Insight Vacations Review – Treasures of Spain, Portugal & Morocco – Seville & Cordoba
Insight Vacations Review – Treasures of Spain, Portugal & Morocco – Seville & Cordoba
WJ Tested: Insight Vacations – Day 7: Seville & Cordoba, Spain
Insight Vacations Review – Treasures of Spain, Portugal & Morocco – Seville & Cordoba
16-Night Motorcoach Trip in 2011
Optional Excursion: Cordoba
With a free day on the Seville schedule today, those not taking the 6-hour optional excursion to Cordoba could sleep in and explore the city on their own. But, as the Cordoba excursion was scheduled for an 8 am departure we were up with the 6:30 am wake-up call, straight down for the breakfast buffet and then leaving the city with Philip and Javier on a 90-minute drive to Cordoba. We didn’t mind another early start to the day as the weather was lovely and warm and we were enjoying all of the wonderful sights that this tour was taking us to.
Insight Vacations Review – Treasures of Spain, Portugal & Morocco – Cathedral and Great Mosque of Cordoba
Arriving on the outskirts of Cordoba’s old city, Javier walked us over the Roman Bridge that crosses the Guadalquivir River and towards the Cathedral and Great Mosque of Cordoba where we met our local guide, Enrique. Enrique wowed us with his knowledge of this UNESCO World Heritage Site and then took us for a walking tour of the old Jewish quarter with its narrow lanes, bars and shops. After being turned loose we had 90-minutes free time to lunch, explore more of the medina or continue sightseeing.
On the drive back to Seville, Javier primed us for our trip to Morocco, giving us plenty of information about the cities we would see and encouraging us to be very aware and careful of the food and drink we would consume whilst there. Even though we would stay at 5-star hotels, we would be wise to avoid anything that we couldn’t peel ourselves or wasn’t cooked. The last thing any of us needed was a case of the trots!
Insight Vacations Review – Treasures of Spain, Portugal & Morocco – Seville’s Abril Feria
Seville – Free Time
When we returned to the hotel just after 2 pm we decided it was siesta time for a couple of hours. We planned on spending the evening attending Seville’s Abril Feria (April Fair) with a few of our fellow passengers. Our research informed us that the fair didn’t get busy until at least 9 pm and festivities could easily continue through to 6 am the next morning. We doubted we would be there until the wee hours of the morning, but we were certainly determined to take in this annual festival for even just a few hours and we were so glad we did! Everywhere we looked, women and girls were dressed in Flamenco dresses in a rainbow of colors, men were in beautifully tailored suits and there were endless rows of brightly decorated and bustling casetas (marquee tents). Many of the casetas belong to businesses and prominent families of Seville and most require an invitation to enter. Although we arrived at the Feria early (around 8 pm), the streets between the casetas were filled with thousands of people of all ages. Some were just socializing, eating tapas, drinking sherry and dancing while others were all riding horses or on the fairground rides. It was an amazing spectacle and we were so fortunate that the timing of our tour put us in Seville during this event.
Arriving back to the hotel we realized we were too excited from all the merriment at the Fair to end the night, so wandered around the corner to a local Cafereria for beer and tapas. Here we found very friendly staff and local customers, delicious tapas and perfectly chilled-beer. Another great day experiencing lots of Spanish culture!
If You Go:
Visit WAVEJourney’s Insight Vacations Treasures of Spain, Portugal & Morocco Review:
Overview | Itinerary | Hotels | Photos | Day 1: Madrid | Day 2: Segovia | Day 3: Toledo & Salamanca | Day 4: Fatima & Lisbon | Day 5: Lisbon & Cascais | Day 6: Sevilla | Day 7: Cordoba | Day 8: Gibraltar & Tangier | Day 9: Fes | Day 10: Fes & Meknes | Day 11: Marrakesh | Day 12: Ourika Valley & Marrakesh | Day 13: Casablanca & Rabat | Day 14: Torremolinos | Day 15: Granada | Day 16: Madrid |
