If you are going on a city trip to Seville, you should not miss a bike ride. In 3 hours, a local guide will take you along the most beautiful known and unknown sights of the city and you will learn more about Seville and the different neighborhoods. In recent years, a lot of work has been done on more cycle paths in the city, so you can get on your bike here with peace of mind. I’ll tell you all about cycling in Seville!
Cycling in Seville
After a number of previous visits to Seville, I am very curious what else this Spanish city has to offer. Seville has invested heavily in good cycle paths in recent years, so it’s high time to explore Seville by bike. I choose to participate in a bicycle tour with a guide, together with my mother and brother. In addition to the well-known sights of Seville, the guide will also take you to the somewhat unknown places and you will receive plenty of great local tips. Of course you can also choose to just rent the bikes and cycle through Seville yourself.
Metropol Parasol: Setas de Sevilla
We pick up our bikes at a bike rental company in Seville. There we meet our guide: a super sweet girl who has been living in Seville for several years and knows the city like the back of her hand. She first takes us to the most modern part of Seville: Metropol Parasol. This massive structure was built to revitalize Plaza de la Encarnación. It consists of six large wooden umbrellas with a grid pattern that are attached to each other. Metropol Parasol is also called Setas de Sevilla, or the mushrooms of Seville, by the inhabitants of Seville because of its unique shape. An impressive walking path has been built on top of the wooden structure, from where you have a great view of the entire city.
Seville Cathedral & Giralda
Via Plaza Nueva and Plaza San Francisco we cycle to another famous landmark of Seville. The Cathedral of Seville is located right in the center and is the largest Gothic church building in the world. The whole structure is hugely impressive, even just from the outside. The bell tower of the cathedral, better known as the Giralda, is no less than 104.5 meters high and richly decorated with beautiful details.
Plaza de Triunfo & Real Alcazar
Adjacent to the cathedral is the Plaza del Triunfo, named after the Templete del Triunfo de Nuestra Señora del Patrocinio, a monument that stands in the middle of the square. On the other side of this square is the Real Alcazar de Sevilla. This Royal Palace of Seville is the number one attraction of the city and definitely worth a visit. During our bike ride we can still see parts of the old palace walls at various places in the city. You can read more about the Real Alcazar in our article about the most beautiful sights in Seville.
Hotel Alfonso XIII
We cycle on to Hotel Alfonso XIII, the most expensive and chic hotel in Seville. This hotel was built as accommodation for the 1929 World Exhibition. It is named after the Spanish King Alfonso XIII, who also opened the hotel at the time. In terms of luxury, the hotel is also best known for its beautiful neo-Mudejar style. You can take a look for free or have a drink in the beautiful courtyard. Our guide tells us that if she needs to go to the toilet during a walk or bike ride through Seville, she always goes to this hotel.
Torre del Oro & Guadalquivir River
After taking a look at the hotel, we cycle to Gualdalquivir, the river that flows through Seville. This river has made Seville a rich city, because this was the place where the ships came in with all kinds of merchandise from the Latin American colonies. The first thing sailors saw after months of sailing was the Torre del Oro, or the tower of gold. Straw was processed in the clay walls of the tower and this glitters in the sun. This made it look like the tower was completely covered in gold. Nowadays there is a beautiful walking and cycling path along the river. Via the Puente de Isabel II, also known as the Puente de Triana, we cycle across the river to the hip district of Triana.
Triana
Triana is an up and coming neighborhood across the Gualdalquivir. This used to be a poor working-class area, but nowadays it is a hip area where many families live. Triana actually feels more like a village in its own right and the inhabitants also feel more connected to Triana than to Seville. We cycle past the beautiful market hall and the Real Parroquia de Señora Santa Ana, or the Sint Anna Church. This 13th-century church is particularly known for the Mudéjar style that you often encounter in Seville.
Tip: when you visit Real Alcazar, keep your entrance ticket. This ticket also gives you free access to this Santa Ana Church in Triana.
Palace of San Telmo
After our visit to the colorful Triana we cycle over the Puente de San Telmo to the other side of Seville. We stop at Palacio de San Telmo, one of the most beautiful buildings in Seville. Unfortunately, this former palace is not open to the public, but the exterior alone is already very impressive with its beautiful columns and characteristic baroque architectural style.
Parque de Maria Luisa & Plaza de America
We continue cycling to the greenest part of the city: the huge park Parque de María Luisa. Because the park is so large, it is perfect for exploring by bicycle. Parque de María Luisa used to be part of the gardens of the Palacio de San Telmo, but it was later donated to the city to turn it into a large public park. For the world expo in 1929, the park was redesigned and a number of pavilions were designed for different countries. One of the most famous is Plaza de América. There are several museums on this impressive square and you will also find a remarkable number of pigeons on this square.
Plaza de España
Plaza de America was already impressive, but the last stop on our bike tour through Seville really creates the real wow effect. We cycle to Plaza de España, the most beautiful and famous square in Spain and, in my opinion, even the most beautiful square in the world. This semi-circular square is over 170 meters in size and was also built in honor of the world fair. 52 mosaic benches have been built in the semicircle, on which all provinces of Spain are depicted. The square is surrounded by a canal over which four bridges have been built, representing the 4 ancient kingdoms of Spain. The square can be seen in various films and series, including Star Wars and The Dictator.
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Extra tip: eat at Hummo afterwards
After our visit to the beautiful Plaza de España we cycle back to our starting point to return our bicycles. We worked up an appetite from such a bike ride. We end up at Hummo, just a 5 minute walk from the bike rental. We eat here one of the best meals of our city trip in Seville. The menu includes various original luxury and worldly tapas, such as burrata salad with pesto, tuna tataki and baba ganoush. Everything tastes delicious and the large terrace in the sun is a nice plus. Highly recommended!
Do you also want to cycle in Seville?
Cycling in Seville is definitely recommended. Although I have been to Seville a number of times before, I found this bike tour a super fun way to see more of the city. I discovered many nice new places and learned interesting facts about Seville. I would preferably plan this bike tour through Seville on the first day of your city trip, so that you immediately get a good idea of the city and can use the tips you get along the way. In addition to the 3-hour highlights of Seville bike tour, there is also a special tapas bike tour, where you stop several times during your bike tour through Seville at local bars to eat some delicious Spanish tapas. Would you rather cycle through Seville yourself? Then of course you just need to rent bicycles.
