Travel to Seville
After 5 days in Madrid, it was time to head south to the region of Spain known best for its Moorish history and influence, Andalusia. We returned to the Atocha train station early in the morning to board our first high-speed train. These are a popular travel option in Spain, as the Renfe AVE network allows for quick and easy transportation between most of Spain’s sizable cities. I can’t recommend them enough, to be honest. The trains are easily accessible, spacious, and clean. Best of all, there is no need to arrive hours prior to departure as is necessary for air travel, so you can truly maximize your time spent in each city. I did encounter some issues trying to pre-book trains from the USA through Renfe’s website, but The Train Line and its mobile app worked like a charm. We arrived in Seville just after 10:00 A.M. and made our way to our hotel, Hotel Posada del Lucero. While this was a fine hotel for a few days, it was our least favorite during our time in Spain. The location was not bad, but it could have been better. Built into a very old, historic building, the hotel has handsome, aged columns in its lobby that beautifully contrast its very modern, simplistic design. Unfortunately, we were not pleased to find out that the superior room that we had booked looked nothing like the version presented online. The staff was apologetic for this and did give us a bottle of cava in response to our complaint, but we couldn’t help but feel that our booking was not honored in its entirely. Mostly, we missed having a balcony and city view.
Because our room was not yet ready, we dropped our luggage off with the hotel staff and set out to build our first impressions of Seville. We stopped for some chocolate-covered pastries and coffee then continued toward the Guadalquivir River. Just on the other side of the river is the neighborhood of Triana and its Mercado de Triana. With its aroma of fresh fish and large selection of fruits and cuts of meat, this market is very authentic and a great place to see Spanish culture in action. We continued on through Triana’s narrow streets and visited the Church of Santa Ana before crossing back over the river. The Torre del Oro is a historic military watch tower that also once served as a prison. It sits on the eastern bank of the Guadalquivir and now houses a small naval museum. We climbed the steps of the tower to see the view from above, but not much of the viewing platform was open. Still, it was a neat first aerial view of the city.
As it was nearing time for lunch, we worked our way back toward our hotel in hopes of finding a good option along the way. We saw our first view of the Seville Cathedral and for the first time appreciated how beautiful Seville is. Alfalfa Bar was our choice for lunch, and it was an excellent one! Not your traditional tapas bar, Alfalfa serves interesting, fusion-style plates in tapas sizes. We had a wonderful bruschetta, delicious Iberian ham drenched in Spanish olive oil, roasted chicken and potatoes, and an Asian-inspired calaramri noodles. With a delicious sangria to wash it all down and in a quaint and comfortable setting, this lunch was one of our favorite meals of the trip.
After lunch we walked back to the hotel to freshen up and relax a bit before the evening. Just down the street from our hotel was the Metropol Parasol, or Las Setas (the mushrooms), as it is more locally known by. Claiming to be the world’s largest wooden structure, Las Setas was a landmark that we used during our time in Seville to help us locate our hotel. It wasn’t until our final hours in Seville that we learned there is actually a large terrace and viewing deck in the structure that offers one of the best views of Seville. Being that I am willing to go to great lengths for a good city view, I was a bit disappointed that I didn’t learn about this in time to check it out. Nevertheless, Las Setas is a neat structure to see from the ground looking up.
Devour Seville Tour
On our first night in Seville, we had tickets to one of our most-anticipated outings of the entire trip. We learned while in Prague during our Czech pub tour that we love learning about the local food and drink culture of any city, so this highly-recommended tapas tour was a must-do for us in Seville. The Tapas, Taverns & History Tour offered by Devour Seville took us to four different tapas bars in the span of about 3.5 hours. The little bits of history interjected in between stops made the tour even better. We had a lovely tour group of seven people and an absolutely fantastic guide in Miranda, who I would highly-recommend requesting. At each stop, Miranda ordered us a drink followed by the bar’s specialty tapas. Drinks included vermouth and several variaties of sherry, while tapas served up olives, tuna with potatoes, Iberian ham and manchego sheep cheese, salted cod toastadas, sobrassada spicy sausage, stew croquettes, fried cuddle fish, blue fin tuna, and pork cheek. There was more than enough food, and each tapa was unique and the finest of its kind. In particular, we enjoyed the Iberian ham, the very best quality, as we learned, because it hung from a black rope as opposed to red, green, or white, and the perfectly fried puchero croquettes. We learned so much about Andalusian cuisine and enjoyed every minute of the evening. Also, from this point further, we drank no more sangria, as we learned Spaniards never drink sangria! Instead, they go for Tinto de verano, which is basically red wine served over ice and topped off with lemon soda.
