Where to stay in Seville
Six neighbourhoods, from Santa Cruz beside the Alcázar to Nervión by the station, with what each gives and what it asks in return.
- First visit
- Santa Cruz or El Arenal
- For the evening
- The Alameda de Hércules
- By the train
- Nervión
Where you sleep in Seville decides how much of each day goes on walking, because the Alcázar and the cathedral stand on one bank and the other quarters lie at different distances from them: Santa Cruz and El Arenal right beside them, Triana across the bridge, the Alameda de Hércules north of the centre, the Macarena by the old wall, and Nervión around Santa Justa station, 2.5 to 3 km out. So choose by how you arrive and what you do after dark.
Santa Cruz, beside the Alcázar
Santa Cruz is the former Jewish quarter between the cathedral and the Alcázar, which puts the two biggest reasons for coming within reach, and the two-day plan starts at the Alcázar at 9:30. Its narrow medieval lanes keep shade even at noon, a point that counts in summer. If you like to spend the evening on your own street you will find less here than on the Alameda, because going out moves north and across the river.
Check the same room on both sites: price and cancellation terms can differ.
El Arenal, by the river
El Arenal is on the same bank, along the river between the Torre del Oro and the Real Maestranza bullring. It was the city port until the seventeenth century. It suits anyone who wants both the river and the cathedral within reach, and Day 2 of the plan, which walks the riverside to the Torre del Oro, starts outside your door.
Check the same room on both sites: price and cancellation terms can differ.
Triana, across the bridge
Triana sits on the west bank, on a peninsula between two branches of the Guadalquivir, and you reach the old town over the Isabel II bridge of 1854. It was home to sailors, potters, bullfighters and flamenco artists, and today it has its own market, trading Monday to Saturday until 14:30. If you want your evenings across the river from the sights, sleep here and cross the bridge to reach the Alcázar. The Velá de Santa Ana runs from 21 to 26 July.
Check the same room on both sites: price and cancellation terms can differ.
Alameda de Hércules, for evenings
Laid out in 1574 on a former riverbed north of the centre, the Alameda de Hércules is today the nightlife quarter, with bars and music from heavy metal to flamenco. Until the renewal of 2006–2008 it was one of the poorest parts of the city. You sleep here if your day ends in a bar, and not if you want quiet, because the sights lie further south.
Check the same room on both sites: price and cancellation terms can differ.
The Macarena, by the wall
The Macarena lies in the north-east, along a surviving stretch of the city wall. The basilica holds the statue of the Virgin of the Macarena, entry is free, and the former Hospital de las Cinco Llagas is now the seat of the Andalusian Parliament. Choose it if you want to sleep outside the circle of the sights, and if you come for Holy Week, this is where the Madrugá procession leaves the basilica and lasts about 14 hours.
Check the same room on both sites: price and cancellation terms can differ.
Nervión, by the station
Nervión is a modern district around Santa Justa station, 2.5–3 km from the historic centre, where the high-speed train to Córdoba leaves. The centre is 35–40 minutes on foot or 15–20 by TUSSAM buses 27, 32 and C1, and Nervión itself is 10–15 minutes from the station. It has the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán stadium and the Nervión Plaza shopping centre. Sleep here for an early or late train, but if you come for the sights, you pay for it every morning in a bus ride or a long walk.
Check the same room on both sites: price and cancellation terms can differ.
When the calendar decides
- Holy Week, 21–28 March 2027. The processions follow an official route through the Campana, Calle Sierpes, Plaza de San Francisco and Avenida de la Constitución to the cathedral, last from 4 to 14 hours, and the Triana brotherhoods cross the river by its bridges. Santa Cruz and El Arenal lie right beside that route, so decide which side of it you want to sleep on before you book.
- The Feria, 13–18 April 2027. The fairground, the Real de la Feria, lies between Los Remedios and Tablada, and the casetas stay full from about 9 pm until 6 or 7 in the morning. If you want to walk to the fair, pick Triana, which is on the same bank as Los Remedios.
- Summer. If you come in the worst of the heat, Santa Cruz is the first choice for that reason, and which month is bearable is on the page about when to go.
Where to next
Seville outside the triangle: courtyards and a Roman basement
→Courtyards, ceramics and a Roman basement under a timber canopy: seven places that are not on the list.
Málaga · 156 km
→For years just the airport for the Costa del Sol, now a walkable city with more than thirty museums
How well does Seville suit you?
→Six questions: a score for this place and others like it.
Nomadinho scores out of 100, the same ones behind “Where to go”.
If you like Seville
Three places with the closest scores, from any country.
Before you go
Short answers to what people ask most before setting out.
Which neighbourhood is best for a first stay in Seville?
Santa Cruz if you want the shade of its lanes, El Arenal if you want to be by the river; from both, the Alcázar and the cathedral are within reach.
Can you stay by Santa Justa station?
Yes, in Nervión, but the old town is 2.5–3 km away, so it only makes sense for an early or late train. If you come for the sights, Santa Cruz or El Arenal is the better choice.
Where do you stay for the evenings out?
Around the Alameda de Hércules, north of the centre, where the bars and the music run from heavy metal to flamenco, or in Triana across the bridge.
Ready for Seville?
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