- Seville
- (118)
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Spain
Genuine Flamenco at Casa de la Memoria, well worth a visit, great guitar playing, dancing and singing all without the touristy food and drink.
As a family we thoroughly enjoyed the experience and it's a must if you visit this fantastic city.
Calle Ximenez de Enciso, 28, Santa Cruz district.
www.casadelamemoria.es/
+34 954 560 670
Google map: tinyurl.com/y8kqt6k
Avoid the touristy tapas bars near Giralda. Poor service and greasy food and ice cold red wine.
Try the tapas where you see lots of the local people and you are sure of finding excellent food and wine.
Two we found were fantastic, one the other side of the Cathedral on Calle Santo Tomas near the Archivo de Indias. And the other called Cinco Jotas, Calle Castelar in the Arenal district.
Both serving delicious tapas, look and see what the locals are eating and drinking and point to the waiter, you can't go wrong.
Cinco Jotas, Calle Castelar 1, 41001, Sevilla
+34 954 210 763
www.mesoncincojotas.com/index_english.htm
Google map: tinyurl.com/y8zpl23
Go to Horno de San Buenaventura for breakfast.
We stayed in a hotel nearby where the breakfast was 20 euros each. As a family of four we decided to explore an alternative and found this great place. Great food, great value and the best coffee we have had in Spain.
The cost for the four of us was only about 16 euros.
Avenida la Constitución 16. Sevilla, 41002
Teléfono.: 95.422.18.19
Google map: tinyurl.com/ycumrpp
All around the city there are bike stations where you can rent a bike. The scheme is the same as the one running in Paris.
Use the touchscreen at the station to subscribe. You will need a credit card to do so. To subscribe costs €5 a week, and you can use the bike for 30 minutes without paying extra. Easy enough in Seville where it rarely takes more than 20 to get from one side of the centre to the other. If you do go over the 30 minute time, you will be charged about a Euro for 30 minutes.
Seville is such a flat city that cycling is easy. And with the hot weather (up to 45 degrees C. in the summer), cycling and the breeze is a lot more comfortable than walking.
There is a downside. Sevici is very popular with residents, tourists, and sadly vandals. Occasionally, either the station is empty, or the bikes have been vandalised. Also you may get to the bike station to return your bike and discover it is full. Log in with your code you were given when you subscribed and you will be able to get another 15 minutes to go to another station. There is a map available on the screen.
Why pay upwards of €46 for a return taxi journey from Seville airport to the centre when you can pay about €35 to rent a small car for the weekend or €60 - €70 for a week?
On top of that you can then drive down to the coast near Cadiz, or Conil and enjoy a few lazy days by the beach.
Hispacar has consistently been the cheapest rental broker I can find.
Once you have booked you will pick the car up from Crown Aguila Car Rental at the airport. The usual policy is that you get a full tank of fuel and return it empty. However, if you are only renting for a short time and won't do the distance, explain this and you can usually return it full again.
When the Euro was introduced to Spain this was generally seen as an excuse by most bars and restaurants to bump up the prices ...
Not here.
Not only is Eslava one of the cheapest places for tapas (still only about €1.80 as opposed to €3.00 for most places now), it is also one of the best. And boy does it get crowded because of it! But that is part of the charm.
And if this wasn't good enough, the staff are consistently, friendly, attentive, knowledgeable and professional. It works like a machine. Remember, Seville and customer service do not always go together.
There are a few tables but you cannot book. Just turn up, say how many you are, then wait with a glass of beer or wine. Alternatively, eat at the bar.
There is a restaurant, but it's the same food in bigger portions.
The tapas are interesting, and well prepared. My personal favourite is Pork Loin with dill sauce "Lomo con salsa eneldo".
As many a Sevillano waiter discovered when I lived there, I have high standards.
But Bar Eslava is divine.
Every time.
I was in Seville in Andalucía and took a walking and bike tour with a company called Really Discover. For €20-25 a person you not only get to know about the history and culture of the city, but they use the time with you to recommend the great, cheap tapas bars; flamenco shows which don't cost an arm and a leg and are more authentic; monuments that have free entry at certain times, etc etc... A really good investment.
Seville is a great weekend away on budget with both Ryainair and Clickair flying daily from London. A group of three of us stayed at Pension Vergara for €20 each per night. The location was right in the old quarter, close to all the major sights. For a great cheap eat, head to the local market where locals stand around eating freshly cooked seafood and sipping beers from the market bar 'La Cantina'. The food was much better than most of the tapas bars in town.
Pension Vergara c/ Ximenez de Enciso, n0 11 | Barrio de Santa Cruz, Seville 41004, Spain www.pensionvergara.com/
La Cantina - Mercado calle Feria
www.sevilla5.com/activities/goingout/mercado-feria.html
Really Discover offers short (2.5 hrs) tours of Seville. The walking tour is limited to 10 people so you are never so far from the guide that you can't hear what is being said.
We chose to start our first full day in Seville with the walking tour in order to get our bearings and plan our week better. Our guide, Luis, really knew his city and obviously loves it as well. They have a basic plan but are flexible so that they can skip over places you've already been if you wish.
We were met by David, a Brit who moved to Seville, and Luis our guide who spoke very good English. Both were friendly and helpful. A later call to David helped us sort out a taxi back to the station very early in the morning.
They are also happy to recommend their favourite places to eat or visit. Luis recommended a restaurant called Taberna del Alabardero which we visited twice for their Menu del Dia.
Luis also took us to the Archivo General de Indias which was a treat that we would probably have skipped had it not been for the tour. This place is particularly interesting for US visitors interested in their own history.
