Plaza Real de Toros

El Puerto de Santa María


Four blocks southwest of Plaza de España is El Puerto’s grand Plaza de Toros, built in 1880 with room for 15,000 spectators and still one of Andalucía’s most important bullrings. Entry is from Calle Valdés. Touring a bullring is not the same as watching a bullfight; if you're happy to support a bullring in this way (which many travellers may not be), it could be a way of learning about this deep-rooted Spanish tradition without actually attending a bullfight.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby El Puerto de Santa María attractions

1. Bodegas Osborne

0.21 MILES

Creator of the legendary black-bull logo still exhibited on life-size billboards all over Spain (now without the name), Osborne is El Puerto's best-known…

2. Fundación Rafael Alberti

0.3 MILES

Two blocks inland from Plaza Alfonso X El Sabio, this foundation has interesting, thoughtfully displayed exhibits on Rafael Alberti (1902–99), one of…

3. Iglesia Mayor Prioral

0.34 MILES

El Puerto’s most splendid church, the 15th- to 18th-century Iglesia Mayor Prioral dominates Plaza de España with its intricately carved facade.

4. Castillo de San Marcos

0.37 MILES

Heavily restored in the 20th century and now owned by Bodegas Caballero, El Puerto's castle was constructed over an Islamic mosque by Alfonso X El Sabio…

5. Bodegas Gutiérrez Colosía

0.37 MILES

An intimate, family-run, 1838-founded sherry bodega, right beside the catamaran dock. Tours (1½ hours) end with a six-wine tasting, which can include…

6. Fuente de las Galeras Reales

0.52 MILES

Built in 1735, the four-spouted Fountain of the Royal Galleys, by the riverfront, is where America-bound ships drew their water.

7. Playa de la Puntilla

0.82 MILES

A 1.5km walk southwest of central El Puerto, pine-fringed Playa de la Puntilla is the town's most immediately accessible beach. Buses 1 and 2 (€1.20) run…

8. Playa de Valdelagrana

1.37 MILES

Popular Playa de Valdelagrana, on the eastern side of the Río Guadalete, is backed by high-rise hotels and apartments and a strip of bars and restaurants…