Fam trip Seville and Córdoba

FAM TRIP FOR TRAVEL AGENTS POST FITUR 2025

DAY 1: FRIDAY, JANUARY 24, 2025 MADRID CÓRDOBA ALMODÓVAR DEL RÍO CASTLE SIERRA MORENA NATURAL PARK (EL PEDROSO)

8:15 Meeting at Atocha station. Please be at least 30 minutes before the train departure time at the boarding gates and have your ticket printed or on your mobile device ready.

08:51 Departure from Madrid Atocha, on high-speed train.

09:46 Arrival in Córdoba. Meeting with transportation. Upon arrival, we will be greeted by the local guide who will give us a historical explanation of the place where we are before proceeding to discover this beautiful city. Córdoba was the capital of Al-Andalus, the heart of the Umayyad Caliphate. A city comparable in its time to Constantinople, for its cultural richness, architecture, and grandeur.

We will enter the medina through the Almodóvar Gate and stroll through the Jewish quarter, where we can visit the synagogue, the only one preserved in Andalusia dating from 1314. We will continue walking through the streets of the medina, through the monumental area of the city, getting to know the Roman Bridge and the Mosque-Cathedral.

Later on, we will stroll through the winding and narrow streets of the old quarter, making a special stop at the Calleja de las Flores. Then, we will descend to the medieval neighborhood to discover spaces steeped in history: the Plaza del Potro, La Corredera...

The Plaza del Triunfo owes its name to the monument located at one of its ends, the famous Triumph of San Rafael, a vertical monument crowned by the archangel guardian, protector of the city.

We will have lunch at a well-known restaurant in the city where we will have the opportunity to enjoy Cordovan cuisine.

Next, we will visit Medina Azahara, a palatial city from the 10th century. The history of Medina Azahara begins with Abderraman III, and his decision to build a city on the outskirts of Córdoba, between the years 936 and 976. It encompasses both administrative and residential spaces of the caliphate. Taking advantage of the terrain's topography, a city was designed based on the existing heights, where the upper terrace was occupied by the private function and residence of the royal family, as well as the governmental function.

After visiting Medina Zahara, we will continue towards one of the best-preserved castles in Spain, the Castillo de Almodóvar del Río, where we will make a stop for photos without visiting the interior.

 We continue towards Sierra Morena, where we will reach our destination: El Pedroso.

Check-in at the accommodations.

Welcome dinner with typical mountain dishes and overnight stay in El Pedroso, in a nineteenth-century manor house.

 

DAY 2 SATURDAY, JANUARY 25, 2025 WHITE VILLAGES OF SEVILLE DISTILLERIES, WINERIES, AND MOUNTAIN GASTRONOMY

Breakfast

9:30 We depart for Constantina to visit an ancestral distillery of spirits. The history of Constantina's anise arises because it has always been a land of vineyards. Since ancient times, the Romans valued this wine, called cocolubis by them, so much that they took it to Rome. By the end of the 16th century, there was such a production of grapes that the surplus wine was transformed into alcohol, and that's when the first anise industries began to emerge. The distillery we visit continues to produce anises and liqueurs, today in the same copper stills as those famous brands did, feeding the still with oak firewood, thus maintaining the same production techniques of centuries ago and producing a typical and indigenous product like our specialty: "Crema de Guindas" (Cherry Cream). Anise and cherry tastings included. After a stroll through Constantina, we will continue towards El Cerro de Hierro, which shelters a spectacular landscape where the action of nature and that of man come together, resulting in a paleokarst of great beauty and scientific and didactic interest.

We will then head towards El Batán de las Monjas where we will stop for lunch in a beautiful natural setting, which is currently the best gastronomic spot in the area.

From there, we will proceed to the Cartuja de Cazalla, which has its origins in the late 15th century and is a magnificent example of the monumental architectural complexes in which the life of the Carthusian Order developed.

In the afternoon, we will continue our route to Cazalla de la Sierra, a beautiful place where we will stroll through its streets and have the opportunity to visit a vineyard and witness the wine-making process of this area of Andalusia.

Upon our return, we will take a walk around the village.

Dinner at El Pedroso.

Accommodation in El Pedroso, Seville.

 DAY 3 MONDAY, JANUARY 26, 2025 SEVILLE, TAPAS ROUTE AND RETURN TO MADRID

Breakfast at the hotel.

