A Week in Spain: Seville & Barcelona
Spain has a lot to see. On a prior trip, we tackled Madrid and Basque country. It was time to dip our toes in the South! I absolutely love “second cities” – the not-so-big but culturally rich cities that are near the large capital cities that so often dominate travel itineraries. Seville is a perfect “second city” – lots to see and do, a rich immersion in history and culture, easy to navigate, and less daunting than a big city like Madrid. I challenge you to consider seek out the second cities to serve as your home base on your travel abroad, and force yourself to spend more than one or two nights – your experience may be richer and less chaotic.
Southern Spain at a Glance:
A Leisurely 9-day Itinerary for Seville & Barcelona
| Day | Lodging | Activities |
| 1 | Seville (AirBnB) | Arrive – fly, or take 2 hr fast train from Madrid Stroll the city 7pm Tapas food tour (recommended: Devour Tours) |
| 2 | Seville (AirBnB) | 9:30am Royal Alcazar palace* (allow 2 hours) 4pm Seville Cathedral* (allow 1 hour) 6pm Stroll Jewish Quarter 7pm Flamenco show at La Casa Del Flamenco* 8:30pm Dinner |
| 3 | Seville (AirBnB) | Day trip: – Jerez (white hill town with royal Andalusian riding school+ sherry tasting) 1 hr by train – Rhonda (white hill town) 2.5 hrs by bus, 3.5hr train – Grenada (Alhambra*) 3 hrs by train each way – Both Gibralter & Tangier doable as a long day trip – Beaches – many options (some better than others) |
| 4 | Seville (AirBnB) | Consider another day trip, or explore more of city 6pm Pre-dinner sunset stroll through Plaza de España 8pm Dinner (recommended: tasting menu at Ispal) |
| 5 | Barcelona (Ohla hotel) | 8:45am Depart Seville on train to Córdoba (45 min) 9:30 Arrive Córdoba, store luggage, taxi to Mezquita 10:00am tour Mezquita 12:00pm: explore Jewish quarter, have lunch 3:45pm: catch train to Barcelona (4 hr 40 min) 8:22pm: arrive Barcelona, taxi to hotel, late dinner |
| 6 | Barcelona (Ohla hotel) | 9:00am La Sagrada Familia* (2 hrs) 11:00am: Park Guell* (1 hr) Lunch: we took a paella cooking class near Park Guell; consider lunch at Santa Catarina market near hotel. 5:00pm: stroll – Playa de la Barcelona or El Raval 6:30pm Food tour – Food Lover’s Company or Devour |
| 7 | Barcelona (Ohla hotel) | Consider: – Day trip to Girona (45 min train) – Day trip to Montserrat (1 hr train) – More options here and here 8:00pm dinner (recommended: Bodega 1900) |
| 8 | Barcelona (Ohla hotel) | Morning: visit Casa Mila/La Pedrera* & Casa Batlló* Lunch: La Boqueria market or Maitea Taberna After lunch, consider Picasso museum* 7:0pm Vermouth and tapas near hotel 8:15pm: arrive early at Palau de la Música Catalana to explore venue 9:00pm Concert at Palau de la Música Catalana |
| 9 | Depart | On to the next destination! |
Notes on our itinerary: We decided to take it slow, and made sure to scheduled down time each day for R&R but also to just soak in the local culture. More ambitious travelers could certainly condense this itinerary by eliminating day trips to also fit in Madrid within the same week (and if so, a day trip to Toledo is also a must). Consider rearranging the order if it works better for fitting in a particular special event, like a bullfight or concert. Ending your trip in either Madrid or Barcelona will give you lots of flight options home (and, should your flight get cancelled, you’ll have lots of alternative options too). For how to book this trip on points and miles, see our related post.
What to pack: as little as possible! our recommended packing list is here, along with our packing tips.
Seville
Arriving in Seville: Seville has a smaller airport with easy connections to other major European hubs. We flew through Madrid then on to Seville on Iberia. By train, Seville is just 2.5 hours from Madrid on the fast train, and 5.5 hours from Barcelona. We turned on our cell phone’s international service on arrival, and used Uber to get to our AirBnB (pickup was in a designated area in the parking garage across the street). We used the airport ATM to grab some cash, using our fee free Charles Schwab debit card (which refunds all domestic and international ATM fees).
