December in Seville.... Wow!

[Aslockton]

I have just got back from a pre-Christmas break to Seville... wow, what a place!!

It was buzzing with amazing sights, stunning Christmas lights, traditional music and great food.

It felt incredibly safe, clean and very reasonably priced (beer and wine E2 a glass in a tapas bar next to the cathedral, tapas E4 a plate).

We stayed in a great Airbnb next to the cathedral. The city was very walkable and had gorgeous orange trees everywhere.

We did a free walking tour (Guru walks - Best of Seville walk)
Plaza de Espana (free)
Real Alcazar palace E13.50
The Cathedral and tower E11
The Mushroom (must see at daytime and night as it is all lit up) Setas de Sevilla
Triana area
Santa Cruz (Jewish quarter) what a place to wander round and get lost in
The river cruise

The Christmas lights were amazing throughout the city. The atmosphere as you walked around in the evening was magical.

I would definitely recommend Seville as a pre-Christmas break.

Sounds fab. What was the weather like?

We went at New Year 2020. We have travelled quite extensively in Europe and it is probably my most favourite city.
Weather in the low 20's. We sat in the park on NYD drinking wine.
Loved it.

23 degrees yesterday! Most days were around 20 degrees in the daytime and about 14 degrees in evening.

Omg wish I was there!!

I am making a list of city breaks and will ad this to my list. I went to Lille, Gent and Bruges earlier this month and they were all nice, particularly Gent.

My DD went there for a week as part of her uni art course; on day one, her bag of art supplies was nicked while she was painting! But she loved the city apart from that, and I'm jealous. One day...

Me encanta Sevilla! I'm jealous now - but glad you had a good time.

Seville is really great, so glad you enjoyed it. There is a lovely atmosphere and buzz about it.

Andalusia is a brilliant part of the world for sure. Greetings from Estepona, had a lovely beach walk today from San Pedro to Puerto Banus. Buzzing and so well kept and clean. We are very lucky to have 20d and blue skies and sunshine. My first ever trip at Christmas, I will be doing it again, maybe every year now!

I absolutely adore Seville, but just in case people are rushing to book a trip to get some winter warmth on the back of this thread, it’s only 14-16 degrees (during the day) over the Xmas and NY period. Yesterday’s weather was exceptional!

I went in late March and it was perfect. ☀️

Oooh thank you, always wanted to go and even more tempted now!

Same. loved it. Definitely going to make it a regular winter break. Was 17c when we were there - lots of sun so warm enough to eat outside.

Thanks, Seville has been on my list of places to visit for a long time but the hot weather in summer puts me off. Never thought about going at Christmas!

I'm planning a trip to Seville in early May followed by Cordoba, Malaga and Ronda.

How lovely. Me and my dh are going the first week in January I hope it's still as lovely

We went this time last year. We loved the place, even my husband who normally avoids cities.

The only downside was that we caught covid, probably on the plane home.

We went last month after a 20 year gap. Loved it and can't wait to go back.

Here in late Feb. Weather has been 25 in the afternoon, some street signs showing 27/28 by 4pm. Mostly around 23 and a bit cooler in the morning and evening. Absolutely perfect and would thoroughly recommend the city. So much to do and see and do. Better than Barcelona.

@43ontherocksporfavor So pleased you are enjoying it. I try to log my itineraries on mumsnet so I can remember what we did and the approx costs when people ask. I am glad you had great weather like we did.

I must say, Seville has been one of my favourite city breaks.

Hi OP, home now. So sad to leave.We did:
Meteopol parasol-€15 each for two visits- we did one in the afternoon and one at night for the lights as we were staying in the area.
Alcazar- booked online in advance €32 each. Pricey but a must see, especially on a sunny day. We sat in the peaceful gardens to soak up the February sun.
Cathedral- didn’t go in as ran out of time but wandered around the outside many times as it’s so central.
Placa de Espania- Free and worth it for free busking flamenco music and dancing that was fantastic and saved us going to a live show.
Triana- walk over the bridge and enjoy this neighbourhood. Bustling Main Street, great tapas. Walk through the mercado by the bridge- can eat in there or just stock up on fruit etc. We sat by the river and ate the juiciest strawberries from the market and watched the kayakers.
Seville tower- €8 each to go up. This is a modern,red and cylindrical tower in Triana and is not the most appealing architecturally compared to historical Seville but my god the views from the top! You can just walk around the 360 view bar or sit and enjoy a cerveza in 5 star surroundings. We couldn’t believe how few people were there. Not expensive drinks either.
Santa Cruz area- very pretty winding streets full of lovely little shops and bars.
City bike hire- Great point of use bike hire- €2.59 for a day. We cycled by the cathedral (cycle lanes) down to the river and all the way along to the harp-like bridge. Can leave bikes at any designated place.Use the app.
Bull ring -€10 each. Interesting from a historical point of view but then realised they still hold bull fights March to October.
Very friendly city, got by with basic Spanish. Would go again.

Probs a good time to go…we once went in august …. Far too hot

Yeah we went to Barcelona in August and melted.

Could you or OP recommend accommodation?

We stayed in the Welldone Antiquarium near the Metropol parasol. It’s a modern apartment hotel in an old Seville side street. Has a kitchenette and roof terrace. Would stay there again.

Just to add that we walked everywhere and did 28k steps one day. It’s all very flat and we’re used to walking but the bike hire gave our feet a rest on one day!
Do eat in the little side street bars- much cheaper and more authentic. €4 a tapa and two beers or wines for €4 in most places.

https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/902992?guests=1&adults=1&s=67&unique_share_id=40752fee-e97f-4451-9ef4-0547b4b57b17

We stayed here! Right next to the cathedral with stunning views. The airport bus drops you a 2 minute walk away.