Are These Spain’s Most Enchanting Cities? What To Eat & Do in Seville and Córdoba in 2026

If I had to describe my perfect long weekend city it would be Seville. Easily walkable, filled with stunning architecture and grand historic monuments and home to a simply phenomenal food, shopping and craft culture. Add to that it's easy access to Cordoba, just one hour away by train where you will find quaint neighbourhoods and patios in bloom. So while you might only be here for a long weekend, I wouldn't blame you for accidentally missing your flight home. Whether you're planning a trip to this gorgeous part of Spain or looking for some inspiration for your next holiday, here is exactly how to spend three days in Seville and Cordoba. Now tomorrow is all about doing the things that you should do when you visit Seville, going to the plaza and the Royal Alcazar, but today we wanted to spend our first day here doing some things that we enjoy. So we popped around the corner to a lovely neighbourhood coffee shop just a few minutes down the road from our hotel and then just around the same area is the weekly flea market. Now I think this only happens on a Thursday but it had so many beautiful finds to rummage through, vintage ceramics and kitchenware and paintings and I could have brought a lot but I only picked up two pieces and I will try and figure out how to fit this into my suitcase on another day. But for now we are off to Seville's oldest food market for a cooking class and a food tour. Triana Market has been the food heart of this neighbourhood for more than a century, so there's no better way to get to know it than with a cooking class. First we visited the vendors around the market where most of our ingredients for the lesson were sourced from. From rich spices and saffron through to beans, cured meats and of course the formidable and flavourful Spanish garlic. Then it was time to roll up our sleeves and get stuck in. The Cooking School's kitchen is located in the middle of the market which creates a really fun atmosphere. Here we learned three dishes across the lesson starting with the traditional Andalusian ones. These were salmorejo, a thick chilled tomato soup that we ordered quite a few times already at the restaurants and it's surprisingly easy to whip up in a blender. Followed by a beloved spinach with chickpeas dish which we actually already tried on our food tour in Granada. So these were great examples of dishes that can vary in style even within the same region. But of course the star of the show was the gigantic paella. This traditionally originates from the Valencia region of Spain but it is one of those key dishes that comes to mind when you think about Spanish food. So it was such a treat and quite an effort to learn how to make it. Now while you might have heard about Triana for the food market you certainly need to stay to explore its ceramics history. Dating back to the Roman times, potters once used the clay easily found on the nearby riverbanks to create simple vessels and throughout the centuries the creations evolved led by the Moorish influence in style and glazing techniques. Today you can visit the Ceramics Museum to learn all about this history and spend the rest of the afternoon hopping between the shops. Some are more modern and commercial whilst others have been operating the same way for decades with painters settled in the back working away at tiny masterpieces. Now we are off to spend our first evening eating in Seville in the most appropriate way possible and that is devouring as much tapas as we possibly can. There is just something about the culture of tapas that speaks to my food soul. Small plates, trying lots of different little things, sharing, socialising and hopping between the bars. Our first stop of the evening was at Eslava for more classic plates where we once again ordered salmorejo but the standout dish had to be this decadent egg yolk with mushroom sponge. Then we moved on to my favourite tapas bar of the trip, just how exquisite is this interior? Plates of tinned fish, cured meats and mouth in your mouth beef flung out of the kitchen but I particularly loved this dessert tapa, a fried milk paste doused in custard. And the final stop of the evening was a bit more experimental at this tiny bar a more modern space where the tapas comes with an Asian meets Mexican influence. It's our second day in Seville and we have woken up just before 8am to head out nice and early to Plaza de España to try and catch it before it gets too busy but most importantly to see it in this beautiful morning light. Now you may very well recognise Plaza de España from films and TV shows and rightfully so it is a simply breathtaking piece of architecture to witness in person. It was built as the flagship pavilion for the 1929 Ibero-American exposition so you will find many signifiers within the design that nod towards an embrace of the Americas as well as Spain's history. During the day the plaza has a lively atmosphere of flamenco dancers and rowboats but of course that comes with larger crowds so there was something quite special about having it pretty much to ourselves in the early morning light. But of course after an early start a good coffee and breakfast are in order so we detoured to this bakery and coffee shop. Here we enjoyed their gorgeous light airy interiors beautifully fluffy cakes and confit tomatoes on toast with a hefty serving of garlic which perfectly set us up for our next activity. The Royal Alcazar is the oldest royal palace still in use in Europe and serves as one of the official residences for the Spanish royal family. After seeing Andalusian design styles throughout the region it was really interesting to see Mudeja architecture here a style that emerged when Christian kings hired highly skilled Muslim craftsmen to build their palaces. The style aims to