Loved Sevilla - but missed Plaza de Espana, pretty neglected in the book

Now you have a reason to return.

Oh no! the Plaza de Espana is so beautiful and a great backdrop for photos. You will have to go back. We went to Madrid and totally missed the Plaza Mayor. In fairness, we were only there for 1 day and did see the Royal Palace and Prado, but now I have to go back to Madrid.

If it makes you feel better, I also missed it. It's not like I didn't have time...I was there for a week in November.

Same as you, I did the 2 walks. It was in my notes, but I never put it directly into my itinerary. Maybe I figured I would just wander into it at some point?!?

You know when I realized it? When I read your thread. Good thing I already knew that I wanted to go back!

The photos are nice ;-/

@CWSocial I would love to come back, though in all honesty with so many places to visit, limited time, and being a huge Francophile, I don’t know how likely it is. I’m perplexed as to why there isn’t even one triangle on it … Rick triangles a lot of pretty obscure stuf, and this is a pretty major site. I was vaguely aware it existed, but like you, I either thought I’d run into it or assumed it was on the main city walk. We even listened to his audio guide and it never came up.

I probably sound like my only research is the book … the zillions of open tabs on my laptop can prove this isn’t true, but once I’m actually in the city, it is my main reference.

I just looked at pictures of the Plaza and realized we also missed it. We were in Seville for 4 nights. Maybe I’m slipping with my research in my old age. We just booked our hotels for 2 weeks in Istanbul so I hope I do better.

My next stop is Athens. I better put the Parthenon into my itinerary. Now!

The Plaza de Espana is beautiful & such an amazing amount of gorgeous tile to enjoy! I always take too many photos there! : ). We walked over to it in 2017 when we stayed in Sevilla. Then our Sevilla SeebyBike tour routed us through more portions of the entire park the next day with a nice group photo in front of the main site.

My husband & I were back in Sevilla in February and went back there again. There were a few flamenco dancers giving some short performances, too. We enjoyed it, along with many others, and we ended up meeting some friendly people from Croatia. They were relaxing at one of the main tile city names that I wanted to photograph.

It’s on my list again for next February - now for special nostalgic memories. I will probably take the city bike tour again, too.

I wouldn’t return to Sevilla again just to see it. But, I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is planning to be in Sevilla.

We just booked our hotels for 2 weeks in Istanbul

Barbara, I'm sure you know I love hearing that!

Flamenco performances in the Plaza de España. Now it's at the top of my list!

A possible reason why Rick may not highlight Plaza de Espana is that while scenic, it’s kind of a fake. It was built for a world’s fair in 1928, unlike other examples of Moorish architecture in Seville and other cities that are the real deal.

@slate - built in 1928 or 1228 the plaza is still beautiful and worthy of visiting. Nobody is claiming that it is something it isn’t.

RS can’t adequately cover everything worth seeing in any country in his books. At some point one has to depend on their own research to determine what to visit and what to skip. Even with all the research I do for trips, invariably I’ll return and realize I was a couple miles from a place worthy of visiting. It happens.

Travelers really need to be aware that RS's guides are literally "Rick Steves' Europe". He focuses on those spots he likes and rates/ranks them accordingly. As a result, he generally hits the obvious, but leaves out a great deal. His guides are not a complete overview.

RS can be useful as a start for access and venue info, but I would never take his word as final or complete. For example, I must say I am grateful that he apparently doesn't like large swaths of Germany. By totally ignoring some regions and sites, I find far fewer US tourists than in many of the sites and countries he touts.

I agree that Rick should include this in his guidebook. You should go to Shop Online to Guidebooks and submit this in the Feedback section for the guidebook you used. I saw this on a bus tour(not RS-I need elevators in hotels). It is a very enjoyable place to visit and the tiles alone are worth the visit.

Well, not to rub it in, but it IS a gorgeous place. On my second trip, I ran into the flamenco dancers. Such a fun and casual way to see it! But I was there twice on my first trip and they were not. Lol.

