Flamenco recommendation in Seville...
 

Reposting...sorry...forgot to mark Spain in the original post...

Can you guys recommend any good places to go see flamenco in Seville? We have a 3 year old with us...would there be any problem taking him to the dance?

ribeirasacra has recommended the following one... http://www.tablaolosgallos.com/

I am looking for some more so that my wife can evaluate and book one for us...

Thanks!

I went to Los Gallos and it was enjoyable and done very well. It's a small night club, you know, and I believe you have to buy drinks, at least. Of course the shows are late, also. I never saw a child in there, definitely none toddlers, and can't imagine it would be at all appropriate. First, it lasts until at least 10 pm, with the early show, and it's a nightclub. I don't know if they will a child that age, but a child will have to remain silent for hours, do you realize that? And flamenco is an acquired taste even for adults, I think, as I find it boring after a while (sorry flamenco lovers, but I do, and flamenco singing can get on my nerves). I just can't imagine a three year old at a flamenco show.

You might consider the shows at Casa de la Memoria instead, as they are student performances, and they are shorter, I believe. They only last about an hour, but a child will still have to remain silent for that time. I thought they had shows in the afternoon, but don't recall the exact details on that.

Ask if you can see a flamenco class as you are thinking of taking lessons. The worse they can say is no.


http://www.esflamenco.com/scripts/ne...rmIdPagina=295

vibhav,
In addition to Los Gallos, which has been around for a long, long, while, and Casa de la Memoria, that Christina mentions (also well reviewed here), there's a new venue in the Arenal quarter which my friends recommend to all their clients-

Casa Carmen
It has a one hour show, beginning at 8:30 and costs a reasonable 16 euros p.p.

After the show, it becomes a popular late night bar.

Read about it and see pictures here:
http://www.sevilla5.com/activities/f...sa-carmen.html

www.casacarmenarteflamenco.com/

Thanks a lot to Maribel, Christina and Cyberia for the prompt information ... I will have my wife research these options and get back to you for follow up, if needed ...

On another note ..

We were also planning to get our tickets for Alhambra in Granada ... Had a few questions
- Wondering if the morning slot will be better or evening slot given that we will be there on 24th Dec?? I am deeply into photography so would like good lighting which biases me towards the morning session ... But then they say that after dark, the grounds and the palace lights up very pretty .. So then should we go for the evening session ...
- Another consideration is time at the palace .. If you enter at 8:30 you can stay as much as you like, 4 hours or 5 hours till close time, but if you enter at 2 PM, you have to leave my 6 PM... Do you see that as a problem? Is 4 hours enough??
- Also, it seems like there is no restaurant or food services in there ... Can you take your own munchies or something?? I see it potentially an issue with a 3 year old and no food around?? Will that dictate the timing as well?? Probably better to go in there at 8:30 AM and get done by 12 ish to be able to come and get lunch??

Apologies for the many questions ...

Thanks,
Vibhav

There are two types of flamenco in Seville. One is the hardcore Flamenco as found all over Andalusia, the other is the lighter and prettier style called Sevillana. With a little one you probably are better off seeing a Sevillana show - they are put on in the more touristy restaurants and venues all over (sorry, can't remember where we saw which) . Ask for the Sevillana shows, by name, and you will be getting local referrals no problem.

I also went to Los Gallos and enjoyed it. Having gone to the Flamenco Museum before watching the show, I enjoyed the show more than if I had not studied the art beforehand. I could identify the types of music used, what they meant, types of dance movements, etc to keep me interested throughout the show.

It is a night club, but it felt more like a small theater. I thought the way drink worked was that the admission included a €4 drink allowance.

vibhav,
The above-recommended tablaos (flamenco clubs with shows) are not sevillana venues. These are shows offering true flamenco.

Regarding Granada,
I try to address most of those Alhambra questions in my Granada file, starting on p. 9, if you want to take a look.

I suggest that you purchase tickets for the morning session (which runs from 8:30 am-2 pm for your timed tickets to enter the Nasrid Palace).

In winter the Alhambra afternoon session ends and complex closes at 6 pm, and you'll have sunset around 5 pm.

As you know there are 90 minute evening visits to the Nasrid Palace ONLY, but in winter they take place on Fri./Sat. only from 8-9:30 pm, which wouldn't be possible for you on Wed., Xmas eve.

On our last visit in Feb. we got lazy and chose a later entry time and ended up regretting it. By 10 am on a Feb. weekday the place was swamped, not with foreign tourists but instead with local school groups. We wished that we had done what we do normally- buy tickets for the earliest, 8:30 am, slot.

As to food,
there are vending machines at the Entrance Pavilion and inside,
at a kiosk near the Alcazaba, adjacent to the Puerta del Vino (Wine Gate). So for a 4 hr. visit, you may want to arm yourself with water and snacks before you enter.

