Pabellón de la Navegación is one of best things to do with kids in Seville, Spain
If you are heading on a family holiday to Seville, Spain, and you have children under the age of 18, you will obviously be looking for fun things to do with kids in Seville.
After all, there is nothing worse than going on holiday somewhere in Spain, finding out there is little for the kids to do, and having to put up with their whining for the rest of the trip.
Luckily, that is not going to happen here, as there are plenty of things to do with kids in Seville.
That includes Pabellón de la Navegación — a relatively new Seville museum you will find just as interesting and fun as the kids will.
That is because this museum is as architecturally impressive as it is exhibit-impressive, and fun for the entire family
What is Pabellón de la Navegación?
Located on the river, Pabellón de la Navegación (Pavilion of Navigation) is a museum that has everything you could possibly want to know about sailing the high seas.
The museum itself is enormous, with the opening room with its LED lights and audio display one of the biggest I have seen.
Its exhibits, too, are excellent.
Full of information about pirates, merchants, galleons, and what the life of a seafarer is like, you and the kids will find out what people ate, how they kept clean (or didn’t — because you will find out how they smelled too), how the ships must have smelled by sniffing a box of tar, the medicine they used for injury or illness, and even the on-board games they played.
There are also incredibly intricate scale models of the many different types of sailing vessels through the years, so you really get a feel for how they lived and what it must have been like sailing the high seas.
Related: What to see and do in Seville, Spain
Hands-on exhibits kids will love
The wonderful thing about Pabellón de la Navegación for kids, though, is that much of the exhibition is hands-on, so it’s not just walking around and looking at exhibits.
Instead, there are actual games on large screens they can play that teach them how to steer a ship, how to hoist the main sail and even get them shooting pirates (well, sometimes, you just had to!)
In fact, with so many things to play with, be sure to schedule 2-3 hours at the museum, or the kids will leave disappointed they didn’t get to do everything.
Unlike many museums in Spain too, Pabellón de la Navegación also has both Spanish and English signs, so you and the kids won’t have any problems figuring out what’s going on.
And, if you get there a little before lunch time, Pabellón de la Navegación also has an excellent restaurant and cafeteria. Prices are quite reasonable, and the windows overlook the river giving you a lovely view as you eat.
Birthdays at Pabellón de la Navegación
If one of your kids happens to have a birthday while you are in Seville, contact the museum beforehand as they have a few different and very fun 90-minute activities to choose from if you want to throw a party at the museum. The exhibits are sponsored by different Seville companies, so there is something just about every child would be interested in doing.
Just make sure you have a few kids going, though, or it isn’t worth the money for just a couple. (Run this page through Google Translate to find out more).
As for the museum itself, you can find out a little more about it on their website — although frankly, it is much much better than their ages-old website would have you believe.
Pabellón de la Navegación is open from Tuesday through Saturday from 11am to 8:30pm. Sundays and some holidays open 11am to 3pm (they are closed for other holidays, so check before you go). There is a small entrance fee, but children under 5 are admitted free.
You will find the museum at Camino de los Descubrimientos, 41092 Seville. Check out the map below for good directions.
For more on what to do in Seville as a whole, check out this excellent Wikipedia article on Seville.
And, if you’re looking for a guidebook that also includes other best things to do with kids in Seville, I highly recommend the DK Eyewitness Travel book on Seville, as I’ve used several in the past, and there are very good reasons why this one is a best seller.