Guadalquivir River Boat
Cruise in Seville

If you are considering taking a river boat cruise on the waters of the Guadalquivir, head to the Torre del Oro where the pier is located. On your way there and in particular on the sidewalk of the riverbed, you'll surely find a couple of staff of the cruises company that'll give you some brochures and all the information you need to know.

Here's an advance of what you can expect from this touristic experience. My suggestions are at the end.

Practical information

You can take the boat from 11am to 11pm. It leaves every 30 minutes from the Marques del Contadero pier, located right below the Torre del Oro. The tour lasts approximately one hour.

What can you see during the river boat cruise?

While on board you'll have the chance to get a wide perspective of both riverbeds.

On one hand you'll see a large part of the sights in Seville starting with the Torre del Oro itself, the Maestranza bullring and some of the pavilions of the 1929 Ibero-American Exhibition. On the other hand, you'll see a much modern Seville with a panoramic of the Remedios neighborhood and part of the Cartuja Island.

My favorite stretch is the Calle Betis (Betis Street), one of the most picturesque landmarks of Seville. This street is part of Triana, a very popular neighborhood where you can truly sense the deep Andalusian culture.

Furthermore, the boat will go under nine bridges being the Quincentenary Bridge the closest to the sea and the Alamillo Bridge the furthest.

Out of these bridges, I would like to point out two of them. Both were built for the Universal Exposition that was held in Seville in 1992 (Expo'92). This Exposition was organized to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus.

The first one is the Barqueta Bridge, popularly known as the Basket. It was built as part of the infrastructure improvements accomplished for the Expo'92. Actually, it is the main entrance gate or access to the Cartuja Island where the Universal Exposition site was. Today, most of the island has been transformed into offices but you can still go to the Cartuja Monastery where the Contemporary Art Centre (CAAC) is and to Isla Magica, an amusement park.

The other one is the Alamillo Bridge. Designed by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, it provides access to the Cartuja Island where the pavilions were. It is my favorite bridge in Seville because of the contrast it gives between its modern design and the colonial architecture of the city. And I also love it because it can be seen from everywhere: when I get back from Madrid I usually see it from my AVE train seat.

Is the river boat cruise really worth it?

In one word: no.

First of all the cruise is not particularly exciting. Not that you may fall asleep while on the boat but I find it pretty boring because you cannot hop on and hop off as in the open top touristic bus.

Then, the views are nice but I find much more relaxing and enjoyable walking or biking around the Calle Betis (Betis Street) and the Paseo Colon (Colon Boulevard). There, you can go down to some great paths next to the river and take a look at the views.

Finally, for the same price I clearly recommend the touristic bus. You'll go to a lot more places, you'll have some great explanations (plus the two free walking tours) and you'll truly visit Seville at your own pace.

Of course, if you are travelling on a budget you can replace the bus for a bike and do the tour on your own. And if you want a totally customized and original experience go for the horse drawn carriage tour (more expensive, though...).

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