When I tell people that we arrived last July 23rd, I am always met with some version of, “Whoa! You really felt the heat, huh?” And indeed we did, with not one, but two major heat waves blanketing southern Europe over the next six weeks, keeping temperatures at or over 100 for days and days. Even without the heatwaves, Sevilla is notoriously roasting hot in the summer. The city has definitely earned its nickname as “La sarten de España” (the frying pan of Spain)!
While it wasn’t easy when we first got here, we adapted quickly with helpful advice from seasoned Sevillanos about some tried-and-true tricks for beating the heat of an Andalusian summer!
Trick number one: keep the sun out of your house! Houses and apartments are built for long, hot summers, with marble floors that help keep things cool, and heavy blackout shutters or persianas (like very thick blackout blinds) that cover every window, leaving the living area quite dark. The key is to open the windows and sliding doors in the early morning when the temperature is coolest to get a breeze going and get some fresh air in the house. By mid morning, close everything up and shut those persianas! And keep them closed the rest of the day! If a breeze picks up in the evening, you can open the windows and doors again, but often the temperature stays quite high until early the next morning.
Trick number two: plan your days so that everything is done by two! There’s a reason the siesta is a beloved tradition in Spain – the afternoons are HOT! Make sure to get everything done – errands, grocery shopping, exercise – in the early morning. Many shops close from 2-5 anyway, so if it’s not done by two, it’s not getting done until later! Then spend the afternoon in your dark house, hopefully with air conditioning, and head out to meet up with friends for a late dinner once the sun has gone down.
Trick number three: get an abanico! That’s the Spanish word for fan, and by early August, I had multiple abanicos in all of the bags I might use on any day (after forgetting one too many times to transfer the one I had if I was using a different bag!). These things are amazing, and it makes SUCH a difference to sit outside fanning yourself while enjoying a cerveza or vaso de vino.
Trick number four: get out of Sevilla! Many Sevillanos head to the beach in July and don’t come back until September, but that wasn’t an option for us last year. Instead we took several day and weekend trips – to Antequera, Matalascañas, Mazagon – just to get a bit of a break. It made a world of difference!
Trick number five: go swimming! There are many municipal pools, and many of the fitness centers have indoor and outdoor pools. There are also two really fun water parks, Guadalpark and Agua Mágica, where our family spent several very fun days enjoying the rides and staying cool.
I actually really enjoyed our summer in Sevilla last year. The city was pretty quiet, the pace was really slow (with so many people on vacation, it wasn’t possible to get some things done, so we didn’t have to worry about trying!). With some planning and some routine, it’s possible to beat the heat!
