If you want to visit Seville Spain with a city break, it is advisable to take at least two full days to visit the city in Spain. You will be able to spend the first day of your trip visiting the two absolute highlights of Seville Spain, namely the Real Alcazar de Sevilla (the royal palace) and the impressive Seville Cathedral with the adjacent La Giralda tower. Because of the crowds and queues at these attractions, you will already lose the necessary time just to visit these two top attractions. You can spend the rest of the first day exploring the Santa Cruz district, the historic Seville city centre with its atmospheric narrow streets and nice restaurants. As you enter the main palace, the Palacio de Pedro I, the “domestic” nature of Moorish and Mudéjar architecture is immediately striking. This involves no loss of grandeur but simply a shift in scale: the apartments are remarkably small, shaped to human needs, and take their beauty from the exuberance of the decoration and the imaginative use of space and light. There is, too, a deliberate disorientation in the layout of the rooms, which makes the palace seem infinitely larger and more open than it really is. From the entrance court a narrow passage leads straight into the central courtyard, the Patio de las Doncellas (Patio of the Maidens), its name recalling the Christians’ tribute of one hundred virgins presented annually to the Moorish kings. The heart of the patio has recently been restored to its fourteenth-century original state after having been buried under a tiled pavement for four centuries. Archeologists have replanted the six orange trees that once grew in sunken gardens to either side of a central pool. The pool is now filled with goldfish – as it was in the time of Pedro I – a medieval way of eliminating mosquitoes in summer. The court’s stucco work, azulejos and doors are all of the finest Granada craftsmanship. Interestingly, it’s also the only part of the palace where Renaissance restorations are successfully fused – the double columns and upper storey were built by Carlos V, whose Plus Ultra (“yet still farther”) motto recurs in the decorations here and elsewhere. Salons de Carlos V and Embajadores

Sun-soaked Seville is an intoxicating mix of history, elegance and vivacious locals who know how to live the good life. Every street reflects a crossing of cultures and times, from the 500 years of Moorish rule to the opulent 16th-century buildings, built with the riches of the Spanish Empire, when ships sailed up the Guadalquivir River direct to Seville. The old centre is a tangle of narrow medieval streets, while the former gypsy neighbourhood of Triana, one of the birthplaces of flamenco, has become the city’s hippest hangout. Seville City Guide - Visit Sevilla Spain Tips and travel guide for visiting Seville and the Alcazar Sevilla The overwhelming Plaza de España is the most famous square in Seville. Several buildings were designed for the Ibero-American exhibition of 1929 in the Maria-Luisa Park. Seville’s Jewish Quarter is filled with small winding streets and is generally regarded as the most charming part of the city. The area gets pretty crowded but there are numerous small alleys and streets to explore where you can escape the crowds. Don’t miss this part of town. 5. Take a food tour While the high temperatures might keep you hibernating during the middle of the day, there’s still plenty to do in the long summer nights.

What to do

Go on a free walking tour– Like most of Spain, there are many opportunities to take advantage of free walking tours. Seville has a number and many depart from Plaza del Salvador. You just need to tip your guide. My favorite is New Europe. Just remember to tip your guide at the end!

Follow the locals to hole-in-the-wall bars, sip cañas (small glasses) of beer, and then get lost wandering the tiny streets of Barrio Santa Cruz, dotted with orange-tree-filled plazas, before resting in a quiet, shady corner on a tiled bench. For a more authentic experience, head to boho Macarena or tile-and-gypsy quarter Triana. Then, after dusk, head up the rooftops to admire the largest Gothic cathedral in the world and its Moorish-Christian tower from a terrace bar. SafetyWing– Safety Wing offers convenient and affordable plans tailored to digital nomads and long-term travelers. They have cheap monthly plans, great customer service, and an easy-to-use claims process that makes it perfect for those on the road. Tourist scams are prevalent as well so keep an eye out for groups of kids trying to distract you, as they’re probably trying to take your money. Additionally, be wary of people offering to carry your luggage. They may try to charge you a large fee. colour-coded chapters to every part of Seville and Andalucía, from Huelva and Sevilla to Córdoba and Jaén, Cádiz and Málaga to Granada and AlmeríaNorth of here is the main shopping and commercial district, its most obvious landmarks Plaza Nueva, Plaza Duque de la Victoria and the smart, pedestrianized c/Sierpes, which runs roughly between them. From La Campana, the small square at the northern end of c/Sierpes, c/Alfonso XII runs down towards the river by way of the Museo de Bellas Artes, second in importance in Spain only to the Prado in Madrid. Across the river is the earthier, traditionally working-class district of Triana, flanked to the south by the Los Remedios

