Located near the River Guadalquivir in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula, Seville is the capital and the largest city in Andalusia, Spain. It is the fourth largest city in Spain by population after Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia.
The 54-square-mile city has been named by MailOnline Travel as one of the most walkable cities in Europe.
“Seville is a city built for walking,” argued Lonely Planet. Its “winding streets” and the lack of hills in the city’s historic centre – Casco Antiguo – are “so narrow” they “prohibit most traffic”. It is here that most of the city’s most important sights are located, in an area about two square miles.
“The traffic-free cobbled streets, riverside promenades, parks and squares mean there are plenty of reference points to help you avoid getting lost.”
Seville is a big tourist centre, with over three million tourists a year according to The Guardian, placing it third behind Madrid and Barcelona.
The city is approximately 2,200 years old, with its mythological founder being Hercules (or Heracles in Greek). According to the myth, he sailed through the Strait of Gibraltar to the Atlantic Ocean and founded two trading ports at the current sites of Seville and Cadiz. Seville harbour, 50 miles from the Atlantic Ocean, is Spain’s only river port.
The Old Town is home to a UNESCO World Heritage Site comprising three buildings: the Alcazar palace complex, the Cathedral and the General Archive of the Indies. Seville Cathedral, built in the twelfth-century, is considered to be the largest Gothic cathedral in the world, as well as one of the largest in general.
Its bell tower, Giralda, is one of the most prominent landmarks. It was heightened in the sixteenth-century by the addition of a large Renaissance-style belfry, bringing total height to around 96 metres.
The Plaza de Espana is a more recent addition to Seville, built in 1928 in the Parque de Maria Luisa. It is a huge half-circle, with the buildings accessible by four bridges across the moat which represent the ancient kingdoms of Spain. At its centre lies the Vicente Traver fountain. The Plaza de Espana has been used as a filming location for several iconic films, including Lawrence of Arabia (1962) and Star Wars Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002).
There are also many Roman features to Seville, including the remains in the underground Antiquarium of the Metropol Parasol building, the remnants of an aqueduct, three pillars of the temple in Marmoles Street and the columns of La Alameda de Hercules. The walls surrounding the city were originally built during the rule of Julius Caesar, but their current course and design were the result of Moorish reconstructions, who ruled Spain from 711 to 1492.
Despite being extremely walkable, summers in Seville are definitely not the easiest walk in the park. It is classified as having a Mediterranean climate, with very hot, long dry summers and mild winters. The Guadalquivir Valley is often referred to as the “frying pan of Spain” as it features the hottest cities in the country.
Indeed, Seville is the warmest city in Continental Europe and Spain, with summer average highs of above 35C. Temperatures above 40C are not uncommon, with it being the first city in the world to name a heatwave – “Zoe” – in July 1995, where temperatures of 46.6C was registered at Seville Airport.
In September, mean daily temperatures are a balmy 25C, with average daily maximums of 31.6C and lows of 18.4C. With an average of 3,000 sunshine hours per year, Seville is the perfect city break to nab the last rays before winter sets in.