3.5 Days: 82,778 steps
Seville smelled amazing (a great way to open a blog, I know). The Azahar flowers (orange tree blossoms) were in bloom everywhere and they have the most magnificent scent. Seville was 5-10 degrees warmer than Granada and Barcelona, making it an attractive vacation destination. Initially I was turned off by the number of tourists/crowds here, but they seemed to get better after the weekend.
We easily hit up all of the ‘must-do’s in Seville in two days. It would have felt like a waste spending a third day in the city so went on a day trip to Cádiz. Cádiz is small, beautiful, and full of fun! We took a 90 min train ride and spent 7 hours exploring the town (it was the perfect amount of time). The shopping streets and markets were nicer in Cádiz than Seville. But most importantly, my favourite part about Cádiz was being able to walk along the ocean and enjoy their well-kept beach.
Must-see and Must-dos in Sevilla:
Alcazar – Created in 913, 100-150 years after the Alhambra in Granada, the architects and artists were inspired by the Alhambra (Granada). The Alcazar is more well-kept than the Alhambra but is smaller in size and doesn’t have the same amazing city views as the Alhambra. The interior is influenced by Arabic and Christian design and symbolism, also similar to the Alhambra. We took a guided tour of the Alcazar and the Catedral de Sevilla. The tour taught us a lot about the history of Seville which was probably the most valuable thing I got out of my time in Seville.
Catedral de Sevilla – Converted into a cathedral from a mosque in 1401 after a massive earthquake, the Seville Cathedral is the largest gothic Cathedral in the world. Filled with impressive chapels, Christopher Columbus’s tomb (and one of his sons), and hundreds of thousands of kilograms of bronze, silver, and gold. The size and detail of this cathedral was certainly impressive, but I was disappointed about all the chapels either having heavy gates in front of them or being completely covered by curtains to hide from the public.
Plaza de España – the ‘Spain Square’ contains a beautiful building and fountain, you can walk around the square and explore the building and surrounding gardens. It is a great place to take photos, you can rent a rowboat or a horse to roam around and enjoy live music and dancing from local street artists.
Centro Cultural Flamenco de Sevilla – We enjoyed a great 60 min flamenco evening show. There are a ton of Flamenco auditoriums in Seville for you to enjoy an authentic show. I highly recommend going to see a Flamenco show to experience the culture and energy the dancers and musicians have.
Jewish Quarter (Santa Cruz) – The Jewish Quarter is the best area to roam around in Seville. The small streets are filled with small shops and plenty of restaurants (but I was advised not to eat here – too touristy). Nothing in particular stood out to me but the streets were pretty, and the energy was fun.
Setas De Sevilla – A Swedish built, peculiar wooden structure in the heart of the city with a good view. It costs 5 euros to go to the top for a panoramic view of the city. We found it a bit overpriced, but I enjoyed the view of the city during the sunset.
Triana Market – I always love a good market. Going to the Triana Market was a fun excursion and a good reason to go explore the rest of the Triana area. The market was nice (bought some delicious strawberries) but the rest of the area was a bit underwhelming. The best part was just going for a stroll along the riverside.
Good eats in Sevilla:
El Ronconcillo – An ancient bar (1670) and oldest restaurant in Seville. One first attempt, the tapas bar was too busy, and we ate a great meal upstairs instead. On the second night, we got a spot at the stand-up bar and enjoyed a great authentic tapas experience, tasting many different plates and enjoying the great atmosphere. (@theathletesplate)
La Canasta – A bit of a touristy spot, located right outside of the Catedral de Sevilla. But the quality was surprisingly good. Wide range of variety on the menu.
El Patio San Eloy – Enjoyed a great lunch on the patio in the sun here. Huge glasses of sangria and enjoyed their black rice with shrimp, squid, cuttlefish ink, and yogurt sauce.
Helados Raya – Best spot (in my opinion) for Gelato!
Love – A quaint cafe by our Airbnb for breakfast. If you’re looking for English style breakfast with eggs and ham, or classic fruit yogurt and granola, this is a good spot to go.
Must-see in Cádiz:
It cost us 50 euros for three of us to take a 90min train ride down to Cádiz, using Renfe trainlines.
Mercado Central de Abastos Ayuntamiento de Cádiz – super fun market to walk through. Tons of fresh produce and a huge variety of fish – including some of the biggest fish I’ve ever seen!
El Rincon de la Marena – A hole in the wall seafood restaurant that gifted us with the best meal we have had on our trip so far! We enjoyed chocos a la plancha (grilled cuttle fish), Doradas (grilled gilthead bream), and croquetas de Bacalao (house cod croquettes). (@theathletesplate)
La Caleta – The main beach in Cádiz, a really pretty spot but holy crap the water is freezing in March!
Stop into the tourist office and you can grab a map that has colour categorized walking paths (marked on the sidewalks) to see the best parts of the town. The path along the perimeter/shoreline of the city is really beautiful!
Seville is definitely a must-see city in Spain, but it might be a little over-hyped. Other than the Plaza de España, Alcazar (smaller version of the Alhambra in Granada), and the Catedral de Sevilla, I didn’t find it to stand out much compared to the other Spanish cities I have been to so far. I really enjoyed seeing a Flamenco show and the weather was great. Taking a day trip to Cádiz is also a must-do.
Next stop, Lisbon!
Comments