Seville

The Cathedral & the Giralda

One of the largest Gothic cathedrals in the world, built on the site of the city's great mosque. Inside, look for the carved main altarpiece, the choir and the monument to Christopher Columbus. The visit includes the climb up the Giralda, the former minaret turned bell tower, by a series of ramps rather than stairs, and the Patio de los Naranjos at the exit.

The general ticket also covers the Church of El Salvador, which you can use on Day 2.

The Real Alcázar

A royal palace still in use, built and rebuilt from the Islamic period to the Renaissance. The Palacio de Pedro I is the core of the visit: carved stucco, tiled dados and the Patio de las Doncellas — followed by the gardens, which need time of their own.

The upper royal apartments, the Cuarto Real Alto, are a separate timed visit if you want to see the rooms still used by the Spanish royal family.

Barrio Santa Cruz

The former Jewish quarter begins at the Alcázar's walls: narrow lanes, whitewashed houses and small squares planted with orange trees. Walk it slowly: Plaza de Doña Elvira, Plaza de Santa Cruz and the Callejón del Agua along the old wall are natural pauses.

Many of the lanes are shaded, which makes this the easiest part of the day to walk in the afternoon.

Casa de Pilatos

A private palace of the Dukes of Medinaceli, and the largest noble residence in the old centre. Its main courtyard mixes Mudéjar plasterwork, Renaissance arcades and walls of sixteenth-century tiles, with gardens opening off either side.

The ground floor can be visited on its own; the upper floor is a separate ticket, visited in accompanied groups.

El Salvador or the Setas

Choose one, depending on the day. The Church of El Salvador, the city's second church after the Cathedral, is included in the Cathedral ticket and has one of Seville's richest Baroque interiors.

A short walk north, the Setas de Sevilla — the timber canopy over Plaza de la Encarnación — offers a raised walkway over the rooftops, with Roman remains in the museum beneath.

Triana

Cross the Puente de Isabel II — the Triana bridge — to the neighbourhood that supplied Seville's tiles for centuries. At the foot of the bridge, the Mercado de Triana stands on the site of the former castle of San Jorge. Its food stalls trade mainly in the morning and close in the early afternoon, while the bars and eating counters inside stay open later — if the stalls are what interest you, come across before lunch instead. Beyond the market, ceramic workshops and tiled façades line Calle Alfarería and Calle San Jorge. Finish along Calle Betis, the riverfront facing the old city, for the evening walk and a late dinner.

Parque de María Luisa

Seville's main park, landscaped for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929: shaded avenues, fountains, tiled benches and pavilions left from the exhibition. In the warmer months it is the most comfortable place for a walk.

Plaza de España

The largest of the 1929 exhibition buildings: a brick-and-tile semicircle around a canal, with bridges and a tiled alcove for each Spanish province along the base. Walk the upper gallery for the views across the square, then come down to the canal.

Small rowing boats are hired on the canal when the service is operating; check on the day.

The Arenal & the river

Walk north through the Arenal, the old riverside district, to the Torre del Oro, the thirteenth-century watchtower on the Guadalquivir. From here the Paseo de Cristóbal Colón runs along the water past the Real Maestranza bullring towards the Triana bridge — a flat, easy walk to end the trip.