Seville

An estimated 25,000 orange trees line the streets and alleys of Seville, and in January they are in fruit, which does a great deal for a walk to anywhere. We have been a number of times, for the architecture and the flamenco dancers on the street, and for something London cannot supply at that time of year: sunshine on a rooftop in January. The city is built low, in brick, whitewash and wrought iron, and its skyline is still held by the Giralda, the old minaret that now rings the cathedral's bells.

The months most people recommend are March to May, and October. Spring has Semana Santa and then the Feria de Abril, when rooms book out months ahead at two or three times the usual rate. July and August regularly pass 38°C, which empties the city of everyone not paid to be there. Winter is the quiet, cheap end of the year, with daytime averages around 10 to 12°C, rain possible and the sights far less crowded.

Stay in The Old Town, inside the line of the old walls, where most of the sights are and the rest are a walk. We were in the quieter streets around the Museo de Bellas Artes, in a beautiful hotel with a roof terrace, and the January sun up there was a real treat.

The Cathedral, the climb up the Giralda and the Real Alcázar next door take a morning, and the Alcázar wants a timed slot booked for early, before its courtyards fill. Then cross the river. Triana is a couple of hundred metres away over the Puente de Isabel II, but it was a separate and poorly connected place until the bridge opened in 1852, and its people still call themselves trianeros before sevillanos. It is the less explored side of the city, with its own market, the ceramics shops on Calle Alfarería and some great nightlife. The river is not one of Seville's sights, which is the best reason to give it a couple of hours: hire a bike in the centre and head off down the bank, away from the crowds.

Tapas here are eaten standing up, and in more than one bar. One of ours was La Barra de Cañabota on Orfila, the informal bar beside Cañabota, which holds a Michelin star, and it pours sherry to go with its oysters and croquettes. The hopping is where we struggle. There is so much to try that we get overexcited and eat too much at the first bar. Persevere: it takes a few different spots to do it properly, and the evening ends very full, which is the correct result.