08:30 am Departure to Seville. Upon arrival, we will embark on a tour to discover the most emblematic corners of this beautiful city and its main monuments. You will experience Seville in a special way. Through this stroll, you will uncover places, stories, curiosities, and anecdotes of the city.

10:00 am We will enter the Maria Luisa Park to discover the Sevillian gem of the 20th century, the Plaza de España, the most emblematic work of the Ibero-American Exhibition of 1929, designed by the Sevillian architect Aníbal González, one of the most spectacular spaces of regionalist architecture. From there, we will walk through the Maria Luisa Park towards the Plaza de América.

The Plaza de América is a landscaped space within the Maria Luisa Park. It is flanked by the Museum of Arts and Popular Customs to the north and the Archaeological Museum to the south, which is currently closed for renovations.

Some of the fountains or pools in this square have replicas in the private homes of Sevillians who believe they are so beautiful that they have them built in their courtyards. The gardens have been renovated several times and contain flowerbeds, rose bushes, shrubs, and other plants that frame the space.

We will head to the Casino of the Exhibition, built to house the Pavilion of Seville that was part of the Ibero-American Exhibition of 1929.

We will continue through the Real Tobacco Factory, the old headquarters of the tobacco company where the opera Carmen is set, nowadays the University of Seville. In the 18th century, it was decided to build the Real Tobacco Factory of Seville, a large stone building outside the city walls, of great dimensions and of Renaissance, medieval, and Baroque styles. It was the headquarters of the first tobacco factory in Europe and the most important industrial building in Spain at the time. It occupies a rectangle of 185 by 147 meters, surpassed in Spain only by El Escorial, which measures 207 by 162 meters.

We will make the first stop at the iconic Bar Casablanca, where we will have the first tapa of today's route. From there, we will continue on foot towards the Plaza de la Contratación, where the General Archive of the Indies of Seville is located. This archive was created in 1785 by the desire of King Carlos III, with the aim of centralizing in one place the documentation related to the administration of the Spanish overseas territories.

From there, we will cross the Plaza del Triunfo to visit the Royal Alcazar of Seville, a walled palace complex built in different historical stages and the seat of the Spanish Royal House since its construction. The original palace was built in the High Middle Ages. Some remnants of Islamic art are preserved, and from the period after the Castilian conquest, there are Mudéjar palatial spaces and others in Gothic style.

After visiting the Alcazar, we will walk through the Santa Cruz neighborhood, crossing the Jewish quarter and beautiful squares such as Doña Elvira or the Venerables Sacerdotes. We will continue towards the Cathedral, a Gothic-style Catholic temple. On the way, we will make the second stop for the tapas route.

We will head to the cathedral, one of the largest in the world in this style. Among many other treasures, it houses the tomb of Christopher Columbus.

We will continue through the Plaza del Cabildo, which features frescoes, arcades, columns, and a section of Almohad wall from the 12th century, towards the Arenal neighborhood, the neighborhood of bullfighters, next to the Guadalquivir River, where the bullring and the Torre del Oro are located. The Torre del Oro is an albarrana tower located on the left bank of the Guadalquivir River, dating from 1221. It closed off access to the Arenal with a section of wall that connected it to the Torre de la Plata, which was part of the city walls of Seville that defended the Alcazar. In short, it was a defensive tower that protected the city from invasions via the Guadalquivir River.

We will continue on foot to visit the historic center of the city. Plaza Nueva to see the exterior of the City Hall of Seville, one of the most notable examples of Plateresque architecture in Andalusia. During the 15th century, due to the discovery of America and the importance and wealth that the city was acquiring, it was decided to create a new seat for the City Council, larger and of higher quality, and to place the City Hall of Seville in Plaza de San Francisco, which was a central and commercial location, and move it from its old seat in Plaza de la Virgen de los Reyes.

We will head towards Plaza del Salvador, an open space located in the Alfalfa neighborhood, where the former main mosque of Seville was located, and where the Church of El Salvador is now located.

6:00 pm Enjoy a unique flamenco show in Seville, at the foot of the Giralda. We want you to live an authentic and unforgettable experience. Intimate and familiar flamenco. A place where you will sit very close to the artists. In the heart of Seville Singing. Dancing. Guitar. The best flamenco artists are waiting for you.

7:00 pm Transfer by train to Santa Justa, farewell

8:57 pm Return by train to Madrid

11:40 pm Arrival at Madrid Atocha and end of our services