Greece/Spain Recommendations

[Mistoffelees]

My DH and I went to Slovenia last year and loved it. We were hoping to go to Sardinia for a week at the end of July this year but the flight prices are more than I was expecting so it looks like it might be Spain or Greece. Does anyone have recommendations for either country that would suit a mixture of sightseeing, nature and relaxing?

Kefalonia (also spelled Cephalonia) is lovely. We've stayed in the south of the island several times, near Skala, and in the north near Fiskardo. Fiskardo is more upmarket (the rich yachting set), but there are some fabulous beaches in the south. There is plenty of sightseeing on offer, either inland or on boat trips, tons of nature and you can't fail to relax! Let me know if you want detailed recommendations.
Another idea is Crete, which is a bigger and more developed island, and famous for its sightseeing opportunities. But it still has lots of lovely walks and so on.
I don't know about Spain; I'm always drawn to those Greek islands!

Just back from Crete. It was great - Chania town is really picture postcard pretty. The mountains are fantastic for walking, though route finding is a challenge. And the food is so delicious. We didn’t do any beach stuff, a bit cold this time of year, but the beaches looked OK.
My favourite bit of Spain is the Sherry Triangle and the Costa de Luz in Andalucia. White villages, Cadiz, Donana National Park, Seville not too far away, warm sea, Manzanilla sherry from Sanlucar de Barrameda. Glorious.

Granada - the city is wonderful, but you are right on the edge of the Sierra Nevada too for outdoor pursuits.

It's still relatively un-touristy so you get a more traditional Spanish experience in my opinion.

I'd definitely recommend a car for while you're there to get out and explore the area.

For flights there is obviously Granada airport itself but it's easily accessible from Malaga too and the drive from Malaga to Granada is lovely if you take the coastal route via Nerja.

We really enjoyed Parga altho best to have a car to make the most of it.

We had a great time in Kefalonia and Zakyntos last year.

Menorca and Mallorca are also great.

You might find Granada and Seville unbearably hot by the end of July (obviously depends on your tolerance of heat). Valencia is lovely, by the sea, good beaches, historic city centre, huge beautiful park running the length of the former river bed, great zoo and aquarium.

That said, if you can tolerate heat well the Al-hambra in Granada is a must see, urs truly breathtaking. Cordoba is also beautiful but not so easily accessible by plane.

Tarifa is a fab base for doing the unspoilt south west coast. Fly into Gibraltar from b a or Easy jet. Hire a car and you'll have a fab time. There is Jerez, do a sherry tour, Granada and cordoba, Gibraltar itself, Bolonia each is amazing and Ronda and its gorge. The Andalusia horses are worth a visit in jerez too.

We did Granada, Seville and Cordoba by flying into Malaga, car to Granada via the El Chorro area where we walked the El Camino Del Rey (refurbished walkway through a gorge) couple of days in Granada before getting to coach to Seville for 4 nights.

We did Cordoba as a day trip on the train from Seville. Ronda is also amazing, but we've been there a few times already.

Everything was totally amazing and despite going in May, there was an unexpected heatwave - the temperature display said 46 C when we arrived in Seville. To be honest it was a bit hot for walking around, but it depends on how tolerant you are with extreme heat.

Barcelona might be slightly less scorchio at that time of year.

The heat does worry me, I looked at Madeira as well for this reason but the flights don't seem to go on the right days unfortunately. Also, I should have said I don't drive and DH drives for a job so would rather avoid it on holiday if at all possible.
Lots of suggestions to look at here though so thank you all.