10 unique Christmas gift ideas from Seville

You’re probably looking for some great Christmas gift ideas from Seville. The shopping season is about to start so skip the souvenir shops and buy your loved ones a special, quintessentially Spanish present.

If you’re hoping to bring back some memorable holiday gifts from Seville, look no further.

I’ve put together some excellent choices for Christmas and holiday shopping, whether you’re hunting for gourmet treats, decorative items, or traditional handcrafts to stack in your suitcase. If you can make it to one of the city’s festive Christmas markets at some point during your stay, you’re even more likely to find a memorable (and locally authentic) gift or holiday souvenir.

These are my favorite Christmas gift ideas from Seville – 10 unique presents in a range of prices for every person in your family.

1. A belén

Belén is the Spanish word for Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus.

But it doesn’t just refer to the geographical place.

It’s also used to describe a Nativity scene, of the sort that you find in people’s houses but also on a large scale set up by town councils across Spain.

However, its origin is not Spanish – King Carlos III of Spain brought the tradition from Naples.

Each family have their own belén, taking a traditional format with the Holy Family grouped in a stable surrounded by farm animals and receiving visits from angels, shepherds and the Three Kings (or Wise Men).

Sometimes the belén contains figures that have been passed down generation to generation, while other families make buying a new figure to add to the Belén part of their annual Christmas tradition, visiting one of the stalls at a Christmas market dedicated to selling them.

So head to any Christmas market in Seville where you’ll be sure to find nativity scenes figurines and sets for sale.

2. Christmas sweets

There are many traditional Spanish sweet treats that are particularly popular around Christmas:

• Turrón, a nougat treat typically made of honey, sugar and egg white. You can find them at La Despensa de Palacio (Calle Villegas, 1).
• Mantecados, typical Andalusian shortbreads made from the fat of the Iberian pig.
• Polvorones are a variety of shortbread biscuits made with flour, milk, sugar, butter and nuts.

Get the best mantecados and polvorones at Mantecados La Colchona (Calle Cuna, 37).

One of the traditions in Seville has always been to go and buy sweets from the nuns in the different convents of the city. Every convent has their own specialty, so depending on which pastry or sweet treat you’re looking for, you might have to go to a different convent. One of my favorites has always been the Convento de San Leandro (Plaza de San Ildefonso, 1). Try the yemas – a sweet made with egg yolk, sugar and some lemon juice. Simple and delicious.

3. Flamenco dresses and accessories

Seville has a rich flamenco tradition and you can’t visit the city without seeing a traditional, authentic show.

Buying a flamenco dress as a Christmas present is a wonderful way to bring the tradition home. A real dress will set you back at least 300€, so if that’s outside your budget, a knock off gown can cause just as much excitement, and leave more money to splash out on accessories!

There are a couple of different shopping areas to check out when looking for flamenco dresses in Seville as it really depends on what you want:

• The area around Calle Feria is filled with vintage shops and hipster outlets. This is a good place to go for a more modern dress.
• The main shopping area in the city has many shops, mainly around Calle Tetuán and Calle Sierpes. This is a great place to come for clothes shopping in general and has several high-end boutiques selling stunning flamenco dresses. At the far end of Calle Sierpes, towards the Alfalfa neighborhood is where you can find most of the best ones.

You never know where you may stumble across the perfect dress so I encourage you to walk around and see what you find, but to get you started, some of the best shops for flamenco dresses are:

• Micaela Villa (Plaza de Jesús de la Pasión, 2).
• Lina 1960 (Calle Lineros, 17).
• Menkes (Calle Cuna, 20).
• FlamencoPasión (Plaza de la Encarnación, 3).
• Flamenco y más (Calle San Luis, 116).

4. Jamón and cheese

Iberian ham or jamón ibérico is one of the best Christmas gift ideas for a committed foodie. You can buy it in various ways, but the most practical one is getting a small vacuum-packed of thin jamón slices.

