to seville. I had two nights there and took a day trip to ecija. We stopped in osuna on the way back. All beautiful places.

Jerez. arcos de la frontera,cadiz, vejer, conil, bolonia for its roman ruins near tariffa
Last edited by elusive on Fri Jul 30, 2021 2:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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chrissiehope
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby chrissiehope » Fri Jul 30, 2021 1:21 pm

Antequera is worth a visit for a day or two - lots of churches , some painted, some full of carvings. Get up to the top for stunning views over the Vega
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby Free at Last » Fri Jul 30, 2021 1:26 pm

In Cordoba, don't miss this place, it's absolutely beautiful. It's on the other side of town from most of the well known spots (Mezquita, etc) so fewer people seem to visit it, when we have been there have been few other people there.

http://www.palaciodeviana.com/

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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby Pamela1 » Fri Jul 30, 2021 1:49 pm

I can understand how much you loved Seville, i went was with my family one February, it was my 60th birthday treat. You would think brrrrr but it was light jumper weather with lots of sunshine, we enjoyed it so much. Having been to Barcelona and Madrid i did prefer Seville, all different cities but Seville just felt relaxing and an easy pace.
You would love Cordoba and Elusive is right it is like a mini Seville, the sights other posters have mentioned are a must, you will not be disappointed. :D

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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby SlimTim » Fri Jul 30, 2021 2:14 pm

Thank you

markwilding
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby markwilding » Fri Jul 30, 2021 3:43 pm

I'm heading south this weekend and I'm going to spend a couple of days in Seville before moving on to close to Cala de Mijas. The last time I drove down, I spent a couple of days in Granada, which was also stunning.

Spain isn't all sunny and hot so I'm looking forward to some good weather after a poor July here in Bilbao, maybe no more than 3 good days the whole month.

Beyond Cordoba, you have Castilla de Mancha and Castilla...Toledo, Salamanca, Avila and Segovia are worth visting

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Wicksey
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby Wicksey » Fri Jul 30, 2021 4:55 pm

High 30s next week in Sevilla Mark, so that should make up for the poor weather up north. I would prefer it cooler myself, and there's a lovely sea mist on the coast here today but I'm melting at home where it's currently 32. I watch the Spanish forecast with some envy where the temperatures on the north coast have been low to mid 20s. That's where I fancy holidaying at the moment.

Certainly second Cordoba and Antequera. If the OP is coming by train that those will be easier to visit.

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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby elusive » Fri Jul 30, 2021 6:04 pm

Lucena on the way to cordoba and zuheros are definitely worth a night away. Zuheros is beautiful, part of one of the most beautiful villages in spain group. The view point above the village is stunning

Also ubeda and baeza are special places. Theres so many.....

We looked at going up north stopping in salmanca and upto leon and potes. But it never seems to stop raining there. Ive read articles saying they are having a bad summer compaired to normal. Mark will know. But im so tired from the heat here the thought of driving all that way ...

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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby olive » Fri Jul 30, 2021 10:29 pm

I can heartily recommend Asturias and Cantabria. We had great weather back in May but I share the concerns about the rain.. not called Green Spain without reason…..

Been to lovely Priego de Cordoba today and it was absolutely exhausting with 36 degC heat. I find that summer here just seems to be about surviving. I cannot wait till it is a bit cooler.

Might have to give Lucena another go. It does have lots of en crudo furniture warehouses and the biggest Chinese poundshop I have ever seen

Re OP, if you are travelling by train some places will need a taxi or bus as the train stations are on the outskirts. Granada, Antequera to name two . Vote for Toledo, Salamanca, Avila, Segovia, Ubeda, Cadiz, Cordoba and Malaga. Not so keen on Jaen but the cathedral is magnificent.

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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby elusive » Sat Jul 31, 2021 8:10 am

Preigo is great. My spanish class went there on a trip. Beautiful place. We then went to alcala .. and to the fortress. Lovely day out.

