Casa de Pilatos

How to visit and which ticket to buy

Casa de Pilatos sits on a quiet square about a 10-minute walk east of Seville Cathedral and the Real Alcázar, in the streets behind Santa Cruz. It’s the main residence of the Dukes of Medinaceli — a 16th-century palace built around an arcaded central courtyard lined with the best Mudéjar azulejo tilework in the city, with Renaissance loggias and statues layered on top. That courtyard, the two gardens and the ground-floor rooms are all covered by the €12 ground-floor ticket, which includes an audio guide and is the only ticket most visitors need.

The upper floor is a separate €6 add-on, and it works differently: it’s a timed guided tour of the family’s private apartments and painting collection rather than something you wander at your own pace. Skip it unless Old Master art is the draw — the tilework and gardens that the palace is known for are all downstairs. You can almost always buy at the door; this isn’t the Real Alcázar, and it rarely sells out except on spring weekends, during Semana Santa or the April Feria. There’s a free afternoon slot for EU citizens carrying ID, but the day has moved around — sources put it on Wednesday or Monday from 3pm, and it fills its hourly capacity fast — so check the current schedule rather than building your day around it. The palace is open every day 09:00–18:00 year-round, but the ticket office stops selling about half an hour before closing, so don’t leave it to the last hour.

Is it worth it?

Yes, and it’s one of Seville’s best-value paid sights. The honest comparison is with the Real Alcázar: the Alcázar is bigger, grander and has the better gardens, so if you only visit one tiled palace, make it that one and book ahead. But Casa de Pilatos is cheaper, far calmer, and a 10-minute walk away — which makes it the easy second palace on a long weekend, no timed-entry stress involved. Allow about an hour for the ground floor and gardens, or 90 minutes if you add the upstairs tour. Pair it with a wander through the Santa Cruz lanes or a stop at the nearby Metropol Parasol rather than stacking it against the Alcázar the same morning — two big tiled palaces back to back blur into one.