blend influences like gothic and renaissance architecture with Islamic design elements and techniques. After exploring every courtyard and garden we could we continued on to the Santa Cruz neighborhood. Whilst the immediate streets surrounding the Royal Alcazar will be quite busy although they are admittedly beautiful I'd recommend heading to the edges of the neighborhood for a more relaxed atmosphere. Moin Cafe is a good destination to have in mind. Now after a very full morning we have come back to the hotel for a quick rest and we are just about to head out for our final meal in Seville at a place that has come highly recommended by a lot of people we have talked to so I cannot wait to try it and then tonight we have got a fun sunset activity planned so I'm really hoping that the clouds clear so we get a very good sunset. Agurio is a quiet space with only a handful of tables but it is easily considered one of the most exciting restaurants in Seville right now. Headed up by two female chefs the atmosphere is warm and relaxed and the menu is made for sharing. We started with their seriously sensational one bite tapas you have to try this steak tartare ball with fried quail egg. For mains it was all about the bluefin tuna dishes a staple on Andalusian spring menus due to being caught just off the coast here. I loved the tuna triptych where it was prepared in three different ways. And for our evening activity one of the best sunset views in the city. You just can't miss Cetacea Seville when wandering through the streets it's a striking collection of wooden canopies shaped like giant mushrooms towering above the old quarter. Fun fact it is the largest wooden structure in the world and is made up of more than 3,000 pieces of birch wood. While sunset is the busier time to visit the structure looks particularly beautiful in the soft light of golden hour. Most people will gather at the top for a view across the city but I would highly recommend just wandering around catching the light and the landscape at different angles across the evening. Now you might have noticed a slight scene change for the day and that is because we have caught the one hour train over to Kordoba for our last night. Kordoba is known for the Mesquita Cathedral which is that stunning building with red and white arches and we will be seeing that later in the day. But first we've actually timed our visit with the patio festival that happens every single year in May and it's the stunning festival where all of the historic homes open up their courtyards to the public and the visitors to come and see and enjoy. There is even a judging committee to choose the best patio so that is our very first stop for the day. Let's go and see some gorgeous patios. The courtyards festival usually has six different routes you can follow and more than 50 patios to explore so one thing you need to know is that you will never see them all in just one weekend. We started the morning at this convent about halfway through the Santa Marina route hopping into several residential courtyards as we meandered through the gorgeous whitewashed streets. While you might see a lot of queues across the city at this time of year they all move quite quickly and are honestly very fun to join. You just spend your morning chatting away as you wait in anticipation to view each patio. The patios are usually open from 11am to 2pm and then again in the evening so it's a nice way to bookend your day in Kordoba. If you can't make it to the festival however you will find this 14th century palace in the same neighbourhood to visit year round. It's home to 12 artfully designed patios and gives you a real sense of the city's love of patio and garden design without having to venture too far. And we've just checked into our hotel and as it is the last evening of our trip I wanted to choose something a little bit more special. Honestly this place is beautiful so let me show you around. This is H10 Hotel, a 4 star hotel proudly situated in a former palace built in 1928. This grand building overlooks a bustling plaza bordering both the old and the new town so it was ideally located to get around on foot for our fleeting trip. The rooms are beautifully decorated with views right over the plaza, the pool is a calm spot to spend a siesta and the rooftop terrace is definitely where you'll want to be at sunset. After checking in we made our way to the main destination for the day, the Mesquita Cathedral. Known for its layered history starting off as a church which is then converted to a mosque and then to a cathedral it retains traces of all those uses throughout the building but it is probably most well recognized for the forest of arches painted in these iconic red and white stripes. You will need to book this one in advance and just a little tip we actually booked the last hour of the day which was pretty quiet and a nice escape from the afternoon heat. And of course come 6 o'clock we were back to patio hopping. This time we made our way to the San Basilo district which in the evening light was both beautiful to look at and had such a lively atmosphere. For dinner we headed to this restaurant just a few minutes from the Mesquita Cathedral. Located inside one of the old houses of Cordova's Jewish Quarter, it's a traditional tavern that dates back to the 1920s and is filled with Cordovan dishes to try. Cold soups, plenty of fish and even artichoke made an appearance. And definitely snag a seat on the rooftop if you can, it makes for a pretty memorable last meal in the city. And with that our time in Seville and Cordova is very sadly over. Thank you so much for watching and if you would like to see a little bit more from my time in Spain check out my last vlog from Granada or watch my video from San Sebastian, one of the most delicious cities I have ever visited. See you in the next video.