Outside the complex on the Alhambra hill there are several restaurants, including the Parador (expensive), La Mimbre (moderately exp.) and for a family-
a good option for casual fare is the Yedra Real (yedrareal.com), located 50 meters from the parking lot, below the Hotel Guadalupe. It currently offers a menú del día for €12.90.

If you enter the complex at 2 pm, you must vacate when it closes at 6, but...
remember that you can visit those parts of the Alhambra which don't require a ticket, at any time, morning or afternoon.
Your bar coded ticket will be scanned at 3 entrances secured by turnstiles:

1.At the door to the Palacios Nazaríes
2.At the gate which leads to the Generalife summer palace and gardens
3.At the entrance to the Alcazaba fortress.

Entrance to the courtyard of the Palace of Chares V and to the 17th century church, Iglesia de Santa María de la Alhambra, and Mosque baths, Baños de la Mezquita, do not require the Alhambra ticket, nor does strolling the Calle Real de la Alhambra, where you will find the souvenir shops, bookstore, Hotel América and the Parador. Plus you may also wander freely around the Plaza de los Aljibes in front of the Alcazaba and other public squares.

So if you'd like to see the excellent Alhambra Museum in the Charles V Palace, to see one of the twelve lions (removed from the patio de los Leones) that they have restored and other wonderful Hispano-Arab artifacts, you can do so in the am. It's open from 9-2:30. Just go in the complex through the Gate of Justice.

I'll just ditto greg's recommendation of visiting Cristina Hoyo's flamenco museum before attending a performance.

www.flamencomuseum.com/

Los Gallos was very satisfying to us a few years ago...

stu t.

We went to Casa de la Memoria just a few weeks ago..we enjoyed it so much, we went back for a second time. The venue is very small so I think a three year old wouldn't enjoy it very much, though the child might be mesmerized by the show...I suggest reservations as they were sold out both nights.

We also went to Los Gallos - arrive early to get good seats; I think our tickets included two drinks as well

You guys have it covered.
Maribel is right, Sevillanas is a type of song/dance but not really considered flamenco.

But it is fun & beautiful to see (or do) Many people, in Sevilla especially, dance it, young & old. Where do you live? I'll bet there is a class waiting for you so you can be prepared for Sevilla, ;;) sometimes they dance it in regular nightclubs (or used to) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=By_6b...eature=related

Just read this thread. Very useful for my own preparations for Seville and Andalucia in April. Many thanks to all who posted.

Bookmarking

I'd add that La Memoria is a great place for flamenco novices to experience their first show. Not sure about taking a toddler there though!

For those of you who are travelling child-free or with older children I'd really recommend a visit to a bar/club called La Carboneria on C/Levies. The performances vary from night to night and it's a magnet for locals and tourists alike, but well worth a visit.

Please be aware that you are expected to be respectful during a performance and if you want to talk then take it outside. One of our visits to La Carboneria was totally spoiled by a group of tourists who insisted on discussing water supply in Toronto VERY LOUDLY. The performers stopped the show twice to ask them to be quiet but they continued on regardless. Rude!

There is an upstairs balcony at the Los Gallos, where the restrooms are also located. I saw a mother and her little kid up there during the show. After the show I went up there a second time to use the restroom and I saw more kids. They must have told people with children to watch up there. Why dont you call or email them ahead to see if you can bring children?

On a side note, Los Gallos was an awesome show. I highly recommend.

Thank you everyone....this is extremely helpful!!

Here's something that may help travelers looking for flamenco in Andalucia in general.

This flamenco website posts some of the flamenco happenings.(I assume they may be paid adverisements? Maybe.. maybe not)

They are catergorized first by date, then city.

Perhaps you can check on the site just prior to your departure.

http://www.guiaflama.com/agenda.html

Regarding the Alhambra, I agree with Mirabel that a morning session works the best. The Alhambra at night is beautiful, but you miss out on the gardens.

As for flamenco, we enjoyed the simplicity and intimacy of the Casa de la Memoria show, but I'd think twice about bringing a 3 year old. Any fussing would disturb the entire performance, since the audience is so small.

I also want to recommend that you read Maribel's guides. Her advice was priceless when my wife & I went to Spain for our honeymoon in 2006.

Thanks a lot to everyone for the fabulous pieces of advice ... Using this wonderful forum and Maribel's guide, together both of these resources have been a god-send for planning this trip ..

My wife has emailed both Los gallos and Casa Carmen for their details and we will decide soon ...

Still a little on the fence for Alhambra timing... Just very unfortunate that we are not there on Fri or Sat to take advantage of the night time tours .. Completely agree that the morning session will work better from an access point of view to everything that the palace has to offer ... But since we will be there in Dec and I am a photographer looking for soft light always and twilight will happen at about 5 PM, I am very tempted by that one hour 5 PM - 6 PM of night lighting ... But I had better make the practical choice, huh?? and stick with the morning slot ... esp. with a little toddler in tow, it would be best to not get bound by the 2 PM - 4 PM slot ... hmmm ... do not like making these tough decisions ...