All good things come to an end. And after four beautiful days exploring the city, my trip to Seville ended as well. But before flying back to Zurich, we dedicated the last day to visit two of the most important monuments in Seville: the massive Gothic cathedral with its iconic Giralda tower and the Real Alcázar palace.

We didn’t really choose to visit these places in hour last hours in Seville. Rather we didn’t have any other option. When we arrived in Seville, we were a bit shocked when we saw the amount of tourists visiting the city and the never ending queues in front of these two monuments. In that sense, the city has totally transformed since the last time I visited it about ten years ago. Now it’s almost an obligation to reserve tickets days in advance. And websites to buy the tickets don’t always work well, and there are also so many non official websites selling also tickets (and I’m not even sure those other websites are totally trustworthy…). So if you’re visiting Seville and want to visit the cathedral or the Real Alcázar palace, here is my advice: book tickets well in advance!!

The Real Alcázar palace, contrary to what it seems, is not a muslim palace, but a royal palace built for the Christian king Pedro de Castilla during the Reconquista. The Alcazar sits on the ruins of the former Abbadid Muslim residential fortress, destroyed during the conquest of Seville. The palace is one of the best examples of Mudéjar style in Spain: the architectonic style used in Christian buildings in the peninsula that was influence by Moorish style and workmanship. The palace is an architectonic gem. A succession of lavish buildings with stunningly decorated patios (courtyards), where Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque styles meet with the more exotic Mudéjar ornaments and gardens. We didn’t have a lot of time to visit the palace and delight ourselves with all of its impressive rooms and gardens, as there were lots tourists groups everywhere, making it difficult to stop and admire the little details… but I loved what we could see (even if it was near impossible to take photos with so many people around!)

The visit to the cathedral was a bit more relaxed (although it was still bursting with tourists). The cathedral of Seville is a very impressive one. It was built to replace the old mosque that had served as cathedral during almost 200 years after the Reconquista. It’s the third biggest church and the biggest Gothic building in the world. And, of course, its most famous feature is La Giralda, the minaret of the old mosque which, after some remodeling during the construction of the cathedral, was reconverted in the bell tower. The interior of the cathedral is just as impressive as its exterior, with beautiful altarpieces, paintings, stained glass and sculptures, the elaborated Gothic ornaments of the structure, the grandiose tomb of Columbus, the magnificent Renaissance chapter house… one could spend hours just admiring every little detail of this cathedral!!

Here are the last photos of this trip to Seville. You’ll find some images from the area of Triana, the Park of Maria Luisa and Plaza de España as well taken on previous days. I hope you like them!

PD: I’ve been experiencing some trouble with WordPress recently. If you have missed the last two posts about this trip to Seville, you can find them here and here!

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