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Planning a trip to Seville
Sevilla’s international airport is Aeropuerto San Pablo (tel. 91-321-10-00; code: SVQ), located 10km (6.25 miles) from the city center along the A-4 highway. Línea EA buses (tussam.es) leave for the city center every 20 minutes. The fare is 5€; pay the driver with card or cash. Buses terminate at Plaza de Armas station, but for many visitors it will be more convenient to get off at Torre del Oro near the cathedral. Official taxis (white with a yellow stripe) charge a flat fare to the city center: 25€ during the day, 28€ after 9pm and at weekends.
The main train station is Estación Santa Justa on Avenida Kansas City. More than 20 high-speed trains operated by Renfe (tel. 91-232-03-20) and private competitors Iryo and Ouigo run daily from Madrid to Sevilla (trip time: 2 hr. 40 min., cost: 25€–80€). Trains from Córdoba to Sevilla leave roughly every 20 minutes (trip time: 1 hr., cost: 15€–45€). There are regular trains daily from Málaga (trip time: 2–3hr., cost: 28€–50€) and a handful from Granada (trip time: around 3 hr., cost: around 30€–50€).
The main bus station, Estación de Autobuses Plaza de Armas (tel. 95-503-86-65), handles long-distance connections, while buses within Andalucía use Estación de Autobuses Prado de San Sebastián (tel. 95-547-9 2-90), near Plaza de España. Several companies operate from these stations. Alsa (tel. 90-242-22-42) and Damas (tel. 95-925-69-00) cover most of the main routes.
By car, several major highways converge on Sevilla. It is 530km (329 miles) southwest of Madrid, 145km (90 miles) west of Córdoba, and 205km (127 miles) northwest of Málaga. It is easy to reach, but difficult to drive around. The street corners of the old town bear the paint of scraped cars and parking can be a nightmare. Ask your hotel about parking arrangements and plan to leave your car there for the rest of your stay. Parking costs around 20€ a day.
Visitor Information in Seville
There are several tourist offices dotted around the city. The main ones are next to the cathedral at Plaza del Triunfo, 1; beside the town hall at Plaza de San Francisco, 19; and close to the Torre del Oro on Paseo Alcalde Marqués del Contadero, s/n. They are open Monday to Friday 9am to 7:30pm, 9.30am to 3pm at weekends. For information before you travel, and to download a free map, go to visitasevilla.es, or call 95-421-00-05.
Top Festivals in Seville
By far the most popular times to visit Sevilla are during the Feria de Abril (April Fair)—the most famous feria in Spain—and during Semana Santa (Easter Holy Week), when the streets are filled with religious processions. Hotel prices rocket in April, and you’ll need to book months in advance.
Semana Santa (Holy Week) features Spain’s biggest and most passionate religious processions. Some 70 church brotherhoods take part, shouldering massive, elaborated decorated floats (pasos) bearing statues of Christ and the Virgin Mary through the crowded streets. Penitents in sinister-looking pointed hoods and robes lead the way, culminating on Holy Thursday when processions to the cathedral carry on throughout the night. For procession schedules, visit sevilla.abc.es/pasionensevilla, or simply follow the guys in the pointy hats.
A couple of weeks later, the Feria de Abril takes over. Originally a horse fair, this week-long party fills the fairground (recinto ferial) across the river. Many fair-goers dress in flamenco or equestrian gear, arriving on horseback or in carriages, a glass of manzanilla sherry in hand. Daily bullfights are staged at the Maestranza. Some complain the feria is an unwelcoming event—sevillanos themselves jockey for years to get access to a caseta, one of the private tents where eating, drinking, and dancing continue non-stop. Public casetas exist, but they are usually impossibly busy. It’s best just to go with the flow—wander the sandy avenues and enjoy the spectacle. For more information, see visitasevilla.es.
Neighborhoods in Brief
The Centro Histórico is the heart of historic Seville and contains its most imposing sights. Of these, the massive Seville Cathedral (Catedral de Sevilla) is the dominant attraction. It's the area where you'll want to spend the most time, and it's also where you'll find the finest hotels and restaurants.
