More about: Day Trips to Doñana from Seville
Doñana is one of Spain's most impressive natural wonders. Home to fabulous creatures and incredible landscapes it is ideal for adventurous travelers looking to explore beyond the city's borders; if you are looking for the best things to do in Seville you should consider an excursion to Doñana as an alternative.
In Seville you will find different excursion options with different price ranges and different itineraries. Today here are the most common types of excursions to Doñana.
Before we get into the subject, keep in mind that visiting Doñana is just one of the many excursions offered in the city; below is a list of other interesting ideas that I recommend exploring:
1. Group excursion to Doñana National Park from Seville
When it comes to excursions to Doñana, the most common and favorite option for travelers exploring the area is a visit to the National Park from Seville. Besides being a popular adventure, it is one of the best experiences to have on a visit to Seville.
Normally, the visit to the park is combined with a stop to visit the famous village of El Rocio, a small town with sandy streets that evokes the life of other times, and the beach of Doñana, the coastal area of the park...
What do these excursions include?
In addition to round-trip transportation from Seville to Doñana, this type of excursion includes transportation in a 4x4 vehicle to the interior of the park (to facilitate exploration), the accompaniment of a professional guide during the experience and the use of binoculars to admire the animals in their natural environment and from a safe distance.
Excursions to Doñana from Seville start early in the morning in order to make the most of the day. The time and meeting point may vary depending on the company you choose and also on the time of the year of your trip.
They usually start at 8:00 am in the morning using a central meeting point in Seville such as Plaza Padre Jeronimo or similar.
It is important to keep in mind that this type of experience is usually offered in several languages and not only Spanish, the most common being English, French and Italian.
Useful information
- Price: For this type of experience adults will have to pay a base price of 79€ on average; if you are an accredited student you will receive a discounted price of 59€ approximately; children 4 years old and older pay 59€ and children under 3 years old do not pay at all.
- Duration of the excursion: Due to the itinerary, the minimum time required to complete the experience is at least 10 hours.
- Recommended if... you feel like visiting one of the most enchanting natural wonders of Spain and your travel itinerary in Seville allows you to dedicate a whole day to this adventure.
2. Cruise from Seville to Sanlucar with a view of the Doñana Park.
Another way to experience the Doñana National Park is to take the route along the waters of the Guadalquivir River to Sanlucar de Barrameda. This is a fun and very popular excursion for tourists who visit the area and want to know the towns near the Andalusian capital.
In the city you will find several tour operators that offer this experience because the experience of a boat tripin Seville is another of the fun activities that this beautiful destination offers to tourists.
What do these excursions include?
It is important to keep in mind that this type of experience may vary slightly depending on the company you hire for the excursion; however, in general terms the Seville - Sanlucar de Barrameda route starts early in the morning taking as a starting point one of the most famous monuments of Seville, the Torre del Oro.
You will take the boat to Sanlúcar and on the way you will be able to see different localities among them Isla Menor and Isla Mínima; all the part of the Doñana National Park delimited by the river and also the areas of Coria and Puebla del Río.
In Sanlúcar de Barrameda you will have time to walk around at your leisure, have lunch, see the highlights of the town and start the return route to reach Seville in the evening. In addition to transportation, the excursion includes a guide who accompanies the group throughout the tour highlighting the most interesting points.
Useful information
- Price: The adult ticket costs approximately 39€, children up to 12 years old pay a reduced rate of 20€ and adults over 65 years old pay approximately 35€.
- Duration of the tour: It is a full day tour that departs from the center of Seville early in the morning. You should reserve at least one full day of your itinerary for this adventure. It is ideal if you will be in the city for several days such as 3 days in Seville or more.
- Recommended if... The idea of taking a cruise on the waters of the Guadalquivir is appealing to you; it is also a highly recommended activity if you have visited Doñana before and are interested in getting to know the park from another point of view.
3. Private excursion to Doñana National Park from Seville
Considered as one of the best excursionsto do from Seville, the option of a private excursion to Doñana is not surprising. This is an alternative that allows travelers to get to know the wonderful landscapes of one of the most important and protected wetlands in Spain and the rest of Europe.
What do these excursions include?
By hiring a private excursion to Doñana, you and your group will be able to enjoy the great natural beauty of this protected area; all this accompanied by an expert guide who accompanies you every step of the excursion, from the departure from Seville early in the morning until the return to the city at nightfall.
