The sights of Seville in 24 hours
Visiting Seville, while we were staying in The Algarve in Portugal, was surprisingly easy…just a two and a half hour drive from Faro and we didn’t even use the motorway. We arrived in time to check into our hotel and grab a quick lunch before we met our guide for the afternoon. As you can see, the weather was beautiful, with blue skies and temperatures of up to 22 degrees during the day, but it was cool at night.
Seville is the largest city of Andalusia (in Spain) and the province of Seville.
ROYAL ALCAZAR PALACE
Our first stop was the Royal Alcazar Palace. Having a guide means you get to skip the queues. This was not a problem in November, but if you are there during a busy time it would be essential.
The Palace is Seville’s major attraction and it did not disappoint. The upper floors of the palace are still used by the Spanish Royal Family, though we didn’t get to see them. Work began on the complex in the 10th century when a Moorish fortress was attached to the Roman city walls. In the 12th century, a royal palace was built on the site while additions and renovations continued until the 19th century. So we saw a mixture of Moorish, Renaissance and Mudejar architecture. The photo below was where we began our tour and dates back to the 12th century.
I was particularly taken with the amazing formal gardens with pools and fountains that sit closest to the palace. From one, the Jardín de la Danza (Garden of the Dance), a passage runs beneath to the photogenic Baños de Doña María de Padilla (María de Padilla Baths).
Fans of ‘The Game of Thrones’ series will surely recognise the Palace and specifically the Baths (below) appeared in the sixth season as the residence of the House Martell.
We enjoyed walking through the Galeria de Grutesco, a raised gallery with porticos fashioned in the 16th century out of an old Islamic-era wall.
THE CATHEDRAL
Then it was on to the largest Gothic cathedral in the world, housing 80 chapels and the longest central nave in Spain. Work began on the site of the city’s former mosque in 1401 and in just over a hundred years the cathedral was completed. Everything in the Cathedral is colossal. The main altarpiece is considered by many to be one of the most outstanding works in the history of art. The cathedral also holds the remains of Christopher Columbus.
All that remains of Seville’s great mosque is part of its minaret, which is now the cathedral’s Giralda bell tower. The minaret was originally topped with giant copper globes, but these fell off in an earthquake in 1365. They were replaced with a Christian cross and bell tower. For a long time, it was the tallest building in the world (101 metres counting the beautiful weathervane). When you climb up to the top, you can see the whole city.
DAY 2
We stayed right beside one of Seville’s most controversial structures. The Metropol Parasol, the world’s largest wooden structure, is known locally or ‘The Mushrooms’, because of the distinctive shape of its vast wooden canopies and supporting pillars.
When work started on the Mushrooms in 2005, Roman remains were found underneath the Plaza, which made the construction a lengthy and controversial process.
To preserve the extensive remains, which can be seen on the lower ground floor, these enormous wooden fungi are supported on just a few elegant white pillars above the square . You must take the elevator to the top for impressive views of the city.
We had some trouble finding the way to get to the top, but you can see the Spanish have a sense of humour. Obviously this poor senorita (below) was fed up explaining!
We stayed in the quirky Hotel Palace Sevilla just beside The Parasol and it was great value.
We found lovely tapas bars and restaurants to eat and were not disappointed in either the value or the food. It was a short visit but we saw two UNESCO World Heritage Sites and we had fun in the sun. And it was November so we avoided the crowds.