Seville is the best base for exploring western Andalusia. Within two hours you have another World Heritage city (Córdoba), the white villages of the Cádiz hills, the sea at Cádiz, the sherry bodegas of Jerez and, a little further, Mérida, Río Tinto or Gibraltar. This guide sorts them by distance and tells you, for each one, whether you're better off going on your own, on a group tour or privately.
Day trips at a glance
| Destination | From Seville | How to go | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Itálica | 15 min by car | Bus or car | A half-day, Roman ruins |
| Córdoba | 45 min by high-speed train · 1 h 30 by car | Train on your own or tour | Mosque-Cathedral and Jewish Quarter |
| Cádiz and Jerez | 1 h 45 by train to Cádiz · 1 h to Jerez | Train or tour | Sea, old town and bodegas |
| Doñana | 1 h to El Rocío | Tour (the park is visited with a guide) | Nature and birds |
| Río Tinto | 1 h 15 by car | Car or tour | Red mining landscape and mining train |
| Ronda and white villages | 1 h 45-2 h by car | Car or tour | The gorge, Setenil, Zahara, Grazalema |
| Mérida | 2 h by car | Car or tour | Roman theatre and amphitheatre |
| Gibraltar | 2 h 15 by car | Tour (cross the border on foot) | The Rock, the monkeys and the tunnels |
Times are by road or train in normal conditions; in summer and on bank holidays, allow a bit more.
Córdoba: the easiest and best value
By high-speed train, Seville to Córdoba takes about 45 minutes, so it's the only one on this list that's easy on your own. Head straight to the Mosque-Cathedral (buy your ticket ahead), wander the Jewish Quarter and cross the Roman bridge at sunset. In May it coincides with the patios festival.
- On your own: train plus a Mosque-Cathedral ticket. Cheapest for 1 or 2.
- Group tour: small group with high-speed train€110 · 4.7 from €110 per person, or by coach€109 · 4.3 from €109.
- Private: Córdoba by train with tickets and a private tour€432 · 5.0 (€432 for a group of 2, €668 for 4) or by private car€379 (from €379 per person, minimum 2).
Ronda and the white villages
The most beautiful trip for scenery, and the hardest without a car: buses to the hill villages are few. Ronda takes half a day (Puente Nuevo, the gorge, the bullring) and the rest goes to Setenil de las Bodegas, Zahara de la Sierra or Grazalema.
- Group tour: white villages and Ronda€47 · 4.5 from €47 per person; it's the day trip from Seville with the most reviews (over 4,000).
- Private: Ronda with or without a guide€500 · 5.0 (€500 for a group of 2, €720 for 4) or white villages and Ronda€389 (from €389 per person, minimum 2).
Cádiz and Jerez
Cádiz is 1 h 45 by commuter train and is best explored on foot: the cathedral, La Viña, La Caleta beach. Jerez is halfway and the place to visit a sherry bodega. Together they make a long day, but it can be done.
- Group tour: Cádiz and Jerez€95 · 4.2 from €95 per person.
- Private: Cádiz and Jerez with a guide and bodega€870 (€870 for a group of 2, €1,160 for 4).
Mérida, Río Tinto and Gibraltar: further, better organised
- Mérida (2 h): its Roman theatre and amphitheatre are among the best preserved in Spain. Private day trip€394 from €394 per person, minimum 2.
- Río Tinto mines (1 h 15): the red river, the English quarter and the mining train. Private day trip€388 from €388 per person, minimum 2.
- Gibraltar (2 h 15): you cross the border on foot and your guide picks you up to go up the Rock. Private day trip with tickets€860 · 4.9 (€860 for a group of 2, €1,040 for 4). Bring the ID your nationality requires.
- Tangier (Morocco): only on an organised tour€219 · 4.4 with the ferry included; it's about 15 hours.
Nature near Seville
- Doñana: the national park is visited with a guide in an authorised vehicle. Full-day tour€476.
- Cerro del Hierro (Sierra Norte): old mines turned into a maze of rock. Private hike with picnic€411.
- Aracena and the dehesa: free-range Iberian pigs and ham. Dehesa day trip€422.
- Itálica, 15 minutes away, is the shortest escape: a 2-hour private visit€132 or a group tour with the monastery€42 · 4.5 from €42.
Group or private: when it pays off
A group tour is always cheaper for 1 or 2 people. On a private tour you pay for the group (or with a minimum number of people), so the price per person drops a lot from 4 people:
| Day trip | Group tour, per person | Private, 2 people | Private, 4 people |
|---|---|---|---|
| Córdoba | €109-110 | €216 per person | €167 per person |
| Ronda | €47 (with white villages) | €250 per person | €180 per person |
| Cádiz and Jerez | €95 | €435 per person | €290 per person |
| Gibraltar | — | €430 per person | €260 per person |
Prices from the tour pages at the date of this guide; they may vary by date.
What you get privately: pickup from your accommodation, departure when you choose, stops at your pace and nobody else in the vehicle. For families with children, older travellers or groups of friends it usually pays off; for a couple on a tight budget, the group tour or the train on your own.
Tips for choosing
- One trip per day. Córdoba and Cádiz can be combined with a free afternoon in Seville; Ronda, Mérida or Gibraltar take the whole day.
- In summer, leave early. At midday in July and August Córdoba and the countryside easily pass 40 °C.
- Book the key tickets. The Mosque-Cathedral and, in high season, the Jerez bodegas fill up.
- If there are 4 or more of you, compare the private option. Work out the price per person before deciding: the gap with the coach may be smaller than it looks.
