I have had enough of London soggy weather and desperately needed some sunshine. The answer was simple – Spain! I have been to mainland Spain several times now. I was fortunate enough to visit Barcelona, Valencia, and Madrid. All of my friends have been raving about Seville, as being one of the best places to visit in Spain – I had to go.
I have booked my tickets through EasyJet (£270, which was kind of expensive) and my hotel “Ribera de Triana Hotel” through Booking.com (£500, which was alright for a 4 star hotel 3 night stay).
“Fun” began while I was still boarding the plane. We all sat down and the pilot has announced that there was a crack in the wheel and an engineer has been called to decided if it was safe to fly as is or they need to replace it. In UK health and safety is top priority, so to no ones surprise they had to replace the wheel. This delayed our flight by 1 hour, but hey, safety comes first. At least we did not need to leave the plane. My flight was supposed to land around 8PM, but we landed around 9PM and by the time I got to the hotel it was 10PM (even though I had a transfer booked as well, since it was free with my hotel booking). Fun fact – most shops close around 10PM and you can’t buy anything anywhere unless you decide to go to the Bar or a restaurant. I have wandered around a bit, found a vending machine with some instant noodles, decided that that is going to be my dinner, ate it all and went to bed.
First full day in Seville
I woke up refreshed and went up to get breakfast. Hotel breakfast was great – they had all the staples of a buffet breakfast. I ordered scrambled eggs, got myself some Spanish spicy sausages, some veg, it was fantastic. Fresh orange juice was brought to the table as well – loved the service and the staff.
All fuelled up – I was ready to start exploring. City is very walkable, it took me around 20 minutes to get from hotel to the City centre. I walked past the bullring (Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza de Caballería de Sevilla), it was not a season for bullfights, but as someone who is against animal cruelty, I did not mind. My mission was to get into Catedral de Sevilla, La Giralda and Royal Alcázar of Seville. I managed to buy ticket for the first two, but Alcazar was sold out (by accident I bought a ticket for 1 May and did nto even notice). NOTE: PREBOOK TICKETS WELL IN ADVANCE for Royal Alcazar! Tickets for the Cathedral and La Giralda also included a visit to Church of El Salvador. You had to choose a specific time to enter to the Cathedral and La Giralda, but you could go to the Church whenever you wanted. Since I bough everything on the day, my timeslot was for 11:30, so quickly walked to the church and then went back to the cathedral and the tower. Do note, that there are two queues for the Cathedral – one for in person tickets (usually longer its where the horses are) and another one for online tickets (it is on the other side and will clearly state what time slot is being allowed in, it is near La Giralda on Google Maps).
Cathedral itself is very grand and beautiful. La Giralda and the climb to the top is a little overrated, as it is quite crowded and the view is quite limited.
My ticket for Royal Alcázar of Seville said entrance time of 3PM (At that time I did not realise I had bought it for the wrong date..) so I had some time to kill and what better way than to try local cuisine and regional specialties. I found a place that served local dishes for lunch – Pelayo bar and decided to stay there. Now I have heard that Seville is known for Salmorejo (A thick, creamy, cold tomato soup topped with egg and jamón) and Carrillada de Cerdo (Slow-cooked, melt-in-the-mouth pork cheeks). I ordered both, along with a familiar tapas dish – garlic prawns. Flushed it all down with a nice glass of fresh Sangria and was a happy bunny, sitting pretty with only 30 minutes until my time to get into the Alcazar.
It has been rather embarrassing to be turned away from the entrance to Royal Alcázar of Seville once they pointed out my mistake – but such is life. We get up and move on. I started to think what to do next and decided to do some research later that evening. Meanwhile I decided to walk towards another Seville attraction – Plaza de España. It is a massive square surrounded by gardens. beautiful architecture, feels very open. You could rent a boat and go along a small moat that surrounds it, sun was shining, my mood picked up.
After spending some time wandering the surrounding gardens it was time to head back and think about how to get into Royal Alcazar. I did find out that apparently they release a few tickets per timeslot every day and if you queue up early enough- you can get it. That settled it, I was ready for tomorrow, as I do not give up.
Last full day in Seville
I have read online that ticket office opens at 9AM, but to secure a ticket everyone suggested to arrive early, around 7AM-8AM. When I got there at 7:30 AM, I was around 300th in the line! So yeah, if you are ever in the same situation – get there earlier, around 7AM.
People continued to queue up behind me for a long time, but since number of tickets is limited, I almost lost out. The cut-off was about 50 people behind me, I was lucky.. Online they say that you need a passport to get a ticket, I was able to buy it by only using my UK Driving License. So yeah, passports, ID card, Driving license all works. (NOTE: Do check online in case they change their rules)
Overall I spent about 4 hours in the line, but I got my prize – a ticket to get in. I had no coffee, no food, so after choosing the timeslot and getting my ticket, I went in search of breakfast place and some well deserved coffee. Chose to stop at a place nearby that served scrambled eggs on toast, croissants, and coffee. It was amazing, but I was spent, so headed back to my hotel to take a nap.
After napping it was time to get into Royal Alcazar. I arrived promptly at the time of my choosing (3PM) and went in. The palace/castle is amazing. It has a blend of different architectural styles, a massive garden with ducks, peacocks, and a maze. Definitely worth the visit, but as I said before – make sure you book it in advance! Waiting in line for 4 hours is not worth it.
After the visit all that was left on my checklist was to see a Flamenco show, but I had that booked for later that evening. Meanwhile I had to try more tapas and beer. I found a lovely Iberico ham bar and then a local place where I had to try a Pringa. Success on both accounts. Full belly and a little tipsy – I went back tot he hotel to take another nap, so I could see the flamenco show rested. I chose to go to Casa de la Memoria. It was recommended by Google and since Seville is a birthplace of Flamenco, I decided to go there. The show was good, but it was more a sit down and watch kind of a deal. I had a different experience in Madrid, where you sit down, have food and drinks, and I prefer the later. Don’t get me wrong – the show is great and performers are masters of their art. It is more of a personal choice. Do you want to see a Flamenco show with kids and go home or do you want to a more intimate setting with food and drinks. Dealers choice.
My time in Seville has come to an end. My flight back to London was next day, around 11 AM, so I headed back. Overall – I had a good experience in Seville, lovely people, beautiful architecture, great food. I would recommend it as a great destination for a long weekend in the sun.
Stay happy!
AJ