Hernan Cortés Palace, placed in Castilleja de la Cuesta, only 5 minutes from Seville, was the last place were the the conquest of Mexico lived and died.
The building from the XVI century with neomudéjar style was later bought by the duchy of Montpensier.
Bodega Santa Cruz, Las Columnas is just a stone's throw away from La Giralda and is a charming Sevillian tapas bar. This is the Andalucian tapas tradition in one stop and is well worth seeking out. The few old wooden tables set against the apricot coloured walls and the bar's trade mark columns are a perfect spot to sit and soak up the old city's life. Situated on the old cobbled Calle de Rodrigo Caro, it's the bar for anyone who loves Spanish food or wants to try something a little different. Along with fantastic coffee, the cafe cortado is particularly good. The bodega serves the local beer, Cruzcampo and a very impressive menu of tapas ranging from the familiar Spanish tortilla to rincones al jerez (kidneys cooked in a local sherry.) But one of their best is patatas alioli (a potato salad with a velvety garlic-infused mayonnaise). If you choose to eat or drink at the bar you can expect to see your bill chalked up before you on the wooden-worn bar. Also, it's cheaper to stand. Be sure to get there early for lunch for this tapas bar is so popular with the locals that the Sevillanos pour out onto the cobbled street to eat, drink and catch up in the hot Andalucian sun.
Calle de Rodrigo de Caro, Seville, Andalucia, Spain
If you are looking for the classic combination of tapas and flamenco in Seville (without being surrounded by hoards of tourists), then head
to Peña Pies Plombo. Food is authentically Andulasian - we tried the chorizo, the chickpea-based stew potaje, the pringá (a meat feast for pork lovers), plus the seasonal dish of papas aliñas which even has its own song. Only open to the public in the evenings, there is a small stage for live flamenco performances while photographs of Spanish greats Cameron and
Paco de Lucía cover the walls. The
bar is hosted by enthusiastic Loli who is always keen to start dancing, especially when accompanied by her husband, Paco. Reassuringly, his Spanish guitar playing is more convincing than his wig.
C/Dársena, 22. Tel: 954905964
Bar Giralda is a beautiful tapas bar that looks as though it hasn't changed in 60 years. The choice is staggering, and the food tastes as it should.
Bar Modesto had the best service in Seville. The waiter took a liking to us, and kept slipping us more olives, bread, Manchego cheese, wine and beer. We left to see some Flemenco with a smile and very full stomachs.
Bar Giralda (c/Mateus Gagos 1) Next to the cathedral.
Bar Modesto ((c/Canoy Cueto 5) North Santa Cruz area
Confortel have built a fine reputation for providing affordable and stylish accommodation in major Spanish cities. The confortel seville is a huge disappointment and not worthy of its three star status.
www.pastymuncher.co.uk/confortel-seville-3-star-hotel-three-cats-arses-more-like/
Hotel Puerta de Triana Sevilla
This is a tailored walking tour company operating in Seville. The owner, David, is an Englishman who has lived in Spain for some years and knows Seville intimately. For a relatively modest outlay, he brings the history of the city to life, in a fun way that is simply brilliant. It is more than a tour, it is an experience.
David took us to local tapas places (not a tourist in sight) which were just fab, not to mention cheap - the money you spend on the tour you can mostly save by eating at these spots. Next time we go we will go to one of the local flamenco evenings. Thoroughly recommended.
Their partner company also found us a great apartment to rent.
www.reallydiscover.com
0034 955 113 912 (24 hours)
A budget hotel in the old quarter with a stunning roof terrace - look out over the city and Giralda tower with a cold beer or two. In August the rooms are 68 euros, air-conditioned with modern bathrooms, and of course you're perfectly placed for exploring. Friendly young receptionists with solid insider knowledge and happy to share it.
C/Doncellas 15
Tel: (34) 954 53 94 13
www.patiosantacruz.com
With a wealth of potential flamenco available we asked the receptionist at the Museo del Baile Flamenco - incidentally a must for anyone interested in the subject - she recommended La Casa de la Memoria. It's a cultural centre in the Santa Cruz district - a short walk from the cathedral. It's got very limited space and it's worth booking in advance or reserving by phone. No tapas, no drinks just dance. Tickets 14 euros with performances most nights at 21.00.
28 Casa Ximenez de Enciso
Tel 954 56 06 70
This is a new five-star hotel just in front of the cathedral and the Giralda. It's super-modern and it has some great stuff inside it, such as a Japanese restaurant, Spanish modern food, a cocktail bar, rooftop terrace with insane views, spa massage facilities, and great service.
Plaza del Triunfo is a great square sandwiched between the Giralda and Alcazar Gardens to sit on a warm sunny day with a good book watching the world go by. If you follow the Cathedral wall you come to Plaza Nueva where Seville's elite gather in the evening. The square is surrounded by boutiques and nice eateries and bars and is a good place to get a taxi.
Beware of the restaurants surrounding the Cathederal and Giralda as they are over-priced and will produce a different menu for the tourists!
Try and visit the cobbled winding streets of the Santa Cruz quarter where you will find traditional tapas bars, senors playing the guitar and flamenco dancing.
Seville is all in all a beautiful place to visit.
If you are visiting Seville I would strongly recommend the Murillo Hotel situated in the winding back streets of the Santa Cruz quarter. This hotel is a two-star that deserves to be upgraded, has friendly helpful staff, is clean and is five minutes away from Seville's main attractions. To top it off it has an amazing roof terrace with stunning views of the Cathedral and beyond. Opposite there is a traditional friendly tapas bar that serves reasonably priced food.
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