Parador de Carmona
- Getting there
- Atop Carmona's hill, a short drive from the old town and about 30 minutes from Seville
Why it’s in the log
Parador de Carmona occupies a 14th-century Moorish fortress on the hill above Carmona, part of Spain's state-run Parador network of hotels set in historic buildings rather than purpose-built replicas. The vaulted stone courtyards and the view over the Carmona plain are original to the site, not an addition.
With a 4.5 rating from 5,500 reviews, it's one of the better-known Paradores, but Carmona itself sees far fewer visitors than Seville, twenty minutes away — which keeps the hotel and the town around it quiet.
Worth building a night or two around rather than a quick stop on the way to Seville — the building rewards actually staying inside it.
“The building is the whole reason to stay here — a real Moorish fortress, not a hotel decorated to look like one.”
Mentioned alongside
Carmona
A walled Andalusian hill town twenty minutes from Seville, quiet enough that most visitors still skip it.
Seville
Andalusia's capital, orange-tree courtyards and flamenco, brutal in July and August, glorious the rest of the year.
Spain
Eleven distinct regions under one flag — the food, the hours and the accent change every few hundred kilometres.