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One of the best sites in this evocative hill town. Set in the former town hall, views from the rooms are amazing, while the decor reflects the colours of the area.

You’ll need to book about a year in advance to stay here, but it’s the premier stay in town. Housed in a meticulously restored 15th-century monastery, with a wisteria-covered patio, it is utterly beautiful. For the maximum experience, get a room with a view out over the Albaicín on one side and the cloister on the other.

This parador stands surrounded by pine trees, facing the Alcázaba. It’s handy for activities, notably golf and tennis, nearby.

This modern seaside complex has great views of the bay and is ideally located for getting to know the whole province, as well as the historic city. Facilities include a pool jutting out over the sea and most rooms enjoy views of the water or of the old town.

This place will save the day when what your children need most is to cool off. Five pools of various sizes, loads of undulating slides and tubes, as well as shaded areas.

This wild area provides plenty of inspiring views and fauna (see Sierra de Aracena y Picos de Aroche Park).

This huge park dominates the southern end of the city. Its present design was laid out for the 1929 Exposition. Keep an eye out for peacocks perched in the trees.

Seville’s glorious main park was a gift to the city from a Bourbon duchess in 1893. A few decades later it was redesigned and embellished for the 1929 Ibero-American Exhibition. Numerous lavish structures have been left behind, including the stunning Plaza de España and several other fine buildings, now used mostly as cultural centres. The grounds are largely the creation of Jean-Claude Nicolas Forestier, the French landscape gardener who also designed the Bois de Boulogne in Paris.

Europe’s largest nature reserve includes important wetlands and shifting dunes that are gradually moving inland. The fragile ecosystem can only be visited on guided tours.