Deciding where to go during your time in Andalusia can be difficult. There are so many places to visit.
From the most amazing sights in the big cities to cute white villages — and don't forget the nature and the cultural experiences. To make the choice a bit easier for you we have listed our 10 favourite things you must see in Andalusia.
Most of them work as a day trip from Seville, which is why we have based ourselves here. Where that is the case, we have said so under each one.
In short
- —Seville makes the natural base: Córdoba is 45 minutes by train, Doñana an hour, Ronda under two, Granada under three.
- —Andalusia produced almost 80% of Spain's olive oil in 2022 — around 34% of world production.
- —Cádiz, founded around 1100 BC, is the oldest continuously inhabited city in western Europe.
- —Seville Cathedral is the largest Gothic cathedral in the world.
01
Alhambra
Rising above the modern city of Granada is one of Andalusia's most impressive monuments: the Alhambra. It was built from 1238 by order of Muhammad I Ibn al-Ahmar but took more than a hundred years to complete. Alhambra means 'red castle'. It functioned as a fortress, a palace and a small medina all at once, and its high walls and strategic position look out over the city and everything around it.
In front of it stands an independent palace the kings used as a quiet retreat, the Generalife, which combines with the Alhambra perfectly. Book well ahead: the ticket carries a timed slot for the Nasrid Palaces and sells out weeks in advance.
02
Visit an olive grove
Olive oil is essential to the Andalusian diet — on bread, in salads, in gazpacho and in countless other dishes. In 2022 Andalusia was responsible for almost 80% of Spain's olive oil production, which is 34% of all olive oil made in the world. Most of the liquid gold comes from the province of Jaén, known as the world capital of olive oil.
There are many places where you can see how the oil is made and walk through the groves, and taste a range of freshly pressed oils. The flavours can surprise you: pure olive oil tastes very little like the supermarket version.
03
Cathedral of Seville
Seville as a whole cannot be missed while in Andalusia. But if you only have time for one thing, go and see the cathedral. It stands on the site of the Great Mosque of Seville; after the city was taken from the Moors in 1248 the mosque was replaced, and only La Giralda remains, transformed from a minaret into a bell tower.
It is the largest Gothic cathedral in the world and holds a great many paintings and other works, as well as the tomb of Christopher Columbus. It is worth going inside with a guide. You can also book a tour onto the roof — done around sunset to escape the heat, which conveniently gives you the best views in the city.
04
Doñana
In the west of Andalusia, across the provinces of Huelva, Seville and Cádiz, lies the Doñana National Park. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is famous for the diversity of its landscapes: in a single day you see lagoons, marshland, pine groves and untouched white beaches.
The wetlands are home to a great many bird species, five of them endangered, and more arrive in migration season. Beyond birds there are wild boar, badgers, deer and the endangered Iberian lynx. You can travel through the park by four-wheel drive or by boat — the core reserve is closed to cars, so a guided run is the only way in.
05
Ronda
Ronda is a historic town in the province of Málaga. Its best-known sight is the Puente Nuevo, the bridge crossing the El Tajo gorge that divides the town in two. On one side is the fifteenth-century 'new' town, on the other the old quarter with its Moorish inheritance. Both have narrow cobbled streets to explore.
Also worth your time are the Arab baths and the Plaza de Toros, one of Spain's oldest bullrings. Even if the sport does not interest you, it is a genuinely interesting cultural visit.
06
Visit an Iberian pig farm
Ham production is a rich tradition in Andalusia going back centuries. The region has the climate and the terrain to raise and cure some of the world's finest hams, above all jamón ibérico. The Iberian pig grazes freely in the Andalusian oak forests known as dehesas, feeding on acorns, herbs and wild vegetation, and that diet is what gives the ham its nutty flavour.
A visit to a farm makes a good day out. You learn how the animals are raised and how the hams are cured, and you taste some of the best ham you will ever eat.
07
Córdoba
A city where history and culture mix in a way you find nowhere else. Once the capital of Islamic Spain, Córdoba was a place where Muslims, Jews and Christians lived alongside one another, and that blend left the city a remarkable set of buildings. The historic old town is a World Heritage site full of small streets to explore. See the Mezquita-Catedral, walk the Jewish quarter, and take the view from the Calahorra tower.
There are lively taverns for a flamenco show or for local food: salmorejo, the cold tomato soup topped with boiled egg and cured ham, and flamenquín, the deep-fried pork roll that is the city's other speciality.
08
Marbella
Looking to relax? Marbella is the place. Looking for anything else? Marbella is probably still the place. It combines wide, comfortable beaches with a lively nightlife, a pretty historic centre, museums and world-class golf.
It is also synonymous with luxury, drawing a high-profile crowd from around the world. The marina at Puerto Banús is the clearest example, with more yachts, boutiques and gourmet restaurants than you can count.
09
Cádiz
Cádiz lives and breathes history. It is older than Spain itself — founded around 1100 BC, which makes it the oldest continuously inhabited city in western Europe. Phoenicians, Greeks, Visigoths, Romans, Moors and Spaniards have all lived here. The sea surrounds it on almost every side, so there is a breeze even on the hottest days.
It is best explored on foot. Wander the old town before making your way to the long beach, go to the market and try pescaíto frito, fried fish served in paper to eat as you walk, and sit in one of the parks. A day in Cádiz is the best way to reset a busy mind.
10
La Manquita
The cathedral of Málaga, officially the Santa Iglesia Catedral Basílica de la Encarnación, stands in the heart of the city. It is known as La Manquita, 'the one-armed lady', because one of its towers has never been finished.
Building began in the sixteenth century on the site of a former mosque, after Ferdinand and Isabella took the city in 1487. Two towers were planned, but money ran out and only one was completed. The asymmetry that resulted has become the thing locals and visitors love most about it.
How to fit them into a trip
Almost everything on this list works from a single base. From Seville, Córdoba is forty-five minutes by high-speed train, Doñana an hour by road, Ronda and the white villages under two, Cádiz and Jerez about an hour and a half, and Granada under three. Marbella and Málaga sit further along the coast and suit a night away rather than a day out.
A week is enough for four or five of them at a comfortable pace. Ten days lets you add the coast. What we would not do is attempt all ten — the driving eats the trip.
Everything we run is tailor-made, so tell us which of these matter most to you and we will build the days around them, including the ones that are difficult to reach without a car.
Frequently asked questions
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Written by
Gunvor Guttormsen
Licensed tour guide · Seville
Gunvor is an officially licensed guide based in Seville and the founder of Flavors of Andalucia. She guides in English and Norwegian, and also in Swedish and Danish, and has spent years walking the markets, bodegas and back streets she writes about here.
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