It just so happens that our tour led us through the Plaza del Triunfo just as the sun was setting. This plaza connects three buildings: the Archives of the Indies, the Real Alcázar, and the Cathedral of Seville. To me, it is right at the heart of the most beautiful area in Seville, and I’ll never forget walking through it at sunset. Check out the video below.
We visited Los Claveles, Las Teresas, Casa Morales, and Bar El Atún. Each tapas bar was wonderful in its own way, and we couldn’t have been happier with the experience in its entirety.
We weren’t ready to call it a night just yet following our tour, so we found a spot near the Giralda to enjoy the beautifully-lit backdrop. We had a few drinks before retreating back to the hotel. Seville is a wonderfully romantic city for an evening stroll which made walking back to the hotel an enjoyable experience every evening.
Seville Day 2
Our second day in Seville was one of the most outstanding days of our entire trip to Spain. On this day, I fell in love with Seville and all that there is to see and do in the magical city. We ate breakfast at Filo prior to our planned walking tour of Seville with Sandeman’s. Unfortunately, our tour guide did not start the tour from the advertised spot, so by the time we and many others finally caught up with the group, the tour was well under way. Despite how much we love these walking tours, we ultimately opted to skip the tour and set out on our own.
We walked from the meeting spot near the Guadalquivir River toward María Luisa Park. These ground were once private palace gardens that were donated to Seville to be used as a public park around the turn of the century. Then, in 1929 the Ibero-American exposition was partly held in the park. The park is large, lush and used by many. We saw several groups of school children out in the park during our late morning walk. At the far end of the main avenue through María Luisa Park is the renowned and picturesque Plaza de España. Designed to be a blend of Spain’s architectural styles, there are beautiful Art Deco tiled outcoves that represent each of Spain’s fifty provinces as well as gorgeous fountains and bridges within the huge half-circle principal building. Used several times as a filming location for modern movies, the Plaza de España in Seville is one of the most striking places I’ve been.
We left the Plaza de España with several hours to kill before our afternoon ticketed plans, so we decided to check out Seville’s bullfighting ring. Formally known as the Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza de Caballería de Sevilla, the site dates back to the 1700s and continues to house traditional Spanish bull fights. We considered attending a bull fight, but the after our visit was the opening day of the season and the first event since being closed due to the pandemic, which made it impossible to do so. In fact, crews were working on the grounds inside the ring in preparation during our visit. Still, it was neat to tour the facility, check out the museum within, and imagine the history and fanfare that have taken place there over centuries.
Across the street from the Plaza de Toros is Bar El Baratillo, where we stopped for lunch. With a homey vibe inside that paid homage to the nearby bullring, this tapas bar was surprisingly not touristy considering its prime location. We had drinks and split several tapas including croquettes, artichokes, and a popular dish we’d been waiting to try, oxtail! It tasted like an extra fatty beef roast.
Following lunch we walked back toward the center of Seville. One noteworthy place that we stopped was the Federación Artesanal de Sevilla building which housed wall art and pottery pieces from local Sevillian artists. There were some very lovely pieces here, and if we’d had the ability to get it home, we would have walked out with several things.
Real Alcázar de Sevilla
Our afternoon was a busy one, starting with pre-booked tickets to the Seville Alcázar at 2:00 P.M. After the Christians conquered Seville in the 1200s, this royal palace was built on the site of a former Muslim fortress. Its architectural style is now called Mudéjar and combines Moorish influences with Christian elements. Since we had several things we wanted to accomplish on this beautiful afternoon, we opted for a self-guided experience with audio guide rather than a guided tour. We probably missed out on a bit of the history behind the Alcázar because we both quickly ditched the drab audio guide.