Good to know: we visited in October (2019), and the weather was perfect. Generally, Seville is one of the warmest cities in Europe and has warmer weather all year round, so it is a great place to visit in the off season. The sun does not rise until roughly 8-9am; consequently, this is a late rising town. Get used to sleeping in, starting your day late, and eating dinner late.
Seville is a very walkable city – rarely is there need for a taxi. A tram passes through the main areas and is easy to use. I strongly recommend staying within easy walking distance of the Calthedral and Royal Alcazar. I can’t recommend the AirBnB we stayed in highly enough – it was exceptional, with a huge open terrace overlooking the Cathedral and Alcazar; our host was easy to contact and had great suggestions for our trip! (it was on the top floor of the building, but thankfully the elevator was functioning perfectly – always good to ask when in Europe as not all older buildings have functional elevators).
I could have spent 2 weeks in Seville, exploring the surrounding area, but at minimum you should need 2 nights and a full day.
Booking activities in advance: the Royal Alcazar Moorish palace, Church of the Savior, and the Cathedral in Sevilla all can – and should – be booked well in advance. One pitfall we ran into was that the Royal Alcazar’s website would not accept a foreign credit card – I tried multiple devices and web browsers before figuring this out. Consequently, we booked an inexpensive tour that included entry – and when the tour got way too long winded, we jumped ship and explored on our own. The Alcazar is beautiful and was a highlight of our trip. We also opted to book a small group tour for the cathedral as well – thankfully that guide was much better, and lasted less then an hour, allowing us time to climb the Giralda bell tower – highly recommended.
Seville is known for its bullfighting, so check the calendar in advance and buy tickets early if you want to attend. La Maestranza bullfight season usually runs between late March and early October, with April hosting the most important fights. The bulls were on vacation during our time there, but it is still possible to visit the Museo Taurino (Museum of bullfighting). If you are into horses, don’t miss a day trip to Jerez de la Frontera (~1 hour by train) to visit the Royal Andalusian Riding School – check their website ahead of time for which days you can watch them perform. Lastly, find a flamenco show – the show at La Casa Del Flamenco is only an hour and the talent is impressive.
A food tour was the perfect way to kick off our trip. You get to learn a bit of the history of the city, you get to know the city a bit by walking around with a guide, and – best of all – you learn what you should eat and drink while you are there. Your guide can teach you what and how to order your favorites, and provide you with some great local suggestions on where to go during the remainder of your trip. It is always a little dicey booking a tour for the day of arrival, as flights could be delayed, but we took the chance since our flight arrived into Seville in the morning and we felt we had plenty of time to scope out a plan B for getting there in time for our tour. We had a great experience on the “Tapas, Taverns, and History” tour with Devour Food Tours– starting off with vermouth tasting and a few tapas, touring the city with stops for more tapas, and ending at a sit down restaurant. (Of note, it was a lot of walking, so be prepared with good shoes – and we were glad we took a taxi to the meeting point.)
Restaurant recommendations: The food tour gave us some great ideas and suggestions, as did our AirBnB host. Casa Morales is a small historic tapas bar near our lodging and we found ourselves going back there several times. Other recommended tapas bars include Bar El Comercio, Zelai, Az-Zait, and Ovejas Negras. For a fancy, more modern tasting menu at a very reasonable price compared to American restaurants, Ispal was wonderful and one of our favorite meals ever. Taberna del Alabadero (for suckling pig) and Enrique Becerra (offering a 3 course tasting menu) were also on our list, but we didn’t make it – we actually enjoyed the spontaneity and low key atmosphere of the local bodegas and tapas bars. More restaurant recommendations are here and here.
Córdoba (Cordova)
Arriving in Cordova: Cordova is a stop on the 5.5 hour train route between Seville and Barcelona, so while it can be an easy day trip from Seville (45 min each way), I thought it made more sense as a stopover en route to Barcelona. We took the 8:45am train from Seville, arriving in Cordoba at 9:30am and departing for Barcelona at 3:45pm (we did book this train in advance, since it was a longer train ride and this part of our itinerary was not flexible). Back behind the train station is a luggage storage facility with large lockers you can rent for the day. Once you drop your luggage, grab a taxi and head to the Mesquita, which is the star attraction of the city.
There was not a way to purchase tickets for the Mesquita in advance; we were advised to bring cash as the cash ticket line is often much shorter, but the lines weren’t long the day we visited. We found the audio guides sufficient, but tours are available.
