A Place in the Sun’s Victoria Hollingsworth can’t resist the beauty and romance of Seville, beating heart of all Andalucia’s passions.

It may only be Spain’s fourth largest city, but I think it’s fair to say that Seville is Spain’s most ‘Spanish’ city. It embraces all that we love about Spanish culture and has resisted becoming a cosmopolitan capital of the south. Instead it’s a city built on a passion for ferias, fino and flamenco, giving Sevillianos a contagious life-loving spirit

I fell madly in love with Seville during a week I spent filming there for an episode of A Place in the Sun. When not nosing around apartments I found time to aimlessly wander the cobbled streets intoxicated by the heady orange blossom. Apart from being architecturally beautiful I was quite astonished by the hospitality and generosity of the locals.

A few years later I decided to return and show my significant other the most romantic city in the world. However, on arriving my excitement was slightly dampened by the fact that it was absolutely teeming down with rain. On our first night, my boyfriend and I were staying in Triana on the west bank of the Guadaliquivir river. Seeing as we had no umbrella and were far from correctly attired for such adverse conditions I reluctantly decided to sacrifice my tightly timetabled sightseeing schedule and to follow the lead of the locals. Armed with our little Spanish phrase book we spent the afternoon drinking sherry and eating manchego and Jamon, sheltered by umbrellas at Los Chorritos - a charming riverside shack. Looking out through the rain at the captivating view of the bull ring and the cathedral, I felt like a child admiring an unopened Christmas present, but for now at least I was happy to savour the beauty of the old town from afar.

Triana is the true gypsy heart of Seville. Whilst it is slowly attracting more and more tourists and fewer gypsies, it has still retained a tangible edginess. Once the rain had subsided we wandered the streets enthralled at the faded glamour of this district; the buildings more reminiscent of what I would expect to find in old-time Havana than stylish Seville. My initial polarised image of this city was already turned on its head and I loved it even more for that. There are a few things to look out for while exploring this barrio, starting with the Church of Santa Anna, the oldest church in the city. Built in 1276 in a transition style between Romanic and Gothic it is one the most interesting and beautiful churches I have ever seen.

Don’t be shy to sneak a peak through the many wrought iron entrance gates to admire the original gypsy homes or corrales. Usually based around a leafy central courtyard with vibrantly colourful glazed tiles on the exterior walls, they offer a glimpse in to a bygone time.

Triana has been the birthplace of many celebrated bullfighters and flamenco dancers over the years. Despite their infamy the flamenco bars here can prove to be exceedingly elusive. It’s here that I was hoping to witness this intensely passionate dance in its most visceral and authentic form. Yet after following various contradictory directions from different locals and walking down endless dark and forboding backstreets, we eventually admitted defeat and accepted that this is one part of Triana’s heritage that the locals don’t want to share with the tourists, which I reluctantly respected. So unless you are wildly determined you are probably better off sticking to the flamenco bars in and around the old town, like La Carboneria, a hotbed of fiery gypsy passion for locals and visitors alike.

We were staying in Hotel Amadeus, an 18th century patio-house with delicately furnished rooms and a roof terrace with views over the city – romantic perfection! Waking up to glorious sunshine we crossed the river and headed towards the heart of Seville’s old town.

One thing I had completely forgotten from my previous visit is the problem of navigating Seville by car. The narrowness of the cobbled streets teamed with my poor map reading skills was more than the hire car and my boyfriend could bear so we eventually parked up on the outskirts and got a taxi to take us to the Barrio de Santa Cruz.

Slowly wandering through the maze of streets surrounding the cathedral, it’s hard to resist stopping for a fino every five minutes in the many temptingly shady tapas bars. In peak season this area’s distinctly laidback atmosphere can seem positively frenetic with all the tourists, but it’s so sprawling that you never need to walk far to discover a little patio or square filled with fragrant orange trees and jasmine, and hear the sound of Sevillianos laughing, singing or showing off their tricky, flamenco hand clapping.

While you can snatch glimpses of the cathedral from its surrounding narrow alleys, nothing quite prepares you for the enormity of it. It is in fact the largest church in the world (the certificate from the Guinness book of records is proudly displayed inside). Built in 1402 after demolishing the mosque that originally stood there, the Christian rulers wanted “a building on so magnificent a scale that posterity will believe we were mad.” I don’t know about mad but ambitious maybe. Thankfully the original mosque wasn’t completely demolished; the minaret called the Giralda now serves as the bell tower. If you ascend the stairs to the top you are rewarded with the most spectacular view - or so I’m told. I’m not one for heights, so was more than satisfied admiring this stunning example of Islamic design with my feet firmly on the ground!

Across the plaza from the cathedral is the elegant Alcazar Palace – containing the finest examples of Moorish architecture outside the Alhambra in Granada. Having spent most of the day exploring this part of town there was one place I had yet to visit and one that my partner did not share my enthusiasm for – the bullring. I’ve had a fascination with the controversial sport of bullfighting ever since my first trip to Spain as a child. Having visited many bullrings across Spain, La Real Maestranza de Seville is in my mind the most handsome. If you want to understand the importance of this tragic sport to Spanish culture without actually witnessing a fight then I highly recommend a visit to the museum located in the bullring.

With so much to see it’s easy to spend the day exhausting yourself pounding the streets leaving no time for reflection. For a spot of calm we headed to the Plaze De Espana and appreciated the chance to just sit and marvel at this gigantic semi-circular monument, dedicated to all the provinces of Spain and built for the 1929 expo.

As early evening crept in we headed to perhaps my favourite place - the rooftop bar of the Hotel Dona Maria. Drinking a jug of Agua De Sevilla (a local cocktail, goodness knows what’s in it!) watching the setting sun as it begins to cloak the buildings in a deep dramatic orange light, and the silhouetted birds flying home for the evening is an unforgettable experience, which leaves your heart brimming with that special Sevillian life-loving spirit, and you understand why they call it the ‘magic hour’. Sitting up there I challenge the most ardent Venice fan to deny that Seville is indeed the most romantic city in the world!