The Mariscal V Apartment in Seville

Santa Cruz

This area is probably the best known in the old Seville.

Visitors to Seville can find the world famous Giralda and the Cathedral standing side by side. The Giralda, one of the most incredible buildings in the city, no building is allowed to be higher than this minaret in order for it to continue to dominate Seville’s skyline, it was originally used by the Moors for calling the faithful to prayer and as an observatory. The Cathedral occupies the site of a great mosque in the late 12th century and is now considered to be the largest church in the world. A couple of minutes away lies the Real Alcazar (palace still used by the royal family on their visits to Seville) and its gardens, truly magnificent!

On any given day of the year this barrio is always busy as there is so much to discover; one of the best ways to see this area is to get lost in the labyrinth of small cobbled stoned streets, finding churches, casa palacios (small royal houses), beautiful squares such as Plaza Doña Elvira and Plaza Santa Cruz just by chance is fantastic. The Jardines de Murillo (gardens), el Hospital de los Venerables and the Archivos de Indias (building where visitors can find maps and documents relating to Spain´s discovery of the New World) are all definitely worth seeing.

Although one the most visited areas, the majority of restaurants serve good tapas and most bars/restaurants have an outdoor area where you can sit and relax watching the world go by while sampling the local tapas and wines!!