Seville Base: 5 Days in Andalusia

Five days extends the 4-day version , Cordoba, Granada, Italica, Cadiz, with a fifth day trip to Ronda, the one stop on this list with no useful direct train. Days one through four are unchanged; this just adds the gorge before you fly home. The 3-day and 7-day versions share the same opening spine too.

Book these before you go

Day Focus Distance/time from Santa Justa Cost
Day 1 Cordoba, the Mezquita AVE ~40-45 min ~18-50 euros incl. entry
Day 2 Granada, the Alhambra Train ~2h35-3h ~50-76 euros incl. entry
Day 3 Italica, Roman ruins Bus ~30 min Free (EU) / ~1.50 euros non-EU
Day 4 Cadiz, old town and beach Train ~1h25-1h40 ~20-35 euros
Day 5 Ronda, the gorge Bus ~2h15 or drive ~1h40 ~30-58 euros incl. bullring

Day 1: Cordoba and the free hour at the Mezquita

Catch an early AVE from Sevilla Santa Justa; the roughly 140km run takes 40-45 minutes, with dozens of trains a day and fares from around 9-10 euros booked ahead, according to Renfe’s timetable . The reason to go early: the Mezquita-Catedral is free Monday through Saturday from 8:30 to 9:30am, no groups admitted, against a standard ticket of about 13 euros the rest of the day. Arrive by 8:15 to queue. It is the single best free-and-crowd-free move in the whole region. Spend what is left of the day in the Juderia and around the Roman bridge before the train back.

Day 2: Granada and the Alhambra

Granada sits about 250km out, roughly 2h35 to 3 hours by direct train. The Alhambra’s general ticket runs around 21 euros, 22.27 euros online with the booking fee, and comes with a mandatory timed slot for the Nasrid Palaces chosen at purchase. Book only through the official Patronato site ; resellers rank well in search and charge more for a ticket that sells out fine on its own. Missed the window? A guided Alhambra day trip from Seville usually holds a block of pre-reserved tickets as a fallback. Give the whole day to this one; it earns the travel time on its own.

Day 3: Italica, the Roman city everyone skips for the cathedral

Fifteen to twenty minutes by car, or about 30 minutes by bus toward Santiponce, sits Italica, one of the earliest Roman cities on the Iberian peninsula and the birthplace of emperors Trajan and Hadrian. Its amphitheatre held around 25,000 spectators, bigger than most Roman arenas still standing anywhere. Entry is free for EU citizens and about 1.50 euros otherwise, per the official Italica site ; it is closed Mondays. After two full days of timed tickets and early trains, half a day here, with nothing to book and no queue to manage, is close to a rest day.

Day 4: Cadiz, Spain’s self-declared carnival capital

Cadiz is about 99km away, and a direct train covers it in 1h25-1h40 with frequent departures, no advance booking needed. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, an old town wrapped around a narrow peninsula with beaches a short walk from the station. It also calls itself Spain’s carnival capital, its February Carnaval famous for chirigotas, satirical singing troupes that roast local politicians in verse; outside carnival season the same irreverence shows up in the street art and the unfussy seafood shacks along the seafront. No headline ticket to manage here; walk the old town, sit on the beach, eat fried fish, head back.

Day 5: Ronda, the gorge with no useful train

Ronda sits 100-130km out depending on the route, and the rail option, via Antequera at about 3h50, is too slow to bother with. A direct bus, Damas, roughly 2h15, or a 1h40 drive is how everyone actually gets there. The payoff is the El Tajo gorge, a 120-meter drop spanned by the Puente Nuevo, plus Spain’s oldest bullring, the Real Maestranza , which runs about 9-10 euros with its museum. Skip the crush at the main bridge viewpoint and walk down toward the old Arab baths near the river instead; the gorge looks better from below than from the queue on top.

Do you need a car for Ronda?

No, not strictly. The Damas bus covers Seville to Ronda in about 2h15, several times a day, for a reasonable one-way fare. A car earns its cost only if you plan to keep driving into the pueblos blancos afterward, since public buses between those villages are too sparse to string together without one.

Should you rent a car for the whole five days instead of using trains and buses?

No. Cordoba, Granada, and Cadiz all run on frequent, cheap public transport that beats driving on both cost and stress, especially into Granada’s traffic and one-way old town streets. A car only earns its keep on the Ronda day, and even then only if you are stretching the trip toward the pueblos blancos on the 7-day version .

Buy the Alhambra ticket the day you book your flights. If you are renting a car for Ronda, book it once your dates are fixed too; the best pickup slots near Santa Justa go first in peak season.