A bus (€4) runs from the airport to town roughly every 20 minutes from around 5am to 1am. It makes a number of stops including Sevilla Santa-Justa train station and Plaza de Armas. Journey time is around 35 minutes. BY TRAIN Stay with a local– Couchsurfing is a great way to save money on accommodation while also getting some insight from a local. While hostels aren’t too expensive in the city, this is still the best way to save money and deepen your travel experience. HostelPass– This new card gives you up to 20% off hostels throughout Europe. It’s a great way to save money. They’re constantly adding new hostels too. I’ve always wanted something like this and glad it finallt exists. This large sculptural platform in the Plaza de la Encarnación used to be a car park but, in 2011, it was transformed into a massive public art project called Las Setas De Sevilla, or the Metropol Parasol. Resembling mushrooms (or more like a beehive in my opinion), the structure provides shade to the plaza below and there are two 85-foot panoramic platforms where you can take in the view. Admission to the platform is 10 EUR. 10. Hang out in Alameda The first trip around the world originated in Seville when Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sailed out along the Guadalquivir River in 1519. The river was the main maritime route for Atlantic traffic for over 200 years, making Seville the mercantile center of the western world in the 16th century. These days you can enjoy rowing and canoeing on the river or just simply relax by the shore and take in the scene. 12. Take a bike tourThere are tiny hole-in-the-wall tapas bars and warm evenings are spent sipping cool cañas (small glasses) of beer with locals at terraza bars that spill into plazas filled with orange trees. Then there are the festivities: the sombre spectacle of Semana Santa processions featuring hooded penitents and the unbridled joy of the Feria de Abril, all lavish flamenco dresses and sevillana dancing. An imposing Gothic cathedral towers over tiny, picturesque squares, framed by perfectly shaped, fragrant orange trees. The alcázar, built during Christian rule but with Islamic design, contains exotic palaces, fountained courtyards and walled gardens – an insight into the colourful past of this once powerful city. A large wooden structure, affectionately known as the mushroom, brings Seville into the modern-day. The best time to visit Seville is from March to May when fresh growth makes the trees and gardens a lush green, the temperatures are not too high, and the rains of winter are beginning to ease. In particular, a weekend to Seville in March and April can be a cheap way for northern Europeans to get some winter sun while enjoying a historically interesting place. With plenty of sunny days and much less rainfall, enjoy the landmarks of Seville in comfortable temperatures. If you want to venture further afield, autumn is a great time to visit the Sierra Norte Natural Park. SEVILLE IN WINTER Get Your Guide– Get Your Guide is a huge online marketplace for tours and excursions. They have tons of tour options available in cities all around the world, including everything from cooking classes, walking tours, street art lessons, and more!

Spend the early evening strolling through María Luisa Park, take a sunset cruise on the river and see a flamenco show followed by a late dinner in a square. SEVILLE IN AUTUMN Airbnb is available here as well, with private rooms starting at 30 EUR per night (but averaging double that). An entire apartment goes for at least 70 EUR per night though prices double if you don’t book early. Many include air-conditioning — useful to have for the hot summer season. The Alcázar is entered from the Plaza del Triunfo, adjacent to the cathedral. The gateway, flanked by original Almohad walls, opens onto a courtyard where Pedro I (who was known as “the Just” as well as “the Cruel”, depending on one’s fortunes) used to give judgement; to the left is his Sala de Justicia and beyond this the Patio del Yeso, the only surviving remnant of the Almohads’ Alcázar. The main facade of the palace stands at the end of an inner court, the Patio de la Montería; on either side are galleried buildings erected by Isabel. This principal facade is pure fourteenth-century Mudéjar and, with its delicate, marble-columned windows, stalactite frieze and overhanging roof, is one of the finest things in the whole Alcázar. The Salón del AlmiranteDespite initial military successes, the Almoravids failed to consolidate their gains in al-Andalus and attempted to rule through military governors from Marrakesh. In the middle of the twelfth century, they were in turn supplanted by a new Berber incursion, the Almohads, who by about 1170 had recaptured virtually all the former territories. Seville had accepted Almohad rule in 1147 and became the capital of this last real empire of the Moors in Spain. Almohad power was sustained until their disastrous defeat in 1212 by the combined Christian armies of the north, at Las Navas de Tolosa. In this brief and precarious period, Seville underwent a renaissance of public building, characterized by a new vigour and fluidity of style. The Almohads rebuilt the Alcázar, enlarged the principal mosque – later demolished to make room for the Christian cathedral – and erected a new and brilliant minaret, a tower over 100m tall, topped with four copper spheres that could be seen for miles around: the Giralda. The Alcázar Solo female travelers should feel safe here, however, the standard precautions apply (always keep an eye on your drink at the bar, never walk home alone intoxicated, etc.) In the summer (June-August), the weather is hot and sunny, with daily highs reaching upwards of 38°C (100°F). While the city is lively during the summer, it can be very taxing to explore in the heat.