Plaza de España, Seville, Spain

The Plaza de España in the Parque de María Luisa was built in 1928 for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929. It is a landmark example of the Regionalism Architecture, mixing elements of the Baroque Revival, Renaissance Revival and Moorish Revival (Neo-Mudéjar) styles of Spanish architecture.

The plaza complex is a huge half-circle with buildings continually running around the edge accessible over the moat by numerous bridges representing the four ancient kingdoms of Spain. In the centre is the Vicente Traver fountain. By the walls of the Plaza are many tiled alcoves, each representing a different province of Spain. Each alcove is flanked by a pair of covered bookshelves, said to be used by visitors in the manner of 'Little Free Library'. Each bookshelf often contains information about their province, yet you can often find regular books as well for some people have taken to donating their favorite book to these shelves.

The Plaza de España has been used as a filming location, including scenes for the 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia. The building was used as a location in the Star Wars movie series Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002) — in which it featured in exterior shots of the City of Theed on the Planet Naboo. It also featured in the 2012 film The Dictator.

References:

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Historic city squares, old towns and villages in Spain

User Reviews

Jass Malaney (10 months ago)
Grand and majestic feel of a huge Plaza. Really worth a visit. The design and art man-ship makes you feel the grandiose lifestyle of the era. Water feature add to the beauty.

Ann Baker (10 months ago)
Absolutely breathtaking. With the fountain in the centre, the water and small boats, the horses and carriages and then the building itself it is stunning. Just to top it off a group of 3 women and 2 men were dancing flamenco and singing - incredible. The gardens around offer cooling shade.

Carol (11 months ago)
Mind blowing view with breathtaking architecture! A must visit place when you visit Seville. Bring your sunglasses and hat as the square is very open when you are out without much shade. We actually witnessed someone sadly fainted due to the heat. We spent an hour walking through the place and took some pics with the help from other visitors.

NSLondon (11 months ago)
A beautiful, grand plaza which is definitely worth visiting. Be sure to check out the mosaic tiles dedicated to the Spanish cities at the base of the building and take the stairs up to the first level for a nice view across the plaza. Do also take the opportunity to explore that park that is alongside the plaza.

Ernie Silhanek (12 months ago)
Amazing architecture! Spent several hours strolling around the grounds, taking in the sights and sounds! Fabulous parks adjacent to explore too! A must-see when in Seville, Spain!!! The best part is that it is currently (2024), free to enter. Apparently, this may be changing in the future, so get there while you can and enjoy!

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