The ancient Roman city of Italica, in the municipality of Santiponce, is just a 20-minute journey from Seville. Visiting this archaeological site means discovering how the first Roman and Italic colony on the Iberian Peninsula was organised, the cradle of the Spanish language, and the city where the emperors Hadrian and Trajan were born.
Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus founded this Roman settlement in 206 BC to house Roman soldiers wounded during the Second Punic War. The choice was strategic because it lay at the centre of the Baetica region, the southernmost region of Spain, and over the centuries it became an increasingly important colony for the Roman Empire. With the barbarian invasions, the city fell into the hands of the invaders and lost its prestige.
From the year 1000 onwards it was abandoned and many of its precious materials were taken to build palaces and squares in Seville. If you have visited the Palacio de Lebrija in Seville you will certainly remember the splendid mosaic floors that came from this very site.
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Useful information for your visit
The Italica archaeological site is located at Avenida de Extremadura, 2 in Santiponce in the province of Seville. Given its proximity to the city centre, it is regarded as one of the most common and easiest day trips from Seville.
Opening hours of Italica
The site is open:
- from 21 March to 21 June:
- Monday: closed
- Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday: from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm
- Friday and Saturday: from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm
- Sundays, public holidays and Mondays before public holidays: from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.
- from 21 June to 20 September:
- Monday: closed
- Tuesday to Sunday, public holidays and Mondays before public holidays: from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.
- from 21 September to 20 March:
- Monday: closed
- Tuesday to Saturday: from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm
- Sundays, public holidays and Mondays before public holidays: from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.
The entrance ticket is free for citizens of the European Union and costs €1.50 for visitors from other countries. Updated opening times and prices can be checked on the official website.
How to get there?
Getting to Italica from Seville is very simple. By car, take the SE-30 towards Merida/Cordoba and follow it for about 8 kilometres. (4.9 miles) It will take you less than 20 minutes.
Organised tour to Italica from Seville
If you prefer not to waste time searching for buses and want to make the most of the experience of visiting the ruins of Italica with a professional guide who will reveal all the site’s secrets, I recommend booking the tour Italica: 4-hour tour from Seville.
The visit takes place for the most part within the archaeological site: you can see one of the largest amphitheatres in the world, the ancient baths and the domus of Italica’s nobles. The tour concludes with a visit to the lovely monastery of Santiponce.
The guide speaks english and will be able to help you understand what the city was really like and how people lived here centuries ago, whose grand ruins you can admire today. In addition, you will be collected from your hotel or from a nearby meeting point, so you won’t need to worry about travelling by public transport.
More information about the tour
Things to do in Italica and Santiponce
Santiponce is a small town less than 10 kilometres (6,2 miles) from Seville, renowned for its lovely monastery and for the remains of the famous Roman city of Italica.
The Roman Ruins of Italica
At the archaeological site of Italica you’ll be able to admire:
- The Amphitheatre: one of the largest in the world, it was probably commissioned by Hadrian. It could hold around 25,000 spectators, who came here to watch gladiator fights, battles between gladiators and animals, and even reconstructions of historical battles, during which the “actors” were often actually killed. Walking inside this amphitheatre is a truly unique experience;
- The Theatre: it could hold around 3,000 people and its construction, begun in the time of Caesar or Augustus, lasted more than a century. It had the semicircular shape typical of Roman theatres;
- The Great Thermal Baths: the city had two bath complexes, one in the old city and one in the new city. You can still recognise the entrance area with the frigidarium, the large pool, the tepidarium and the caldarium. The pools and furnaces occupied a large area in Hadrian’s city, which shows how important they were at the time;
- The Temple: built by Hadrian in honour of Trajan, this splendid temple was located in the highest part of the new city and was richly decorated with statues, columns and sculptures;
- The Domus: among the Roman houses, the Casa de los Pájaros is definitely worth visiting, with its wonderful mosaic floors, as is the Casa del Planetario, whose mosaics show the days of the week according to the Roman calendar and the deities associated with them.
The Monastery of San Isidoro del Campo (Santiponce)
I recommend, if you have time, that you also visit the Monasterio de San Isidoro del Campo at Avenida de San Isidoro del Campo, 18 in Santiponce. The monastery dates back to the early 14th century and was founded at the behest of Don Alonso Pérez de Guzmán and his wife Maria Alonso de Coronel.
They wished to be buried here after their deaths, and the choice fell on this hermitage on which, according to tradition, St Isidore had been buried. The monastery skilfully blends Gothic and Mudéjar styles with a Baroque tower. Highlights include the Chapter House, the sacristy, the cloisters and the refectory.
Admission is free. The monastery is open on the following days and times:
- From 16 June to 15 September: Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 am to 2:30 pm.
- From 16 September to 15 June: Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm; Friday and Saturday from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm; Sundays and public holidays from 10:00 am to 2:30 pm.
Please note that the last admission is one hour before closing; no entry is permitted thereafter.
Where to stay?
As previously mentioned several times, a visit to Italica should be regarded as a day trip from Seville, so you won’t necessarily need to find accommodation in Santiponce. Below you’ll find our recommendations on where to stay in Seville: happy reading!
