Culture, nature and party. Take all of this and add a little bit of beach and sea and you have the perfect roadtrip recipe. All this awaits you on an Andalusia roadtrip. In this article, I’ll show you what you can do in a week in this sunny region in the south of Spain and give you lots of tips on the perfect Andalusia route.
First of all: seeing all the highlights of Andalusia in just one week is unrealistic and, above all, very stressful. You need at least 2 weeks. Don’t even try, but plan a shorter route for just one week. In the end, you’ll experience more with less stress.
Andalusia’s mountains will inspire you.
In this article, I’m mainly giving tips for the west of Andalusia. Because there’s enough there alone to fill up a week with plenty of experiences and adventures.
If you want to discover all the Andalusia sights described in both articles, then simply book a 2-week holiday in Andalusia and take a look at the following article:
The following things await you on your Andalusia road trip:
The sensational Sevilla – the capital of Andalusia
The picturesque coastal town of Cádiz
Lots of beaches along the coast
Roman archaeological sites, dunes and a fantastic beach in Bolonia
Architectural masterpieces and deep gorges in ancient Ronda
Lots of white villages with spectacular views
Lots of fantastic impressions from Andalusia’s mountains
Action climbing along the Caminito Del Rey
The natural wonder El Torcal
A first impression of Málaga
Inner courtyard of the Palacio de Las Duenas…you can also expect extraordinary landscapes on this road trip …… and lots of encounters with the friendly locals.
Andalusia thrives on tourism and in summer the whole region is really overcrowded. I therefore recommend a trip to Andalusia in spring (April/May) or autumn (October). Because then it is already or still warm (20° C – 22° C), there is relatively little rainfall and you will be spared large crowds of tourists.
From the nature park you have a wide view over the landscape.
If you are only looking for a beach holiday, then summer from June to September (around 30° C) is more suitable. But then you can expect to share the beaches and cities with lots of other travellers
If you do the route as I did and stay in Seville for a few days at the beginning, you don’t need to hire a car for the whole time. Because you’ll only be travelling around the city on foot or by bike anyway. Driving in Seville is far too stressful. It’s also very difficult to find parking spaces in the cities.
Instead, simply hire a car locally for the day you leave Seville. The best way to do this is to use a comparison portal such as check24 or billigermietwagen.
I think it makes more sense to hire a smaller car for Andalusia, as there are often only very narrow streets and one-way roads in many places. It’s easier to drive a smaller car. Finding a parking space is also much easier.
On my own trip, I rented a Fiat 500 for 5 days for 231 €. This price included fully comprehensive insurance, theft insurance, as well as tyre, glass, roof and underbody insurance. Of course, it’s even cheaper if you leave out the insurance, but I don’t recommend it.
Andalusia’s main source of economic income is tourism. Accordingly, there are many accommodation options – from inexpensive to luxurious.
You can actually stay in a hotel in every well-known town. However, I’ve always had good experiences with airbnb while travelling. It all depends on what you prefer.
With airbnb
You can now find many airbnb hosts offering entire flats throughout Andalusia. However, if you want to save money, socialise with the locals and improve your Spanish, then you should definitely take a private room where you live in a local’s flat. They can often give you lots of good tips that you won’t find in any travel guide.
Hotels
I have researched a few good hotels for my own travel planning. If you want to stay in comfort, these hotels are a good alternative to airbnb. However, you can also search for hotels yourself using price comparison portals such as trivago.
You might like these hotels here:
Sevilla: The Hotel Doña María is a very good choice because it is located right next to the cathedral of Seville and perfectly embodies the charm of this city.
Cadiz: The Spanish Galleon Lodge is located in the centre of the old town and you have a great view from the roof. The accommodation prices are also quite affordable.
Ronda: From the Hotel Parador de Ronda you can enjoy a marvellous view of the Puente Nuevo and the gorge. It may not be cheap, but you can treat yourself to the comfort for one night.
Málaga: The Santa Cruz Apartments are very centrally located and have been rated very highly by many guests, but are quite cheap.
Travel route Andalusia for a road trip in one week
The good thing about this route is that you can change, reduce or extend it as you wish. It will give you a first impression of the diversity of the region and a good idea of what you would like to see for yourself.
Fantastic cities, coast and mountains await you along this Andalusia road trip.
All the stops I mention in this article can also be found here on the map:
Sevilla was an absolute highlight for me. You should stay here for at least 2 days and see all the sights. Seville is famous for flamenco, its special architecture with influences from the Moorish period and the royal gardens, such as those in the Alcázar.
The gardens of the Royal Palace are also impressive.
Cadiz is supposedly the oldest city in Western Europe, and a particularly idyllic one at that. The old town of Cadiz is located on a small peninsula that is only connected to the mainland by a narrow headland. The peninsula is quite manageable, which is why you can easily explore Cadiz in just one day.
After Cadiz, an eventful route along the coast towards Ronda awaits you. I cycled this route myself in one day, which is easily doable. But in hindsight, I would have liked to spend a night somewhere on the coast because it’s so beautiful here. I’ll tell you a few places here where there aren’t quite so many tourists around.
There is a lot to discover along the coast of Andalusia.
On the way south, you will pass many small coastal towns, such as Conil de La Frontera. But I found it particularly nice in Los Canos de Meca, a sleepy village by the Trafalgar lighthouse. There’s a great beach here and a few restaurants.
