The Spanish city of Seville is the capital of the Autonomous Community of Andalusia. It is located in the south of the Iberian peninsula, on the river Guadalquivir. The river is navigable for the first 80-90km (50-55mi), making Seville the only functioning river port in Spain. The city has more then 700,000 inhabitants, making the fourth largest Spanish city in terms of population, and the third most visited city in the country.

Among its more memorable monuments there is the main Cathedral, the fortress and the Torre del Oro (“Tower of Gold”). The Giralda is the cathedral’s belltower and is one of the most identifying aspects of the city, measuring more than 100m in height. The city’s fortresses is Europe’s oldest royal palace – it was built in the 8th century by the Arabs. Seville’s Plaza de Toros (bullring), finished in 1881, is one of the oldest bullfighting arenas in Spain and is considered one of the city’s most popular tourist attractions. It also houses the city’s Museo Taurino. Seville also has a variety of museums, such as the Archaeological Museum, the Flamenco Museum and the Geological Museum.

Some of the city’s most famous characters include the painter Diego de Silva Velázquez, Figaro, the protagonist of the opera "The Barber of Seville” by Rossini, and Carmen, the protagonist of Georges Bizet’s opera of the same name. In total, more than 100 operas have been set in Seville. Since 1980 the city also hosts the La Bienal flamenco festival, held every two years. The Plaza de España, which is one of the biggest open space designs to have come from regionalist architecture, has also featured in several films, including Lawrence of Arabia and Star Wars Episode II: The Attack of the Clones.

Accommodation in Seville’s student residences

Sevilla has two universities, the University of Seville, founded in 1505,and the smaller University of Pablo de Olavide. All of the city’s student residences are assigned to one of these universities and offer comfortable and affordable accommodation, mostly in the city centre. It should be understood that these residences are designed primarily for students and not children or adults expecting a high level of luxury. However, with this in mind, the halls do meet a level of comfort that we expect most visitors to be happy with, and we will welcome any feedback where this is not the case.

Getting around Seville

The Sevilla-San Pablo airport is the only one that serves the city. It is located around 10km (6mi) to the northeast of the city. The Santa Justa train station is the city’s central rail station. It was created as the origin of the High Speed Train network (AVE) that connects Seville and Madrid. Since 2009, the city has one Metro (underground) line, with plans in place to create 3 more in the next few years. For all public transport, guests can use the Tarjeta de transporte (“Transport Card”), sold in most places by the transport authority. The city also has a public bicycle hire service, similar to other Spanish cities, like Barcelona and Valencia.

Historically, Seville is one of the most important cities in Spain. A settlement existed here since the ancient times and after its destructions by the Carthaginians, the city was rebuilt as the Roman town of Hispalis. During the Visigothic reign, the city also housed the court on several occasions and after that the city was taken over by the Muslims. In 844 Seville was ransacked by the Vikingsm which lead to the improvement of the city’s defensive capabilities and the construction on the fortress.

In 1248, following the conquest by Ferdinand III, the city was taken over by the Crown Castile. Since then, Seville was to be repopulated by the Castilian aristocracy and became a prominent city with a vote in the courts. During the Middle Ages, the city’s port and its prominent merchant community found themselves in quite a periferal, but nonetheless very important position in terms of international European commerce. At this time the city also saw several economic and social crises, such as the Black Death epidemic in 1348 and the antisemetic revolt in 1391. With the descovery of the Americas, Seville quickly became the economic centre of the Spanish empire. The Catholic Monarchs founded the Casa de Contratación, from where they controlled voyages to and from America, the riches that made its way back to Spain and other relations with the New World.

During the 16th century the city became a multicultural centre, which lead to an unprecedented growth of the arts and played an important role in Spain’s Golden Age. In the city’s most artistic time, the Baroque period, the city was unfortunately affected quite severely by the crisis of the 17th century, which caused a significant decline, both socially and economically. At a time when the port’s activities were become less and less profitable and therefore frequent, the decision was finally made to move the city’s commercial monopoly over to Cadiz. Then the city experienced another outbreak of the plague, which saw the death of more than a half of the city’s active population. The city’s revitalisation in the 19th century healed some of the wounds and saw the creation of the railway network and a significant development of many industries.

In the 20th century, aside from being involved in the Spanish civil war and enduring the military dictatorship that followed, the city also also took part in such landmark events as the Exposición Iberoamericana in 1929, the Exposición Universal in 1992 and the city’s election as the Andalusian capital.