However, I am sure there are other places in Seville you could add to your list of places you didn’t have time for (I have a list of those myself). I am learning to give myself grace for either not knowing, or not having time, for making choices, and sometimes for just not feeling like it when the time is right. We can’t see everything!

@Cala It actually is in the book, just in a way that is very likely to be overlooked.

@texastravelmom Inwojldnhave LOVED to have seen flamenco dancers there! Also my son is a Star Wars fan, so that part would have been fun for him.

I am learning to give myself grace for either not knowing, or not having time, for making choices, and sometimes for just not feeling like it when the time is right.

Well, I knew, and I had plenty of time, and I was actually looking for something to do at one point and thought of going there... and then I just forgot. No grace for me!!

Though it is nice to have a list of several compelling reasons to return. As if I needed a reason!

I agree with ORDTraveler. I never, never rely solely on Rick's books, even though I like his shows and I am on this forum. And for some trips I don't use his books at all. I have noticed that in his Spain books and Croatia books that he omits certain cities, towns, and sights. For example, in his books on Spain, and in particular, Andalusia, Rick treats Malaga like it is nothing more than a transportation center, and that is absolutely not true. Malaga is a wonderful city on the Mediterranean with lots of interesting and important sights. In his Croatia guidebook, he completely omits Zadar.

So, if I do use one of his guidebooks, I use others as well, such as Lonely Planet (although I am disappointed in their new format), Rough Guide, and Michelin Green Guide to name a few.

And the Plaza de Espana, regardless of when it was built and why it was built, is absolutely stunning. There are so many photo opportunities here.

As some have mentioned, don’t depend just on the RS guidebook to determine your itinerary in a city. I always do a first look at Trip Advisor’s Things to Do (among many other sources) when I am going through numerous cities on-line as potentials for 1-3 day stops. I don’t always agree with their order listed, but it gives me an initial feel for the city. These are their Top 5 for Sevilla:

Plaza de Espana
Alcazar
Cathedral & tower
Barrio Santa Cruz
Parque de Maria Luisa

CW, I’ll meet you there in a year or so. Ha! We can also rent bikes and ride around the park across the street.

I spent a week in Seville last year and Plaza de España was not on my radar either until a RS forum friend told me to be sure a go there. It is so lovely and picturesque with impromptu flamenco dancers performing under the arches. I made sure to return again this year on my latest trip to Spain!

You are in good company, as others have shared. I did something kind of similar. The first thing I did after checking into my room in Barrio Santa Cruz, was a walk over to Plaza de Espana and Parque de Maria. My walk was substantial enough to miss my booked visit to the Alcazar. I totally forgot that I made the appointment. Duh! Fortunately I visited the Alhambra in Granada a few days prior. So, I had already seen a spectacular Moorish palace. I too loved the waterways, exquisite tile work and impromptu flamenco dancers at the Plaza.

Jean, my go to website to make a first pass at my list of sights to see in a place is Crazy Tourist.

https://www.thecrazytourist.com/15-best-things-seville-spain/

Their #4 sight for Sevilla is.... Plaza de España. And yet..... ;-)

I’ll meet you there in a year or so

Hah, because my 6 weeks on / 6 weeks off schedule in 2025 isn't crazy enough ?!? :-)

Although, I could stop off after Vienna, around mid December! Or make that 2026 and you're on, bikes and all!!

with impromptu flamenco dancers

Now you're just messing with me, Christine!! :-)

My walk was substantial enough to miss my booked visit to the Alcazar

Lakertone40, I imagine that if I ended up at Plaza de España and found impromptu Flamenco dancers, I would have missed any scheduled appointments as well!

CWSocial thanks for sharing the Crazy Tourist website. I didn't know about it and it's fabulous-I'm sorry I missed Triana when I was in Sevilla.

Well this is very timely! We will be in Seville in February as part of a trip to Andalucia. Making a note not to miss this plaza!

Thank you for the tip about plaza de espana. We’re going to Seville in May, and I now have it on my list of places to see. Thank you.