The main difference with the group excursion is the possibility of doing the excursion in a small and intimate group, with a private transportation service that will pick you up directly at the hotel and the total availability of your guide to answer any questions that may arise.
Generally, private excursions have a pre-established travel itinerary in which you can request small changes to make the experience more adapted to your tastes.
Among the activities that these companies usually include are: a 4-hour excursion in the Doñana Park aboard a 4x4 transport; transfers to nearby areas of interest such as the famous village of El Rocio and time to enjoy the beach of Matalascañas, ideal if you visit Seville in summer.
Useful information
- Price: Private excursions usually cost more than 500€.
- Duration of the excursion: You should reserve between 10 and 12 hours for this experience. Tours leave Seville between 07h and 08h and return after sunset.
- Recommended if... you can get a good deal for a small group of several people or if you travel to the city with your family and value 100% personalized service. Otherwise, its similarity to the group experience makes it a better value for your money to pay for the ticket to visit Doñana as a group.
4. Combined excursion: Doñana National Park with horseback riding
An alternative that you should consider is to combine the experience of the traditional excursion to the National Park with an equestrian route through Doñana.
It is certainly a very interesting option that allows you to do two of the best activities to do in Doñana in one and only one trip. As a result, you will have a more complete version of the protected area and its natural wonders.
What do these excursions include?
The main advantage of this type of excursions is to have the guidance of an expert guide at all times for each of the activities that take place during the day.
Depending on the company you hire, transportation to and from the center of Seville may be included, while with others you will have to make your own way to the surroundings of Doñana.
As for the itinerary, it is important to keep in mind that the companies that carry out this type of adventure organize a day of adventure that generally involves dividing each of these experiences into different schedules, to carry out one with the morning group and the second with the afternoon group. The order may vary from one company to another.
On the other hand, when it comes to time, on the one hand you will have the opportunity to do the 4X4 route in Doñana with an average duration of 4 hours. Before or after, this depends a lot on the itinerary, you will be able to do the equestrian route through the fields of Doñana. This route takes an additional 2 hours to complete.
Useful information
- Price: Adults pay from 109€; children and accredited students pay 59€ each.
- Duration of the excursion: You should reserve between 10h to 12h for the excursion.
- Recommended if... You want to experience the National Park in all its splendor and from different perspectives; keep in mind that if you cannot find a tour with transport included you will have to travel on your own or by public transport to Sanlúcar de Barrameda.
5. Excursion to Doñana National Park with tour to Sanlucar.
Another experience worth considering if you are on vacation in Seville is a visit to the Doñana National Park with a tour to the nearby town of Sanlucar de Barrameda.
Famous for its manzanilla wineries, pleasant climate and oceanfront horse racing, it's totally worth extending the tour to Doñana to visit this picturesque and peaceful destination.
What do these tours include?
Combined tours to Doñana in conjunction with the Sanlúcar area are usually offered as part of a private excursion, so most of the companies offering this service include transportation to and from your hotel in Seville and, of course, the necessary transportation to move through the different attractions you will be visiting on your day of adventure.
In addition to transportation and personalized treatment, you can count on the company of one or more guides along the way.
It is important to keep in mind that this type of experience is offered with guides in several languages such as Spanish, English and Portuguese, so if you have friends of other nationalities traveling to Seville do not hesitate to recommend it.
It is important that you look in detail at the description of the tour before making the final payment, however among the attractions or points of interest that can commonly be seen during the tour of this type include: a tour of the historic center of Sanlúcar, a trip on the Guadalquivir River either to go to or return from Doñana and a guided tour of the famous Natural Park.
Useful information
- Price: This type of experience is usually offered as a private tour and the price is around 385€ per person.
- Duration of the excursion: This is a full day excursion from Seville, so you should reserve 8 to 10 hours for the adventure.
- Recommended if... you have the budget for a private tour and the desire to explore a little further afield to make the most of your exploration of southern Spain, this combined adventure is highly recommended.
Why is a trip to Doñana worthwhile?
Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, no less than 37 different species of mammals have been recorded within the boundaries of the park, including the Iberian lynx and other endangered species.
In addition to mammals, the park has no less than 21 species of reptiles and thousands of invertebrate species, including hundreds of insects and arachnids.
In addition to the impressive wildlife, this site has been the site of historical events such as the theory that the lost city of Atlantis lies beneath the marshes of Doñana Park.