Seville, Andalucia, Spain. Top things to do in Seville, Spain
DISCOVER ALL ABOUT the stunning historic city of Seville in Andalucia, Spain.
Seville is many people’s favourite Spanish city as it is full of spectacular architecture, history, amazing food and just the most incredible atmosphere all around the old city.
Walk with us through the magnificent Alcazaba with its stunning interior and gardens that were part of the Game of Thrones series.
Next, we bring you inside the world famous Sevilla Basilica, with the huge tower that I made Lyle climb to take some photos.
We then take you walking through the old town, visit some authentic tapas bars where my limited Spanish came in very handy.
There is music everywhere you wander through Sevilla, which makes the atmosphere is incredible.
We share some funny stories with you from our horse and carriage ride clip clopping around the main sights of Seville and you will transported with us as we stroll along the beautiful river at sunset that runs through the middle of Sevilla.
Stay listening to the end when we share one of the most stunning places in Sevilla that you won’t want to miss. It was so stunning in fact that we went back at night as the sun was setting - check out the photos below to see what I mean.
SHOW NOTES AND PICTURES BELOW
Our taxi ride was a bit hairy through the narrow cobblestone streets, but our accommodation was right in the heart of the old town in the Barrio de Santa Cruz. We stayed at the Palacio Pinello – a gorgeous hotel with a lovely rooftop bar and fantastic artwork. Barrio de Santa Cruz is the old Jewish quarter.
The Alcazar of Sevilla
Our first impressions of the Alcazar were very good to say the least. We really had no idea of what to expect. You step through a huge archway into a courtyard. There are decorative Moorish arches dominating the courtyard. To the left is the entry to another section of the Alcazar, the right an enormous ceramic stair case and straight, more arches teasing you to go through.
We chose the ceramic staircase (as I just love stairs). The ceramics were mosaic tiles that covered every surface of the stairs – and when you get up stairs there is a view of the whole main courtyard.
Back downstairs and we wandered around and around all the courtyards, patios, halls, and into the most decorative of all, the Salon de Embajadores (Hall of the Ambassadors). This room was dominated by the massive dome ceiling that was carved in timber and decorated with gold.
The walls were completely covered in the most intricate decorations, all the way to the tiled floors. We were a bit blown away by the opulence of this hall.
And just when you think you’ve seen it all – you come across the gardens. There are acres of gardens surrounding the Alcazar. There were several episodes of The Game of Thrones filmed in the garden and the Alcazar.
The gardens are dominated by tall palm trees, and purple flowering agapanthus. There are ceramic buildings and archways as well as lovely water fountains (my favourites). There is wall the separates the garden down the middle and it is double story (probably served as a lookout back in the day) and you can walk all the way along and see some fabulous views over the garden and the outside of the Alcazar.
Plaza de Espana
The Plaza de Espana was built over 15 years for the 1929 World Exhibition. It is built in a semi-circular design, two stories with balconies and a tower at each end. There is a three-metre ceramic tile feature of the 50 provinces of Spain that wrap around the bottom of the building. Each one is completely unique and includes a picture depiction of the province, a map and a coat of arms. They are in alphabetical order and are a sight to behold.
We were lucky enough to come across and Flamenco show along our stroll through. As well as the beautiful building, the 50 plus ceramic province displays there is a canal with row boats. There are four bridges crossing the canal and these too are intricately decorated with mosaic ceramic tiles. They are stunning in the bright yellow, blue and white tiles. Lots of picture opportunities in the space.
Next, after you cross one of the cute bridges, there is a large circular water fountain. It was starting to warm up and standing near the fountain was so cooling from the spray coming off it.
To add to the atmosphere there were horse and carriages clip-clopping around the Plaza.
It was so beautiful we decided that we should return at sunset, so that’s what we did.
We were there as the sun was setting to enjoy the “golden hour”. At dusk the sky turns the most intense navy (midnight) blue. The buildings with spotlights on them glow golden and the two together is the most incredible combination you can imagine. To top things off – the fountain turned bright green and all the water spray lit up into the sky.
Right next to the Plaza de Espana are the gardens that were designed for the 1929 Expo as well.
It is full of palm trees, tiled benches, fountains, ponds, flower beds, water falls and lots of other lush vegetation. We had a nice stroll around as it was shady, pretty, cool and I do love a nice garden.
The Cathedral of Seville
The Cathedral is a very popular tourist site in Seville. It’s best to buy tickets online, but you can purchase them on the day if there are some available tickets.
There is a dress code – that 75% people don’t follow – but to be respectful it’s a good idea to check the dress code first.
This is part of the Alcazar in Seville. You can do this tour to see the Alcazar and Cathedral in one skip the line tour Tour of Seville
This cathedral is the 3rd biggest in Europe and the biggest in Spain.
There is really easy to follow and informative audio guide available when you enter.
The cathedral is very opulent and decorative. There are stunning stained glass windows, massive columns and huge carved timber doors. The choir area and organ and pristine with their carved timber seats.
One of our favourite parts of the church was the tomb of Christopher Columbus. There is larger than life size bronze state on top of the tomb depicting four men carrying his coffin.
The cathedral was built on a site of a Moorish Mosque. The Giralda Tower 104m high (the bell tower) and the Patio de Las Naranjas (Orange courtyard) are the only two parts of the mosque that remain today.
Barrio de Santa Cruz
This is the well-known food and tapas bar area of the old town. The streets are lined with many bars and restaurants. Most of the bars have tapas and raciones. There is a huge range of bars from the old authentic places, the old places doing modern food and fancy restaurants.
My favourite was Bar de Santa Cruz which is an old authentic bar with small wooden tables and stools. A father and son are running the bar and tapas and are very charismatic and show off for the old blokes at the bar. The old guy was being quite funny in Spanish and he didn’t realise that I understood what he was saying. I laughed out loud and he was very impressed that I got the joke.
Other things to see in Sevilla
The horse and carriage ride is a 25 minute around the major sites in the city of Seville. It is a unique way to see the city. You can catch one from around the cathedral at any time through the day up to about 10pm at night.
A walk along the river (especially at sunset) is a nice relaxing thing to do. You can walk past the Torre do Ore which was once a watch tower and is now a museum.
Sevilla is a very walkable city and all the main attractions are in quite a small circumference. We found some other lovely spots around the city to enjoy on our walks in addition to the usual suspects.
In summary – our three days in Sevilla were amazing. We absolutely loved it and we now know exactly why everyone raves about this spectacular city.
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