Had we not been limited by the hot summer sun, we could have probably spent hours in the Alcázar and its gardens. The place is simply gorgeous with its exquisite tile work and combined indoor and outdoor elements. No where is this more apparent than in the Courtyard of the Maidens, where a long, rectangular reflection pool is surrounded by rooms once used by royalty to impress their guests. One of these rooms, the Hall of Ambassadors, is impressive from every angle with its detailed decoration. The royal gardens of the Alcázar are vast and equally as impressive. As it was over 90°F, we did not walk the gardens in their entirety but very much enjoyed what we saw.
After seeing most of the Alcázar and marveling in its splendor, my attention quickly shifted to the true reason I wanted to see this palace. We learned that several scenes from Game of Thrones were filmed in the Alcazar, so much like during our Game of Thrones tour in Croatia, I knew I wanted to find these specific locations. We can now say that we’ve been to King’s Landing and Dorne!
Cathedral of Seville
As if our afternoon in Seville was not already good enough, we next had tickets to enter the Cathedral. Known as the largest Gothic church in the world, this beauty is impressive for so many reasons. First, the Giralda, the Christian bell tower addition to the former minaret of the mosque that once stood in the cathedral’s place, dates back to the 1100s and towers over Seville. Rather than walking up stairs, ascending the Giralda requires walking up 35 ramps which are wide enough to allow ancient riders on horseback to climb to tower of the once-mosque. The views from the bell tower are unforgettable, as the square design allows gazing in each direction of the Spanish city.
This Cathedral is also special for several other reasons. Inside, one will find the raised, above-ground tomb of Christopher Columbus, who, legend has it, swore he would never be buried in Spanish soil. The main altarpiece is enormous and is considered the largest Christian one of its kind. The Patio de los Naranjos, in addition to the Giralda, is the only remaining portion of the Cathedral original to the mosque. For both its history and its beauty, the Seville Cathedral is an absolute must-see if you love old churches.
We raced back to our hotel to get changed and make it to our next exciting show. At 8:00 P.M. we had tickets to an authentic Flamenco show in the Triana neighborhood. The show took place in a small, intimate room where we had seats directly next to the performers. Honestly, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the Flamenco show. The art form was different than anything I’d ever witnessed, and the vocalists and dancers performed with a passion that was almost tangible.
After the show, we returned to the other bank of the Guadalquivir and meandered around until we settled on a place to eat. It was prime dinner hour and many places were very crowded. Wanting to break from the tapas food for an evening, we chose a pasta place called Il Pesciolino. It was a decent meal, but not memorable compared to so many of the other ones we’d enjoyed thus far. I had a seafood linguine, and Emily had a lobster risotto. With all that we’d done in one day, we were ready to call it a night after dinner.
Seville Day 3
For our final day in Seville, we had planned to take a day trip to Córdoba, but plans change. We were really in need of a relaxing day without any stress, and who wouldn’t want a little extra time in a beautiful city such as Seville?
We started the day by walking back to Triana. Over the course of several days, we’d grown to really love the ceramic painted tiles that reminded us so much of Andalusia, so we knew we wanted to find some ceramics to bring home with us. Triana has a handful of authentic ceramics stores that leave out all of the chinsy souvenirs found in many shops in other parts of Seville. We found a nice vase with hand-painted leaves in different shades of green to bring back with us. We talked about how much we’d love to have some of the huge ceramic pots, but those obviously were not going to fit in the carry-on!
Once back at the hotel, we went up to the rooftop pool to enjoy some sun and relaxation. A far cry from the amazing pool view we had in Madrid, this hotel had two tiny dip pools and a small rooftop bar for drinks.
After several hours, we enjoyed another meal at a tapas bar called Bodeguita Antonio Romero. Recommended to us during our Devour Tapas Tour, this bar is a very popular one amongst locals and serves very traditional Sevillian tapas. They are known for the tiny meat sandwhiches, one of which we tried in the spicy sausage variety. We also had some gespacho, fried cuddle fish, and another classic Sevillian tapa that we had yet to try, cooked spinach and chick peas.
