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Bucket list experience:

Last updated: 10 November, 2022
Expert travel writer: Dana Facaros

Andalusia expresses its passionate soul in the guitars, singing and twirling, stamping steps of its native flamenco – declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2010.

Most scholars believed the seeds of flamenco arrived in the 15th century with the Roma from India. Over the centuries they slowly migrated west with their castanets and tambourines, absorbing songs and dances in the Middle East and North Africa along the way. The Spanish at first considered it a foreign art, or ‘Flemish’ – hence flamenco.

By the 19th century flamenco as we know it emerged – popularized by Bizet’s Carmen – with shows performed in cafés cantantes (singers’ cafés), the forerunners to the modern tablaos. These are intimate venues with small wooden stages, perfect for the exhilarating machine gun-like zapateado (dancing).

You can hear flamenco’s eastern origins in the singer’s cante jondo (‘deep song’), evoking pain, sorrow and joy, while dancers express each emotion with their bodies, driven by the pulsing percussive strumming of the guitars.

A good show, and there are many here, can send chills down your spine with their duende, the ecstatic ‘demon’ spirit that brings listeners out of themselves.

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Price from: £15
Minimum age: Any
Age suitable: 5+
Frequency: daily
When: Daily
Duration: 90 minutes

Getting there & doing it

Always book tickets for a tablao or club in advance, either via an organised tour or on the websites of the clubs. Options usually include a show and a drink or tapas or dinner with a choice of set price menus. Performances run around 90 minutes.

When to do it

Most clubs put on two shows every evening, usually around 7pm and 9pm.

Photo of flamenco dancers feet and bottom of her red dress, on a stage
Experience

Casa de la Memoria

Seville, Andalusia, Spain

Cultural centre (and the most affordable tablao) offering two shows nightly in an intimate setting of a 15th-century house but minus any food and drink. Different styles and artists every night set it apart from the others.

Best for ages: 6+ | £19 | 1 hour

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Sexy flamenco dancer performing her dance in a red long dress, arm up.
Experience

Casa del Arte

Granada, Andalusia, Spain

Intimate theatre just under the Alhambra, where the young guitarist, singer and dancers perform with passion; you can also book supper, but it’s separate, as to not distract from the show.

Best for ages: 5+ | £17 | 1 hour

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Exterior view of the theatre set into a white stone cave-like buillding
Experience

Cueva de la Rocio

Granada, Andalusia, Spain

The Maya family performs a zambra gitana, a traditional gypsy wedding in the Sacromonte caves of Granada, harking back to the days when the dances were banned by the Inquisition and had to be held in secret.

Best for ages: 5+ | £20 | 1 hour

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Green stage in a small theatre with a band and flamenco dancer performing on it
Experience

El Palacio Andaluz

Seville, Andalusia, Spain

Large stage in a former Cruzcampo beer pavilion at the Expo of 92 that recreates the decor of the original cafés cantantes, where one of the best-known troupes in Spain puts on shows along with a drink and tapas dinner.

Best for ages: 6+ | £37 | 1 hour

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Destination guides including or relevant to this experience

Andalusia

Andalusia, Spain

A big dazzling region, packed with fascinating cities, beautiful landscapes and beaches, colourful fiestas and oodles of sunshine.

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Andalusia, Spain

A fascinating city of labyrinthine lanes and Roman and Moorish monuments, including one of the world’s greatest buildings: the Mezquita.

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Granada

Andalusia, Spain

Crowned by the dreamlike Alhambra, this vibrant Spanish-Arab culture capital combines fascinating sights and lively nightlife with the Sierra Nevada on the doorstep.

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Malaga

Andalusia, Spain

A big, vibrant city with a fascinating old centre, lively contemporary art, sandy beaches, great restaurants and buzzy nightlife.

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