14 Gorgeous Spots in the Most Beautiful City in Spain (And No, It’s Not Barcelona)
The Andalusia region is an absolutely gorgeous, jaw-dropping part of Spain, that features gorgeous cities, white villages, and mountains and rolling hills. And without a doubt, the most jaw-droppingly beautiful city in this region is Seville.
Andalusia was conquered and inhabited by the Moors (a North Africa Islamic population) for almost 800 years, starting in the 700’s and ending in the last part of the 1400’s. This means that there is a lot of leftover Islamic influence in the architecture of the region, and you can definitely see that in Seville, Spain.
If you’re not very familiar with Islamic architecture, you are in for a treat – it is absolutely gorgeous. I visited Morocco about 1.5 years before visiting southern Spain, and found there to be a lot of similarities in the design of buildings of Andalusia and Morocco.
Islamic architecture features arches (including pointed, horseshoe, and multi-foil arches), symmetry, columns, and beautiful tiles and mosaics. This, combined with the Spanish Renaissance architecture throughout the city, makes for plenty of photo ops during your Seville itinerary.
14 Most Gorgeous, Instagrammable Places in Seville
Okay, let’s jump right into my favorite spots in Seville, perfect for a getting that perfect picture. Practically all of these spots are in the historical area of Seville, an area where many people choose to stay in Seville. Despite being centrally located, there are both top sites and hidden gems on this list!
1. La Giralda From Calle Mateos Gago
La Giralda is the name of the bell tower that is part of the Seville Cathedral. The cathedral was originally built as a mosque, and the bell tower was a minaret (a minaret is a tower attached to a mosque). La Giralda is visible from many points in the city and is a distinctive point in the Seville skyline.
While you can take pictures of La Giralda from a lot of locations and angles, I think one of the best viewpoints is from Calle Mateos Gago, where you can see the entire tower framed between the pretty, tree-lined street.
If you’re visiting Seville during Spain’s Holy Week, the processionals will all come by the Seville Cathedral.
2. The Windows in La Giralda
As a part of your visit to the Seville Cathedral, you can climb up to the top of the La Giralda Bell Tower. While climbing, there are many windows on the sides of the bell tower offering views of the city or back over the cathedral, depending on what side of the bell tower you are on.
The combination of the quatrefoil arches, the little balcony outside, the city and cathedral in the background, and even the crisscrossing gate makes this such a pretty spot in Seville.
3. Patio de Los Naranjos
When you leave the Seville Cathedral, you’ll exit through this beautiful Patio de los Naranjos – or courtyard of the oranges. Aromatic orange trees fill this courtyard, which has an intricate floor, a fountain, and a great view of the cathedral behind you.
4. Plaza de Espana
The Plaza de Espana was probably my favorite spot in Seville! It’s popular, it gets crowded, and everyone knows about it, but it is undeniably gorgeous.
Unlike many of the other sites in Seville, the Plaza de Espana is actually fairly new, having been built in 1928 for the Ibero-American Exhibition.
There are 52 of these intricately tiled benches that line the semi-circle of the plaza, and each one is dedicated to a province of Spain, and has the name of the province and a representative picture featured in the little cove.
Thanks to the lovely blue and yellow mosaics, as well as the curved balcony with arches and columns above it, this is a can’t miss photo spot in the Plaza de Espana of Seville.
The bridges and railings are all done up in the same stunning intricate blue and white tilework – don’t miss grabbing a photo by the bridge!
My overall tip for getting that perfect photo at the Plaza de Espana is to come early. I visited in early April and sunrise was at 8am, so I got there right at 8am. There were 5-10 other people in the entire plaza at that time, and I was able to easily get lots of pictures without others in them. By 9am, the plaza was FILLED.
5. Setas de Seville
Las Setas de Seville is a large, modern, “mushroom”-shaped installation, where you can walk underneath the “parasol” roof, or go up to the roof for a cool and unique view over Seville’s rooftops. There’s a small pathway to walk around the perimeter of the parasol, giving you many vantage points over the city.
The best time to visit Las Setas is indubitably right before sunset, as watching the sky get all aglow and then darken over Seville is absolutely beautiful.
At dark (starting at 8pm when we visited in late March), the rooftop turns into a lightshow, with lights changing and moving across the top of the parasol as music plays in the background.
To be honest, we were a little underwhelmed by the light show – it was pretty low key, with very soft, zen music playing in the background (we could barely hear the music), and the light movements were fairly minimal. Still, it makes for a good picture, and is worth staying for if you’re already up on the roof for sunset.