Other important neighborhoods include:
Barrio Santa Cruz -- This is an area of wrought-iron cancelas (gates), courtyards with Andalusian tiled fountains, art galleries, restaurants, cafes, tabernas, flowerpots of geraniums, and winding narrow alleyways. The former ghetto of Seville's Jews, it's today named after a Christian saint and is the single-most colorful part of the city. Filled with interesting sights, such as Casa Murillo and some fascinating churches, it's one of Andalusia's architectural highlights. See our full description here.
La Macarena -- Thought to be named for a Roman, Macarios, and the site of his former estate, this is a famous quarter of Seville that seems sadly neglected by visitors, who spend most of their time in the two quarters discussed above. It's filled with interesting attractions such as the Convento de Santa Inés (reached along Calle María Coronel). According to legend, King Pedro the Cruel was so taken with Inés's beauty that he pursued her incessantly -- until she poured boiling oil over her face to disfigure herself. See our full description here.
Triana & El Arenal -- These two districts were immortalized by Cervantes, Quevedo, and Lope de Vega, the fabled writers of Spain's Golden Age. They were the rough-and-tough seafaring quarters when Seville was a thriving port in the 1600s. In El Arenal, the 12-sided Torre del Oro (Gold Tower), built by the Almohads in 1220, overlooks the river on Paseo Cristóbal Colón. You can take the riverside esplanade, Marqués de Contadero, which stretches along the banks of the river from the tower. The area's Museo Provincial de Bellas Artes houses Spain's best collection of Seville's painters, notably Murillo. Across the river, Triana was once the Gypsy quarter but has now been gentrified. See our full description here.
Getting Around
Sevilla is easily walkable—there are no hills to speak of and most of the key sights are clustered in a small area on either side of the river. But bear in mind it is almost always hot. If you need to get from one end to another in a hurry, hop on a bus or tram (1.40€ per trip) instead of paying around 10€ for a taxi.
C3 and C4 buses follow the ring road around the old city center; the small C5 takes a circular route through the center.
The single line tram service runs from Plaza Nueva toward Plaza de España and passes the cathedral.
A municipal bicycle rental scheme, Sevici (tel. 90-090-07-22), provides access to red bikes parked on racks at 260 stations across the city. You can sign up on your mobile phone. It’s free for the first half hour, and roughly 1€ for the next hour, 2€ an hour after that.
Taxis are easy to find on the street and at cab ranks; a green light on the roof and a sign libre in the windshield indicates they are available. To order a cab, call Tele Taxi (tel. 95-462-22-22) or Radio Taxi (tel. 95-458-00-00). The taxi apps Cabify and Uber also operate in Sevilla.
The Metro subway system is useful for city commuters, but most visitors won’t need to use it.
A Driver-Unfriendly City -- Be warned that driving here is a nightmare: Seville was planned for the horse and buggy rather than for the car, and nearly all the streets run one-way toward the Guadalquivir River. Locating a hard-to-find restaurant or a hidden little square will require patience and luck. We'd recommend you don't rent a car for your time in the city. If you're planning a road trip around the region, pick up a car as you're leaving. There are all the usual rental brands at the airport.
Fast Facts
ATMs -- There are dozens of ATMs around Seville, especially near the cathedral. You'll get a far better rate at the ones connected to banks (always check) than you will at the Currency Exchange services (and the ATM's some now have).
Babysitters -- If you need a babysitter, ask the concierge or reception desk of your hotel. You will not always get an English-speaker, however.
Dentists -- Sevilla Dental offers emergency and after-hours procedures, and has a kind English-speaking staff. It has several offices in Seville.
Doctors -- Your hotel can provide you with the names of doctors, but in an emergency you should dial tel. 112 from any phone. Otherwise, contact the Costa Medical Services which keeps a staff of English-speaking physicians who do house calls.
Emergencies -- For the police or fire department, call tel. 112. For an ambulance, dial tel. 112.
Hospitals -- The city's biggest and best equipped is Virgen del Rocío, Av. Manuel Siurot s/n (tel. 95-501-20-00), about 2km (1 1/4 miles) from the city center.
Pharmacies -- One of the biggest is the Farmacia Puerta de la Carne, Calle Demetrio de los Ríos 3 (tel. 95-441-44-53). Check any pharmacy window for the name and address of an all-night pharmacy -- pharmacies rotate that duty. You can also check this website to see which pharmacies are currently open.
Police -- The police station is on Paseo de las Delicias (tel. 95-428-94-44).
Post Office -- The main post office is at Av. de la Constitución 32 (tel. 95-422-47-60).