Cabra on the cordoba road is worth a visit aswell.

Montefrio is another nice day trip. Make sure you visit the national geographical mirador

elusive
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby elusive » Sat Jul 31, 2021 8:14 am

By train of course theres ronda! If you go by car vist setenil,olvera and zahara de la sierra. Or drive over the paloma pass to grazalema stunning views and lots of eagles

Totally agree re segovia and toledo. Special places. Avilas on my list when i get upto salamanca along with el escorial

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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby markwilding » Sat Jul 31, 2021 8:43 am

The weather in Castilla is normally as would be expected in Spain so dry and hot in summer. However, it can be absolutely freezing cold in winter. The last time I was in Salamanca and Avila was around Christmas a couple of years ago and it was biting.

It’s the far north where it’s wet and rainy but nowhere near as cold in winter. It’s only the last 30-50 KLM’s. It drives me nutty sometimes coming up from the south with blue skies from the Med until maybe 30 KLM’s from home then grey gloomy skies, sometimes for days and this year has been particularly bad.

I’m sure having constant hot weather can be tiring but I’m really looking forward to some good weather and the fact we can organise days knowing there’s a really good chance the weather won’t spoil our plans.

I’ve never been to Ronda because my wife doesn’t like twisty mountain roads but the train sounds interesting so I might look into going.

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Wicksey
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby Wicksey » Sat Jul 31, 2021 10:58 am

The heat here is fine for a holiday and I'm sure you'll appreciate some sun Mark. I used to live the other side of the Pyrenees and the weather was similar. We could drive down in cold and wet weather, go through the tunnel at Bielsa and emerge into lovely sunshine and blue skies, bliss. We also find the summer heat wearing, but this year I'd say it's been cooler than usual near the coast with more days in the high 20s than 30s thank goodness.

elusive
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby elusive » Sat Jul 31, 2021 2:42 pm

The road from malaga city to ronda isnt twisty.Its a nice drive.If you take the one from marbella it is more and is abit tedious.

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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby elusive » Sat Jul 31, 2021 2:45 pm

Talking of trips, abit O.T but has anyone been to cuenca and teruel . Maybe incorporated with zaragoza and tarragona

olive
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby olive » Sat Jul 31, 2021 6:07 pm

Drove through Cuenca 16 years ago. Had a look at the “skyscrapers” and beetled off. Not a fair visit so must go back.

Teruel is lovely. Such a contrast. Small for a capital and so remote. Loved the architecture. Mudejar. Remember four things. Lovely cathedral, remoteness, an 80 year old lady doing her weekly washing ( on her own) in the communal wash area. The water was so cold that the troughs all had a thin layer of ice. Finally a flock of vultures near the road squabbling over some carrion.

markwilding
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby markwilding » Sat Jul 31, 2021 8:26 pm

elusive wrote: Sat Jul 31, 2021 2:42 pm The road from malaga city to ronda isnt twisty.Its a nice drive.If you take the one from marbella it is more and is abit tedious.
Good to know This time we will definitely drive there.

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gus
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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby gus » Sun Aug 01, 2021 10:29 pm

If you get the chance to visit Zuheros then I would recommend a visit to Hacienda Minerva just outside the town.
A sympathetically restored olive mill with lovely accommodation and some lovely views.

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Re: Cordoba ( and beyond) advice please !

Postby markwilding » Mon Aug 02, 2021 10:53 am

Drove down yesterday, I thought there might be some traffic due to the normal getaway at the beginning of August but a straight run through. It took just over 8 and half hours, which included a stop for lunch in Salamanca.

Clouds disappeared around 20 kms south of Bilbao.
Apart from the Spanish,mostly cars from France, Holland and Luxembourg on the motorway.

Not my first visit but I’m loving Seville. Quite a few tourists but it’s not overly busy. There’s a nice breeze so heat manageable.


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