The beach of Los Canos de Meca is a great place to spend time.
There are also several surf schools in this region that offer surf courses and surf camps. Take a look here:
You should definitely make a stopover in Bolonia. Not only is there a super idyllic dream beach here, but also a large sand dune and a historical archaeological site with a museum (Baelo Claudia), which you can even visit for free as a European citizen.
Bolonia: Impressive even from a distance.
The latter was definitely worthwhile, as this place was once an important trading centre of the Roman Empire. On a really interesting tour along the ruins, you can get an idea of what it once looked like here.
Basilica of Baelo Claudia with a statue of Emperor Trajan.The Roman theatre has been restored and is still quite well preserved.
Access to the dune at the end of the beach is also free of charge. After you have completed the strenuous walk up the sandy hill and back down again, you can sit down in one of the local restaurants and enjoy the view of the sea for a while.
After Bolonia, head north inland. You can’t avoid paying the toll here (there are also credit card counters).
The route takes you along the Ruta de los Pueblos Blancos. This route is famous for its many white villages. One of these beautiful, often sleepy but very romantic nests is Casares. It is perched on a mighty rock and the view from the castle at the top is simply phenomenal.
Casares as it lives and breathes.
Words can hardly describe the feeling that comes over you when you see this view. A light breeze is blowing. The sun sets slowly and is occasionally obscured by passing clouds. But as soon as it comes out again, the hills glow in an incredibly intense golden-green colour. 4 huge eagles circle over the vast landscape. I can hear dogs barking and children’s voices in the background. Otherwise, however, it is completely silent. It seems as if not much has changed here in this place for centuries.
I walk back down to the village square, where the old people are sitting around, probably chatting about today, which is slowly coming to an end. Their leathery faces are tanned and wrinkled, like the mountain landscape around us. As a tractor drives past, the conversation is interrupted by the loud rattling of the engine. The heads of the senior citizens move from left to right as if they were playing tennis. When the tractor has disappeared behind the house, the chatting continues.from my travel notes
The narrow alleyways of Casares always lead you to the village square, where there is also a restaurant.
Walk to the central village square and from there through the narrow streets up to the Iglesia de la Encarnación.
From the very top, you have a fantastic view over the golden-green landscape that even extends to the sea.
Ronda is a very special small town in the mountains of Andalusia. It thrones on a mighty rocky plateau, which is penetrated by a gorge around 100 metres deep. It is famous for the giant bridge that connects the two neighbourhoods above the gorge. Even writers such as Hemingway and Rilke were captivated by Ronda
View of the Puente Nuevo from the Arco del Christo.
The next section of the route takes you mainly along the mountains. I was actually only planning a short detour to this region myself, but was so impressed by the breathtaking landscapes and panoramas that I ended up spending more than one day exploring this region.
You should definitely pay a visit to this region. It is famous among mountaineers. It is home to one of the world’s most famous hiking trails, which was so dangerous that it had to be closed in 2015 due to a number of deaths – the Caminito del Rey.
After extensive restoration, it has been reopened and can now be safely walked by all kinds of tourists. However, the hike is so popular that you need to book a ticket at least two weeks in advance. You can do this on the website caminitodelrey.info.
The trail starts in the north (there are also several paid car parks here) and leads south to El Chorro train station. Shuttle buses run from there back to the start. Much more information can be found here.
The ravine along which the Caminito del Rey runs is about 3 km long, 300 m high and in some parts only 10 m wide.Despite restoration: The path along the Caminito del Rey is still not for the faint-hearted.
You should plan at least a whole day for the whole hike. But even if you don’t have a ticket or time for the half-day hike, the climbing region, also known as El Chorro, is well worth exploring. Right next to the entrance to the Caminito del Rey is the Embalse del conde de Guadalhorce reservoir, for example, with idyllic views.
At the Embalse del Conde de Guadalhorce reservoir, you can also dip your feet in the water.There are several hiking trails in addition to the Caminito del Rey through this region, such as the Tajo de la Encantada Dam.
White walls, old men sitting on benches and a historic Moorish castle towering over the village – Álora is a prime example of one of the typical Andalusian pueblos blancos.
Álora: a tipical white village along the Ruta de los Pueblos Blancos.You should definitely visit the Castillo de Álora castle. You have the best view from here. However, it closes at 5 pm.
Should you include El Torcal on this road trip? By all means. Because El Torcal is a fantastic nature reserve with incredible views over the mountains.
This is sure to leave you speechless too.
The piled-up karst rock formations here reminded me a bit of the Sierra Nevada in California, and also partly of the Pancake Rocks in New Zealand.
High columns of stone slabs of different sizes look as if they have been artificially stacked on top of each other.
It is particularly beautiful here at the golden hour in the evening.
As I had already done so much else before, I only had the first impression of one evening and half a day on my own road trip for Málaga. But it was great. I decided to explore the beach region in the east of Málaga. You should also take a short detour to the Mirrador del Gibralfaro.
Wide view over Malaga.
If you want to stay longer in Malaga, then you should either stay longer in Andalusia overall or possibly skip other spots, or stay shorter in other cities. You can find lots of great tips for 1-2 days in Málaga in the following article:
Conclusion: A road trip in Andalusia is absolutely fantastic and you don’t have to travel that far. In one week, you should only set yourself a small part of Andalusia as your destination.
What other places in Andalusia must be on this route? Write it in the comments.
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