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Sevilla was my first stop in Spain, and I couldn’t think of a better introduction to this wonderful country. The region of Andalusia is the romantic Spain of yore — Moorish architecture and bullfighting and flamenco — and Sevilla is its astoundingly beautiful capital.
I’ve seen a lot of Spain in the past few weeks. And while I haven’t seen every Spanish city renowned for its beauty — Toledo, Segovia, and Santiago de Compostela are a few notable absences — I feel like Sevilla is so, so much more beautiful than any other city in Spain.
Sevilla is just insanely good-looking from every angle. Just walking down the street, you could come across an intricately carved building like this…
Or a perfectly Spanish plaza lined with brightly colored buildings and horse-drawn carriages…
Or an effortlessly stylish bar on a streetcorner!
And yes, the most beautiful city in Spain pays homage to the most glamorous woman Spain has ever known: La Duquesa de Alba!
If you’re a Dlisted fan, you’ve no doubt heard about the Duchess of Alba. This woman is insanely rich — she has more money than the Queen of England and just married yet another much-younger husband. She may be royal, but it’s her attitude that makes her the ultimate glamour icon.
She’s Elizabeth Taylor crossed with Queen Elizabeth. With bigger jewels. I KNOW.
But of all the beautiful places to see in Sevilla, the monument that you must visit is Plaza de España.
This plaza was built in the 1920s in preparation for Sevilla’s 1929 hosting of the Ibero-American Exposition’s World’s Fair. Sevilla was made over during that time, and Plaza de España is undoubtedly its finest contribution.
I especially loved the alcoves. There is an alcove for each province in Spain, and they are each decorated in the province’s style. It’s a Spanish tradition to come to Plaza de España and pose in your province’s alcove.
Like this one for Castellon:
A lovely place to spend an afternoon, don’t you think?
And lest you think that Sevilla’s beauty is entirely classical and traditional…
There are mushrooms.
A bastion of Sevilla’s modern art scene, these infamous mushrooms loom over part of the city — but they in no part detract from the rest of Sevilla.
Sevilla became one of my absolute favorite places in Spain, for many reasons. It’s a perfectly sized city — not too large and very walkable, like Boston. The tapas are fabulous. It was also the warmest place I visited in Spain, with temperatures in the high 70s in early March! (Andalusia gets very hot during the summer, but it’s a perfect place to escape the cold of winter!)
I know I will return to Sevilla. I am absolutely positive about that.
Now…how about you? Do these photos make you want to pack your bags and book a ticket to Sevilla?
Is the river green because you were there on St. Patrick’s Day? haha
Looks simply stunning!
Heading here in July after the madness of Pamplona! Cannot wait. Cheers for the photos Kate.
Maybe I’ll see you at Pamplona! I’ve been weighing it.
I LOVE Sevilla! It was my home during Study Abroad, and I spent countless hours in the Plaza. I hope you got to Las Campanas just down the road from the Catedral.
If you still have time- pick up a Trufa Especial. You will NOT be sorry!
Wow.. Simply wow.. I am definitely adding this to my itinerary this summer. This city looks amazing
I could not agree more with your post about Sevilla. I was lucky enough to live there for 5 weeks in 2001 and loved every second. I loved the energy, the people, the charm, and the siestas!
Siestas are an unsung hero from Spain! They make SO much sense!
un lugar celestial
Sevilla looks amazing, this post has definitely put this city on my must-see list!! Great post and pictures!
The answer to your question is YES! I want to go there right now! It looks stunning. You have really moved Spain and Portugal up on my list, Kate.
Awesome! I’ve never been very attracted to Spain but this is helping me change my mind!
I followed the Traveler’s A to Z prompt today – http://voyage-on.blogspot.com/2011/12/travelers-z.html
So beautiful! I have toured all of Andalusia two years ago and ironically have not made it to Sevilla, and now I’m really angry! Such a beautiful place. I really hope one day I can make it there.
OMGGGG you mentioned my favorite gossip blog AND my favorite spaniard in one blog!? You are great. PS Today is the Duquesa’s 86th birthday, in acse Michael K. hasn’t brightened your day yet!!
He certainly did!! VIVA LA DUQUESA!
Bags packed – arrive in Spain Friday 13th – hope that is a GOOD omen!
Kate,
All the photos are great. Sevilla looks like my kind of place. Wow, and a statue of the Duquesa de Alba (when she was younger of course)? I knew about her but didn’t know she was so famous.
