Page index:
• General
• Santiponce (Itálica)
• Carmona
• Jerez en Córdoba
• Ronda (White Villages)
• Granada (El Alhambra)
• El Rocío
• Parque Doñana
• Beaches of Seville
• More about Seville
General
Near or around Seville are plenty of options for nice day trips by bike, (rental) car, motor cycle, bus or train. Here are some tips to get ideas if you want to make a roundtrip through Andalusia. Visit our page Transport how you can organize easily and quickly your transport.
💡 Pata Negra (Spanish ham tasting)
Do you want to know why the meat of the Ibiran pig is so healthy and full of Omega 3 fats? Want to know the difference between the white pig and the Ibiran, black pig and why the taste is so great? Then view our Pata Negra Spanish Ham Tasting. Excellent as a culinary, educational day trip or day tour.
Santiponce
Itálica
About 10 kilometers from Seville lies the village of Santiponce with the reasonably well-preserved Roman settlement of Italica. This was once a flourishing city around the second century. Now it is an archaeological site where you can see the excavated amphitheater, Roman baths, several mosaics, etc. Approximately seventy percent is not revealed yet. The many hundreds pillars of the Mezquita in Córdoba all come from Itálica.
Monesterio San Isidoro del Campo
Once in Santiponce? Then visit also the monastery of San Isidoro del Campo. One of the oldest and most beautiful monasteries in Spain but hardly known or visited. Check the used different architectural styles, beautiful altars, sculptures and frescoes.
Go afterwards for delicious food in the village, for example Ventorrillo Canario just almost opposite the entrance and exit of Itálica. Known for the massive cuts of meat from the barbecue that you share all together!
Santiponce is from Seville, beside the car or bus also easily accessible by bicycle.
💡 Did you know that..?
The access to Itálica and monasterio San Isidoro del Campo is free for EU citizens upon presentation of your passport or identity card? So please do remember!
Carmona
Just over 20 kilometers from Seville is Carmona. A small but eye-catching city with its magnificent cultural heritage. You will find many remnants of several ancient cultures. For example, the Roman necropolis and amphitheater, just outside the small picturesque village, or the Moorish fortress Alcazar del Rey Don Pedro. Of course Carmona also features beautiful Catholic churches, such as Iglesia de Santa Maria de la Asuncion. Easily reached by (rental) car or bus (public transport).
Jerez and Córdoba
From Seville you are with the train in about 1 hour in Jerez or Córdoba. Also with a (rental) car or bus these cities are good to travel. Both nice towns that are worth a day trip.
Jerez is famous for its sherry. Please do not forget to visit any of the bodegas for a tour
with tasting.
Besides the sherry, Jerez is famous for its horse riding school
Real Escuela Andaluza de Arte Ecuestra. This is
due to the Andalusian horse breed (los caballos Andaluz). These horses are among the oldest horse breeds in the
world and are sought after and famous all over the world. Many breeds in the world are descended from the fast
and graceful Andalusian horses.
Córdoba is most known for its La Mezquita. At that time the second largest mosque in the world after Mecca. In the middle is built a huge cathedral after the Catholics conquered Córdoba from the Moors. A particularly impressive building with an area of 24,000 m2 and 850 columns which all come from the Roman city Itálica near Sevilla!
💡 Vacation home 'Finca Ángela Seville'
Did you know that Pia Tours Seville also has its own rustic vacation or holiday home (bed and breakfast) with swimming pool and spacious spots or places for your motorhome or camper? Take a look for an foto impression and our friendly prices on Finca Ángela Seville.
Ronda (white villages, pueblos blancos)
The magnificent medieval Ronda is, with the villages Grazalema and Arcos de la Frontera, one of the famous white villages (pueblos blancos) in Andalusia. Ronda is unfortunately difficult to reach by public transport. It has no train station and there are only a few buses going over there. With a (rental) car it is a beautiful scenic drive through the mountains of approximately 2.5 hours.
Ronda is an authentic town on the edge of a deep gorge (El Tajo) which creates spectacular views. El Tajo and Puente Nuevo you can not miss, of course when visiting Ronda.
