Andalusia: Antequera to Seville

Stroll through the historic city with its 30 church towers.

At the gates of the kingdom of Granada, historic Antequera awaits with its collection of red-tiled roofs and 30 church towers. The cycling tour starts with a ride over rolling hills through the beautiful countryside to Lucena. In one of the most important olive oil-producing areas of the world, the famous oil is pressed here in the factories.

Continue on a former railway line past huge olive groves to Baena. The inhabitants of Baena live mainly from agriculture and are extremely traditional people. This is also reflected in the townscape of this hilltop town, with its winding and narrow streets winding through the old town and home to interesting buildings such as the 16th-century church of Santa Maria la Mayor or the old castle.

The Sierra Morena with its foothills surrounds the former European Capital of Culture. This wild and romantic area is characterized by pine forests and an impressive solitude. The route leads through hardly traveled streets, mostly hilly, and heads towards Córdoba. Every now and then you will pass country houses and estates specialized in breeding bulls, they enjoy a special prestige in Andalusia. Evening tour of the city in search of the remnants of its glorious cosmopolitan past. Moorish builders created wonders: the Mezquita, next to the Alhambra the most powerful Moorish building in Europe. Particularly beautiful: the "Forest of the Thousand Pillars" and the artfully designed prayer rooms.

In the wide valley of the river Guadalquivir, the cycle route runs via an old Roman connecting road. From the once important Franciscan monastery in Palma del Rio, the monks then began to convert America.

Even today, the Guadalquivir River is primarily your companion. Via the Campina of Seville, a gently undulating carpet of fertile fields, we head west. Carmona has been almost unchanged for 150 years, with Baroque palaces, churches and monasteries surrounded by an old intact Moorish city wall.

Today's stage leads over the gently sloping high plateau of the Alcores to one of the most fertile agricultural areas in Andalusia. Alcalà de Guadaira has supplied Seville with bread and water for centuries and is considered one of the cradles of flamenco. Former haciendas of the Kingdom of Seville, today as much as large agricultural farms, can be seen along your route. From Brenes (return the bike) by train to the day destination Seville. Three of the most important operas play here: Don Juan the Seducer, Figaro the wily barber and Carmen the femme fatale, who lost her life between the tobacco factories and the bullfight Arena. Two world exhibitions brought the city futuristic buildings and lush parks. ' In the evening you will take a sightseeing bus tour and have the opportunity to visit the largest Gothic cathedral in the world. Also, visit the Barrio Santa Cruz neighbourhood and the Casa de Pilatos.