After the Mesquita, spend some time strolling the city before catching the late afternoon train to Barcelona. Some recommendations for spending your time are found here.
Barcelona
Arriving in Barcelona: Barcelona feels more isolated from the rest of Spain; you can take the train from Madrid, Seville, Cordoba or Grenada, otherwise you will probably find it far easier to fly here. Both the train station and the airport are a short taxi from the city center. I opted to arrange transportation in advance though our hotel, although this was not necessary. On a prior trip, we stayed at a small hotel just north of Plaça de Tetuan, halfway between La Sagrada Familia and the Barri Gòtic, which was not as atmospheric and involved a lot more walking; on this trip, we stayed in Barri Gòtic – the “old city” in the heart of Barcelona. I love the narrow, pedestrian only streets and the ancient architecture. We stayed at Hotel Ohla – chosen for its location on the Eastern edge of Barri Gòtic, allowing easy access to a main road and a taxi when needed, close to the Santa Catarina market, yet very walkable to many sights, and within steps we could instantly be immersed in the old city. It was also far from Las Ramblas, which I hoped to avoid. Hotel Ohla had beautiful rooms and a rooftop pool area and bar to die for. We spent every afternoon hanging out at the pool, staring at the incredible view. (Note: You can book Hotel Ohla for free on points, as we did, through Chase Ultimate Rewards. As of the date of this post, the hotel is open, with COVID19 safety protocols in place.)
Good to know: Barcelona is infamous for its pickpockets, and thefts are common. I’ve had one friend get pick pocketed in Las Ramblas, and another get her purse snatched. Las Ramblas tends to be a hot spot for thefts, and it isn’t my favorite area of Barcelona anyway, so we avoided it entirely on this trip. When walking around Barcelona, I recommend carrying only the bare minimum: 1 credit card and a bit of cash, carried in a money belt or hidden zippered pocket, and leave your passport and the rest of your wallet in your hotel safe. Unless you are boarding a plane or train for another destination, you should never carry all of your cash and credit cards on you at once. We also keep photocopies of our passport locked in the hotel safe and stashed in our bag just in case.
The weather in October was pleasant, warm during the day, and a sweater or jacket needed at night. On our prior trip we came over Thanksgiving week in November and it was quite cold and windy – winter jackets were a must. I still prefer the off season or shoulder season.
Booking activities in advance: the sights to book ahead include Barcelona’s La Sagrada Familia, Picasso Museum, La Pedrera/Casa Mila, Casa Batlló, and Park Güell. Unfortunately, this means planning your itinerary well in advance so you don’t miss out. For La Sagrada Familia, purchase a ticket that includes an audioguide, and if heights and stairs don’t bother you, purchase a ticket to climb one of the 2 towers (we opted for the tower on the Passion facade).
While the Palau de la Música Catalana can be toured on its own, the best way to experience the venue is by attending a live concert. We picked “A Tribute to Paco de Lucía”, which was a mixture of Spanish guitar and flamenco – incredibly talented performers, well done, and not at all cheesy. At the time of our visit, they had performances scheduled a few times per month, so be sure to work this into your itinerary if you can.
A food tour is also recommended, again, to learn a bit about the city, its cuisine, and culture. We used The Food Lover’s Company for our tour and had another great experience – it even included a private sunset view from the tower of the cathedral. (Devour also operates in Barcelona). We also highly recommend a cooking class if you have the time.
Restaurant recommendations: Where do we start? The food tour was so worthwhile, just to see so many unique places and to try different tapas, but the tapas tasting at Bodega 1900 was superb – fresh local produce, unfussy and unpretentious, just extremely good food. (If you are foodie, it is hard to pass up dinner at any of the elBarri restaurants.) For a splurge, try Tickets or El Cellar de Can Roca. I recommend Eater’s 38 Essential Restaurants in Barcelona for further recommendations – view the map and you can see what is close to where you will be. I recommend at least one lunch at either the less chaotic Santa Caterina market or the larger Boqueria market near Las Ramblas. For a pre-dinner drink, walk through the Barri Gòtic, and pick any small bar for a sampling of housemade vermouth. (Morro Fi is one recommended (for vermut negre). For a modern bar with a killer view, Bar Veraz at The Edition looked like a lovely rooftop bar, but our own Hotel Ohla really couldn’t be beat.
All photos copyright Buona Forchetta and cannot be used without permission.