Visit also the beautiful, small, white villages Benaocaz and Zahara de la Sierra with the still authentic Moorish atmosphere. Zahara de la Sierra has even a great enormous blue lake for swimming and other water sport activities.
Incidentally, the most beautiful white village, Vejer de la Frontera, is located far from here and near the surfers paradise and the beaches of Tarifa.
Granada (El Alhambra)
Also a beautiful city and about 2.5 hours from Seville. Of course you will visit the impressive Medieval Moorish palace, El Alhambra and the nearby beautiful gardens with the name Generalife. El Alhambra is the larger counterpart of Real Alcázar in Seville. If you want to see everything at a leisurely pace, set aside two days for this visit.
Then stroll through the narrow streets (just around the center) and the different neighborhoods. For example the Arab quarter or the artists' quarter where many artists live. Enjoy a drink with which you often get a free tapa in Granada.
Prefer not to visit the extremely touristy and (too) pricey Plaza de España right in the center of Granada.
💡 Whether or not to buy tickets online?
Order your tickets online and certainly three months from in advance to avoid the huge long queues or disappointment (no access space available anymore)!
El Rocío
El Rocío is the most famous place of pilgrimage. Each year nearly one million people from all over Andalusia, Spain and beyond visit El Rocío. Each Andalusian city has its own pilgrimages to honor his patron saint, the Virgin or other popular local figure. El Rocío, however, has a special cult and is by far the most important and colorful pilgrimage (La Romería) with more than 100 brotherhoods who come to this place every year.
The pilgrimage is in line with Semana Santa and Feria de Abril and begins on Saturday with Holy Rosary and ends when the Virgin returns to chapel on Monday morning.
La Romería is a pilgrimage of a week of passion, devotion, tradition, emotion and fun. El Rocío traces its history in the 13th century when a suitcase was found in the swamp containing a statue of Mary. On this place is the chapel or prayer house La Ermita de la Virgen del Rocio built.
Parque Nacional de Doñana
Doñana is a big national park with huge diversity of beautiful scenery which is a haven for many rare birds in Europe. The park is located between and in the provinces of Huelva, Seville and Cádiz.
Doñana is a versatile natural labyrinth of land and water swamps, lakes, streams, pine forests, dunes and cliffs with over 25 km of pristine beach with white sand. Bonanza, Gallega, Ribetehilos and El Lucio del Cangrejo are clear examples of the largest lagoons in this area and a shelter for thousands of native and exotic birds.
To see all this beauty there are several guided tours possible. Highly recommended for those who like to be caught by mother nature. Book a tour as early as possible in the morning to see most of the animals.
Beaches near Sevilla
Matalascañas and Mazagón
The nearest beautiful beach and sea from Seville is Matalascañas or Mazagón. Matalascañas has also a nice boulevard and with restaurants. Mazagón is more rustic without a boulevard or other facilities. By car you are there in only an hour, by bus a little longer. Look at our Transport page for the possibilities with public transport.
Zahara de la Sierra
This is a great alternative for a beach and sea. Zahara de la Sierra is one of the beautifull, small, white villages but has also a great enormous blue lake for swimming and other water sport activities. There is also a beach (look for playita). You need to have a (rental) car or motor cycle to get here.
Cádiz
Want a delicious day at the beach and sea? Then Cádiz is a good option. A nice small and historic towns with beautiful beaches. Especially when you go little bit away from downtown (by bus). Cádiz is from Seville both by bus and train easy to reach in about two hours. Look at our Transport page for the possibilities with public transport.
Huelva
One of the most beautiful beaches are at Huelva itself and a little further at called El Puntil. El Puntil is particularly beautiful with many beaches. Also an hour's drive from Seville. Look at our Transport page for the possibilities with public transport.
More beach days?
Then consider the lovely village of Conil de la Frontera or a little further, the surfers paradise Tarifa with nearby the beautiful white town Vejer de la Frontera. This area or places is absolutly worth visiting for a couple of days (or longer).
Seville beach
But why so far away? Seville has also beautiful beaches.
