Lonely Planet ranks Seville as best city to visit in 2018

Evocative, historic, unique and fragrant, few cities pull at the heart strings quite like Seville.

The jewel in Andalucía’s crown, Seville has been turning heads and leaving jaws agape for decades. Ever since Spain opened up to mass tourism in the immediate post-Franco era, the amazing Moorish architecture, rich Spanish traditions and excellent climate inherent to Seville have given the city a certain kudos among the more intrepid traveller…

Sandwiched between the holiday paradises of the Costa del Sol and Portugal’s Algarve region, this landlocked city could so easily have been overlooked for its more family-friendly neighbours.

But in recent years Seville has also begun to widen its appeal. The growth of the Weekend City Break – fuelled by the rise in low-cost airlines enabling couples and groups of friends to get away to somewhere exotic without breaking the bank – has aided this growth, as has a concerted effort by Seville’s city council to make the city more tourist-friendly with the introduction of an underground metro system, tram network and a lick of gentrification across the city’s more antiquated reaches.

These efforts have evidently paid off after independent travel bible The Lonely Planet named Seville as THE top city in the world to visit in 2018. The scorching and historical city beat off competition from Germany’s Hamburg and Norway’s Oslo to claim top spot based on a vote by a panel of experts and travel writers from across the globe.

In explaining why Seville tops its list for next year, Lonely Planet wrote: “Once a traffic-congested metropolis resting on its historic laurels, Seville has bloomed into a city of bicycles and trams, keen to reinvigorate its artistic past.”

Next year, Seville will host the European Film Awards and celebrate the works of local painter Bartolomé Esteban Murillo. The city’s stunning backdrop has also found fame in Game of Thrones, making Seville part of dedicated fans’ pilgrimage routes.

Beyond its architectural and artistic delights, Seville also excels in serving wonderful tapas and nightlife, boasts exceptional shopping, delivers an impressive amount of historical riches and – perhaps best of all – has a climate that can be counted upon all year round. What’s more, it is just a 2.5 hours’ drive from the beaches of the Costa del Sol.