Plaza de Toros de la Maestranza

Be warned- bullfighting isn't for the faint of heart. Seriously. And if you're a PETA lunatic, a softy-ummm.... excuse me.... or in other words a fanatic and can't bear the simple fact that this loooooooonnnnng-standing Spanish tradition will never be wiped out, this ain't for you my friend. I'm not criticizing, I'm just warning you ahead of time.

Hubs purchased tickets a few weeks before we flew to Spain to see 3 bullfights from StubHub at €120ea. By the time everything was said and done, each ticket was €160ea. We only went this route because we didn't know any better and used a 3rd party like StubH.

I remember my grandfather watching the bullfight on TV when I lived in the Dominican Republic as the matador used choreographed movements before going for the kill. And my husband remembers his Puerto Rican mom watching it on TV in the 70s when she lived in NYC. But this time, it wasn't on TV. This time, hubs and I made the 2 & 1/2 hour drive from our hotel in Costa del Sol, Marbella all the way to Sevilla to see the whole action.

Your ticket will indicate EXACTLY which entrance is assigned to you. Try to get here before the event so you don't feel rushed locating your seat. Each bull fight lasted about 25-30(+/-)mins. The whole opening ritual is incredibly regal with several horsemen presenting themselves while others on foot making their presence as well.

Plaza de Toros gave us chills. Not because we knew 3 bulls were going to get killed right before our eyes- but to see a bullfight live in person, is really out of this world. The Spanish take bullfighting seriously. So much so, hubs and I were whispering about whatever and immediately, could feel the stares. The arena, the history and sitting down on aged stone brick 'bleachers'- all gave us chills.

Honestly, I enjoyed the whole bullfight- from beginning to middle to the end. And this is coming from a person who doesn't eat cow. I love my leather though. Listen, I'm not saying there's beauty in all this (perhaps you might think so), but if you dare, why not come for the experience?

This is the largest and the most important arena for bullfighting in Spain. It can accept 12,000 visitors.
Very pretty building, kind of a funny looking from the outside. We didn't visit the museum, or the arena itself, so the review is based strictly on outdoor area.
Due to Covid, it was closed for visit during our stay, would love to visit if we return.

Without any doubt, this is the best bull-fight museum I have ever seen!

It's a pretty quick tour, with a good electronic audio guide, plus a human to lead you from stop to stop and answer questions.

You go through rooms of paintings, sculpture, costumes and bull fighting gear. They explain how the old style bullfighting on horseback evolved into the current version. There are lots of references to famous matadors, and one bull who was such a sport that he was pardoned and sent off to a bull retirement community to live out his days. His head is now on the wall, and, as described, he has big soulful eyes.

The walls are lined with the annual posters for bullfighting seasons past. Lots of nice bull-fight touches everywhere - toreador tiles in the men's room, bull ring tins of cookies in the gift shop.

None of that fancy modern video stuff though. Which may be OK. This visit was during the off-season with no actual bull fighting going on, and most of the visitors seemed totally fine with that.

I thought they have a spot where they'd sell you a burger with a little plastic sword stuck in it, but no such luck.

We had a nice time touring in the museum dedicated to bullfighting. The admission price was only 8Euro and came with an English version audio and a tour guide. You basically get to see everything in 40 minutes, but it was worth that rip. Where else will you be able to stand in the middle of the bull ring? Ole!

The tour here is awesome! They even let you go out onto the the field. The entire tour lasts 40 minutes, which was perfect as the weather was approaching 100 degrees.

My review is for the tour of the museum and bullfighting ring and not for any of the fights or event that take place there.

We each spent 8€ to join a large, very crowded tour that made it difficult to hear the guide who had to also give her tour in English, Spanish and French so that also cut into the time we had to see the museum and items of interest. The whole tour was about 45 minutes and the most interesting part was being let out into the ring to take photos.

I found the whole experience pretty underwhelming - they have a lot of visitors and one tour after another is waiting to start their walk. It would have been nice to actually get the time to learn more. You're basically paying to get to the ring to take some cool pictures.

We visited during the time of year that they do not have fights going on. However, we did the stadium tour and it was very informative. The tours run about every half hour so you don't have to wait that long. You wait in this hallway where there are restrooms until your tour starts. Our guide spoke great English and did Spanish translations as well, so you the entire tour is in two languages.

The first stop is the stadium itself. You go in and sit down in some of the best seats in the house. She tells about the stadium what is usually where when the fights are going on and then you have about 5-10 minutes to take pictures. From there, you go to the "museum" part where the guide tells you about the history of bull fighting. There are pictures and displays to view. Lastly, you go back outside to where the bulls would be kept. You are told a little bit about that and then you exit through a back door. The entire thing lasts about 45 minutes and is worth it. Although I wish I could have seen an actual fight!

5 star for the arena by it self.
It's beautiful and clean.
It all about the history of the bullfighting.
We made a huge mistake and went to watch a game on Sunday since it was a season for games.
I hate it so bad that I couldn't watch it more than 3 min.
It's cruel and sad how they are abusing the incessant animals and having fun with that.
While I was walking in this town I was thinking this people have the most beautiful sense of nature.
Their beautiful houses with water fountains and colorful plants has very different is mesmerizing.
I won't recommend it at all.

This is known as the cathedral of bullfighting. It's a leisurely walk here after touring Metropol Parasol using Google compass, a city map, and the recognition that city maps are east west oriented (vs online north south configuration), and that same street might bear many names. The historic bull ring is located next to a very busy boulevard. Admission is 8 euros. The guided tour through the museum and the ring arena took 45 minutes. Listening to self guide audio device, we walked through the museum learning of the history and rituals associated with bullfighting. Then we got to see the real bullring! Well worth the admission. Note there is a flamingo adjacent building on our way to the nearby Mercado del Barranco for lunch.

I was really excited to see a bull fighting ring! However, you may ONLY enter as a part of a 45 minute guided tour, offered at specific times. You may not enter on your own. If you want to just see the ring, that isn't until the very end of the tour, so you can't even join in and leave early. Because of this we did not end up going inside.