Ok, I need to go to Sevilla now. Seriously. Why have I never been?! It looks gorgeous!
I agree, Sevilla is definitely one of the most stunning cities in Spain, and the Plaza de España is absolutely breathtaking. (Although I must say Santiago de Compostela has so much charm in a completely different way, although I’m a little biased since I used to live there!)
I feel that Spain (and Portugal) are two very misunderstood and too-often-ignored countries when compared to other places in western Europe. Glad you enjoyed it!
I agree with you on that, Ashlee. They don’t have the fame they deserve, particularly Portugal. But they were PURE SUNSHINE (figuratively and literally!).
Looks beautiful, definitely prettier than some of the larger more well known cities in Spain.
spent two weeks there at end of January, weather 17-20 degrees cent every day. sunshine galore
a very beautiful place. would go back tomorrow. the cathedral and its giralda astonishing. the palace and it gardens, I didn’t want to leave and only a couple of euros to get in. and the beautiful espana square. Seville’s beautiful buildings with its tiling and its little cobbled streets. Its fantastic taco bars. it has one of the best old town centre’s I have seen in Europe. GO if you can
Great photos, Kate! Sevilla is one of our favorite places in Spain – can’t wait to go back!
Wow, beautiful photos! Sevilla is indeed quite photogenic – I love the flamenco scene over there. Apparently there are many restaurant basements where you can see locals dance the night away with traditional flamenco.
I 100% agree, Kate. Seville was my favourite stop on a three-week trip of Spain last year and I will definitely be going back. It was the perfect destination for my interests, I had an amazing place to stay, and I only covered about 25% of the things I wanted to do in this bustling (yet, compact) city.
I was there around the same time of the the Duqesa’s recent marriage and it definitely had an impact on the city. I managed to find a t-shirt in a tourist shop with “I <3 DQSA" on it, and her face is screened in the heart. It's positively amazing and one of my favourite acquisitions from the trip!
Great post and beautiful pictures!
I want that t-shirt, Krista!!
Lovely post and gorgeous pictures! You’ve just taken me back to Sevilla in 5 minutes. That city is gorgeous, the food is delicious and its light is truly unique.
I found it real fun too that you knew about Duquesa de Alba! I thought she was popular only in Spain.. she’s… well, she always does things her way and is the perfect descendant of her ancestor, the XVIII Duquesa de Alba that Goya painted as the Maja (the dressed and the nude ones!)
Honestly, if you read what Michael K at Dlisted writes about the Duquesa, you would probably be shocked!
These photos absolutely DO make me want to pack a bag and go to Sevilla – when I was considering doing a TOEFL course abroad, Sevilla was my number one choice to do it in (I ended up going down the online route due to being perpetually broke, however). The photos are gorgeous, Kate, and re-confirmed that Seville WILL be on my itinerary when I finally make it to Spain.
I’m happy to hear that, Tom! Excited to hear what you think when you arrive.
Gosh, you really saw Duquesa de Alba’s statue vandalized. Well, you’ll be happy to know then that it’s all cleaned up now.
As that glamorous lady should be!
I really liked Seville and wish I had more than the three days that I spent there. The ” problem” with Spain is that there are so many great places to visit that there is never enough time. I guess that is why I have been there three times in four years and can not wait to go back.
I agree — SO many places I want to visit in Spain!!
We get there as much as we can. Second only to Granada in our book – a very special city, and don’t even get me started on the food.
Wow – I have been to Sevilla and my camera never saw much action. It was before I met my husband and I’ve been going on and on about taking him there (and to nearby Jerez de la Frontera, also amazing) ever since.
I am keen to get up to date with all your adventures so far – I’m sure I’ll find good trip inspiration!
HolidayAddict
That is the problem with Spain. So many choices of beautiful cities and towns-so difficult to decide where to go. One can’t get enough of Spain.
Yessss, Sevilla the most beautiful city of spain for sure!!
Discover it in: http://www.discoveringsevilla.com
Just came across this post as I have been contemplating on going to Spain FOREVER! I’ve been thinking of checking out Andalusia when COVID-19 eases up and we can travel again. How long would you recommend people allocate to Seville? Grenada? Would 1 week each be sufficient?
One week each is a lot more than most people give them! I would recommend three days in each to begin with. You could also consider doing a day trip to Cordoba from one of them.