Moreover, Spanish cheese makes the perfect accompaniment to cured meats like jamón and chorizo. A great meal could consist of little more than a spread of meats and cheeses, plus a few olives to nibble and some bread to share.

For travel-friendly vacuum packed products, head to Charcutería Rafael Ramírez, a stall in the local produce market on Calle Feria.

Alternatively, you can head to Flores Gourmet (Calle San Pablo, 24).

5. Handicrafts

The holiday season would not be complete without browsing for handcrafted gifts at Christmas markets in Seville. The best holiday gifts (especially the last-minute kind) can only be purchased at an old-fashioned street stall.

Christmas vendors sell anything you could possibly need to kickstart the holidays – from glittery gifts and ornaments, to some delicious traditional Christmas sweets… These traditional gifts are both authentic and special. They’re relatively inexpensive, but truly capture that sense of place and timeless magic of the season.

6. Ceramics

Spanish ceramics have a long history, particularly in Andalucía. With so many buildings in the city decorated with ornate tiles, both inside and out, ceramics are the ultimate souvenir from Seville.

Throughout the city you’ll find a vast variety of ceramics that are handmade, hand-painted and affordable.

Little tapas bowls or spoon rests are a really good Spanish Christmas gift because you can easily get it personalized with some writing, like the place you bought it or the name of the person you’ll give it to.

The main shopping streets are lined with ceramic stores, but for top quality plates and tiles, head across the Triana Bridge to Cerámica Santa Ana (Calle San Jorge 31), famous for its traditional ceramics.

7. A bottle of Spanish wine

Wine is one of my favorite Christmas gift ideas.

With so many typical Andalusian wines available, why not give your gift a unique twist by purchasing one of the region’s specialties?

Head to Flor de Sal (Calle Carlos Cañal, 46) where you can choose from approximately 85 different wine denominations.

Or go to Flores Gourmet (Calle San Pablo, 24) to buy some Manzanilla sherry to add a southern Spanish flavor to your festive celebrations.

8. An abanico

Ranging from highly elegant to very kitsch indeed, abanicos (fans) are an essential feature of summer in Spain.

And while Christmas might not seem like the ideal moment to give someone a Spanish fan, it’s one of the most iconic symbols of Spain. It’s the perfect accessory to any outfit and is also an ideal souvenir gift from Seville.

With different colors, styles, and designs to choose from, my favorite ones are artisan hand fans that are individually hand painted in a variety of patterns.

Head to Abanicos de Sevilla Diza-Dizal-Zadi (Calle Tetuán, 5; Calle Sierpes, 48; Calle Sierpes, 75 and Plaza de San Francisco, 7) where the fans are painted directly by the artisans in the store and they personalize it for you for free!

9. A bottle of Spanish olive oil

A really good gift that anyone will appreciate is, without any doubt, a bottle of our traditional Spanish olive oil.

Make sure you purchase an olive oil made following the traditional method and with the best olives in the surroundings. You won’t regret choosing Extra Virgin olive oil as a present: this will be one of the most special and appreciated gifts for a Spanish-themed Christmas.

My recommendation?

La Oleoteca (Calle García de Vinuesa, 39) has a huge selection of olive oils and is run by local experts who are happy to talk you through each variety.

10. Christmas lottery

The Spanish Christmas Lottery is one of the world’s largest lottery draws.

It’s celebrated every December 22th, with a payout of several billion euros. There are scores of grand prizes – thousands of people cash in on some kind of winning ticket each year, while the biggest prize is commonly referred to as El Gordo (The Big One) for its large sum.

The lottery dates back to the 18th century, when King Carlos III brought the idea from Naples, and it has been celebrated every year since 1812 – even through Spanish Civil War.

So it can be a very original gift for a relative or a friend, but most importantly, it will be a wonderful excuse to go back to Seville: to collect the prize!

You buy a ticket pretty much everywhere and it’s one of the best Christmas gift ideas that I can think of.