6. Marisa Luisa Park
Maria Luisa Park is an incredibly large greenspace in the heart of Seville. This 99 acre park has many interesting features and points of interest. The picture above is from Isleta de los Parajos, which has a cute little pond with a bridge, and a gazebo right by the water.
7. Royal Alcazar of Seville
The Royal Alcazar is a beautiful palace in the heart of Seville, with many opulently decorated rooms and courtyards to explore. Of course, you can find arches, intricately carved stucco, long basins of water, geometric design, and detailed tilework throughout the palace.
The picture above is the main courtyard, the Patio de las Doncellas, which is easily the most stunning part of the entire palace. However, this is also the busiest part of the palace.
If the Patio de las Doncellas is too busy for a good “Instagramable” photo, never fear – there are tons of other pretty little corners in the palace that are good photo spots.
If you want a picture without many other people in it, either come right at opening, or right before closing.
8. Plaza de Cabildo
Plaza de Cabildo is a cute little gem of a square tucked away in the historic center of Seville. This plaza is actually designed as a semi-circle, with the archways lining the rounded half of the circle.
Here, you can admire the double set of white arches, with marble columns and gold embellishments painted on the arches. The ground tiles are laid in a checkerboard pattern, and the whole plaza is very striking.
This is a great hidden gem in Seville that’s calmer and away from the big crowds you may find at other destinations.
9. Las Duenas Palace
The Las Duenas Palace is a gorgeous palace in Seville that combines Renaissance, Moorish, and Gothic design features and is a stunningly beautiful place to visit.
The combination of the different architectural styles makes for a rich and unique experience, with traditional Renaissance features like the marble flooring and the Roman sculptures with Moorish elements like colorful, detailed mosaics and intricately carved stucco on the arches around the palace.
Besides the main courtyard, there are several other gardens and courtyards, as well as interior rooms that feature opulent furnishings and beautiful tapestries. When I visited midday on a weekday, the Las Duenas Palace had very few visitors.
10. Casa De Pilatos
Casa de Pilatos is another palatial home that visitors can explore, and is a great, yet underrated beautiful place to visit in Seville.
The Casa de Pilatos is very similar to the Las Duenos Palace in that it has a large courtyard surrounded by columns and archways, but Casa de Pilatos was just a little more “homey”, with warmer colors.
The courtyards had more greenery, the walls were painted in warm yellows and reds, and these beautiful tapestries hung on the walls.
11. Confiteria La Compana
The Confiteria La Compana is a historic bakery in the northern part of the Seville. This beautiful, old-timey shop opened in 1885, and has been serving up pastries, desserts, and savory options since then.
I’ve been in many really beautiful cafes that also have bakeries attached to them, but I think this is the most beautiful straight-up bakery that I’ve ever visited.
And it’s not *just* a great Instagrammable place in Seville; Confiteria La Compana’s pastries are also incredibly delicious.
12. Torre del Oro
The Torre del Oro is a 13th century watchtower that sits on the banks of the Guadalquivir River in Seville.
While there is a museum inside and a viewing platform at the top, I think the best photo spot by the Torre del Oro is just to the north of the tower (on the right hand side if you’re looking at it facing the river), on the Paseo Mayor Marques del Contadero. Here, you get a bit of the river, the tower, and the palm trees all in the shot.
This paseo (or promenade) runs right along the river and is a relaxing place to stroll along, enjoy the views, have a little picnic, and do some people watching.
13. Tapas Bar
Tapas are small plates of food designed to be shared among the table, and there are a lot of delicious tapas to try in Spain. A table full of delicious plates of traditional Spanish food makes for a great photo op while you’re visiting Seville.
Our favorite two spots for tapas in Seville were Mamarracha and Dona Encarna.
14. Streets of Seville
Some of the prettiest spots in Seville are found just right on the streets of the city – Seville is just so dang charming. The buildings are all painted in warm shades of tan, gold, apricot, red, peach, pink, and even some greens and blues.
Orange trees line the cobblestoned streets, with café seating spilling onto the sidewalks as people relax and enjoy the afternoon sun.
You’ll find some of the most adorable streets in the Barrio Santa Cruz, which is the oldest and most historic part of the city. This area gets busier as the day goes on, but you can still find little tucked away alleys and streets that are empty, even during the middle of the day.
Map of the Most Beautiful Places in Seville
The Wrap Up
Seville is a charming, beautiful, and magnetic city full of interesting historical attractions, incredible architecture, and enticing food. Roaming the city and finding those perfect little corners is such a fun way to experience Seville.
And of course, there are plenty of beautiful villages and cities within 1-2 hours that are perfect as a day trip from Seville, where you can explore incredible sites and attractions as well. No matter how you cut it, southern Spain is an incredible destination.
