El Puerto de Santa María is a lively spot both day and night. By day its prime attractions are its beaches and marina, its history-drenched promenades and the fine food on offer. After soaking up all these pleasures we can then look forward to the night-time entertainment.

The old town, lying on the banks of the River Guadalete, contains most of the picturesque sites and historical attraction. A good starting point for any tour of the town is the Town Hall on Plaza Polvorista. From there Calle Fernán Caballero leads to the bullring, dating from 1880 and recalling a Roman coliseum. The Calle Santa Lucía then leads on to the Plaza España with the fifteenth-century Iglesia Mayor Prioral, the church devoted to the town´s patron saint, the Virgen de los Milagros. A few metres away stands the handsome Castillo de San Marcos, a twelfth-century Arab castle with Roman, Visigoth and Mudejar features. Hard by stands the Palacio de Medinaceli, the erstwhile palace of the lord of the Port, Duque de Medinaceli. Upriver lies the Plaza de las Galeras, one of the liveliest spots in the old town. A visit to the fishing port is a must, called the "ribera del marisco" (seafood shore).

Twenty five kilometres down the road from El Puerto is Sanlúcar de Barrameda, a cheery town blending historical tradition and modernity. Near the centre, in the higher part of the city, stands the Castillo de Santiago, built in 1477. Walking downhill from the castle towards the Plaza de San Roque we come to the Town Hall, standing alongside the fourteenth-century Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la O, its parish church. The same square is also home to the Palacio de Medina-Sidonia, where the dukedom´s archives are kept. On the Cuesta de Belén stands the Palacio de los infantes de Orléans, the palace of the Dukes of Montpensier. Alongside stands the seventeenth-century shrine called Santuario de Nuestra Señora de la Caridad with the fifteenth-century Covachas at the end of the same street. We then come to the Plaza del Cabildo. On one side stands the sixteenth-century Iglesia de Santo Domingo, a parish church that formerly belonged to the old Dominican Convent. From the other side this square leads on to the promenade and 12 kilometres of beaches.

Special mention must go to Europe´s biggest nature reserve, the Parque Nacional de Doñana, on the other side of the city.

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