On Foot

The heart of Seville is along the east bank of the Guadalquivir River. The Old Town (casco antiguo, sometimes called casco histórico), once enclosed by walls, is compact and best explored on foot. Almost all the sights lie between two of the major bridges: the Puente de San Telmo and the Puente de Isabel II (also known as the Puente de Triana).

You`ll need a detailed street map (available at local newsstands and in bookstores) that provides tourist information, places of interest and the locations of vital services (such as the police station) for your explorations; although you can more or less count on getting lost in the intricate maze of the Barrio Santa Cruz, for which no adequate map exists.

By bus

Seville has an extensive bus network, covering all barrios around the city. It is run by TUSSAM (short for Transportes Urbanos de Sevilla, Sociedad Anónima Municipal, www.tussam.es, website in Spanish only) and there are 36 bus lines which operate in and around the city. Most buses leave from San Bernardo Metro station, Prado de San Sebastian bus station, Ponce de Leon, or Plaza del Duque. Buses run daily from 6:00am to 11:30pm with limited night service from the Prado from 12 midnight until 2:00am. Buses C1, C2, C3, and C4 run circular routes between the main transportation terminals within the city center. One small bus, the C5, takes a circular route inside the center, from Puerta Jerez to Plaza del Duque. The city tourist office can provide a booklet detailing these bus routes (circulares interiors). The fare is €1.40 per ride or you can buy a Tarjeta Multiviaje (plastic card, €1.50 refundable deposit), that is rechargeable, and can also be used on the tram. The minimum amount is €6.90 for 10 journeys sin transbordo (without changes) or €7.60 for 10 journeys con transbordo (with changes, using more than one line). They can be purchased (and recharged) at tobacco stands (estancos) and news kiosks. For general bus information, call tel. 955 010 010.

A bus run by TUSSAM meets all incoming flights at Seville`s Aeropuerto San Pablo and transports you into the city center for €4. The buses take you to and from the airport, with the final destination in the city being the Plaza de Armas bus station. Buses leave the airport beginning around 5:20 a.m. and stop shortly after midnight. For more information, including a timetable, visit https://www.tussam.es/uploads/pdf/HORARIOLINEAAEROPUERTO.pdf.

By tram

The tram (tranvia) leaves from Plaza Nueva, goes down Avenida de la Constitucion past the Cathedral, stopping at the Archivo de Indias, San Fernando (Puerta Jerez), the Prado de San Sebastian and terminates at San Bernardo train station. An expansion to Santa Justa train station is expected to be completed by the end of 2020. Although the tram is called Metro-Centro, it has nothing to do with the Seville Metro. It runs from 6:15 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. You can buy a ticket (€1.50) at any station, from the machine on the platform, which you stamp on the tram itself. A more economical option is the combined bus/tram rechargeable pass, Tarjeta Multiviaje (see above).

By the Seville Metro

The Seville Metro began operations on April 2, 2009. It currently has one line operating out of four that are planned. Line 1 runs east-west, from Ciudad Expo in the Aljarafe (surburbs on the hill beyond Triana) to Olivar de Quintos in Montequinto, Dos Hermanas, passing through Los Remedios (Parque los Principes, Plaza Cuba), south of the center (Puerta Jerez, departure point for many buses lines, and Prado, where you catch the tram), and on to San Bernardo, which offers Cercania (surburban) train services.

It runs from 6:30 a.m. (7.30 a.m. Saturdays and holidays) to 11 p.m. (2 a.m. on Fridays, Saturdays and holidays). Semana Santa and Feria have special schedules. Tickets cost €1.35 if you stay in the same zone (there are three), €1.60 (two zones) and €1.80 (all three zones). If you use a reloadable card (Consorcio de Transporte, see Bus), they work out cheaper (€0.82, €1.17, and €1.37). A one-day ticket costs approximately €4.50, offering unlimited travel. For more information on the Metro, visit www.metro-sevilla.es/en.

By taxi

Taxis, which are white with a yellow stripe, are plentiful and may be hailed on the street (look for the green light on the roof to indicate it`s available) or from specified taxi stands. This is an excellent means of getting around, especially at night, when streets can be dangerous due to muggings. Cabs are metered with fares starting at €3. There are extra charges for luggage, weekends, holidays and night time. You are not required to tip taxi drivers, although rounding off the amount is appreciated. Call Tele Taxi (tel. 95-462-22-22) or Radio Taxi (tel. 95-458-00-00).

Taxis are available at the airport and you can expect to pay around €20-€25 for cab fare from the airport to the city center. Legal taxis are metered, but it`s a good idea to get an estimate of the fare from the driver before you climb aboard.

By bicycle

SEVici (en.sevici.es), Seville`s public bike rental service, has 2,500 bicycles available from 250 stations around the city, approximately 900 feet apart. There are 75 miles of cycle lanes in the city, making it one of the best-served cities in Spain for this extremely clean, green and healthy means of transport. To date, SEVici`s bikes have been used 10 million times, with an average 25,000 daily uses. The service is available to both tourists and residents alike. The one week pass, available from terminals is ideal for those who are only making a brief visit to the city, although be aware that for the one week pass, you have to pay a €150 deposit. At the bike station terminal you enter a short-term pass code, enter the number of the bike you want (each bike post has a number), and unlock it within one minute. To return a bike, you fix it to a post, then check that the indicator light below the post is flashing, and that you can hear a beep to tell you that you have fixed the bike to the post correctly.

At the terminal, you can register to use the short-term service using your credit card and add credit onto your long-term card, as well as get a printed receipt with your chosen route and check-a-map to find the closest available pick-up or return posts.

Short-term pass
Weekly registration fee: €14.33
First 30 minutes: Free
1st hour (after the first 30 minutes): €1.03
2nd hour and more: €2.04

By car

We strongly recommend that you do not drive in Seville! The narrow alleys, lack of parking and infinite one-way streets make driving complicated at best, highly stressful at worst.

If your hotel has a garage, you`re best off driving straight there when you arrive, and straight out again when you leave. Also, be sure to map out your route to your hotel carefully, looking out for one-way streets, or you could easily end up getting lost, caught on the ring-road by mistake, or stuck facing the wrong way down a narrow street and having to deal with impatient, irate locals. While this may sound obvious, many visitors don`t realize just how difficult it is driving in the center.

In addition, new traffic restrictions mean that if you spend more than 45 minutes in the center, between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. Monday to Saturday, you will be fined €200 (hotel garages and public car parks are exempt from this). Multiple cameras have been installed to monitor traffic so consider yourself warned! (These tickets don`t just magically go away if you ignore them when you return to the U.S. either.)