Cadiz

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Puerta Tierra (32513943283), Cadiz, Andalusia, Spain

Puerta Tierra (32485692304), Cadiz, Andalusia, Spain

Puerta Tierra de Cádiz (32982472570), Cadiz, Andalusia, Spain

Puerta Tierra de Cádiz (32982468690), Cadiz, Andalusia, Spain

About Cadiz

Cádiz sits almost entirely surrounded by the Atlantic, a narrow spit of land crowned by a golden cathedral dome and more than a hundred old merchant watchtowers. Founded by the Phoenicians as Gadir some three thousand years ago, it is often described as the oldest continuously inhabited city in Western Europe, and Romans, Moors and Castilians all left their mark.

Its greatest age came in the 18th century, when the Spanish trade with the Americas ran through the port and merchants built tall houses with lookout towers to watch for their ships. In 1812, with the rest of Spain under Napoleonic occupation, the Cortes gathered here and drew up one of Europe's first liberal constitutions, still affectionately called La Pepa.

Today the old town is a maze of narrow streets that always end at the sea. Mornings belong to the central market, afternoons to La Caleta and the long Playa de la Victoria, and evenings to fried fish and tortillitas de camarones in La Viña. In February the whole city turns out for one of Spain's wittiest carnivals.

Best seasonMay to June and September to October for warm sea and fewer crowds; February for Carnival

Ideal stay2-3 days

ArrivingTrains from Seville and Jerez end at Cádiz station on the edge of the old town; Jerez airport is the nearest

Top 12 Experiences in Cadiz

Churches 1

Cádiz Cathedral

Built over more than a century from 1722, the Cathedral of the Holy Cross mixes Baroque and Neoclassical styles and is crowned by...

Viewpoints 1

Torre Tavira

The tallest of the city's many merchant watchtowers stands at the highest point of the old town and served as the port's official...

Beaches 2

La Caleta Beach

This small, sheltered beach in the old fishermen's quarter is framed by the castles of San Sebastián and Santa Catalina, with colo...

Playa de la Victoria

Stretching south along the Atlantic side of the newer city, La Victoria is a long, wide beach of fine golden sand backed by a prom...

Landmarks 2

Castillo de San Sebastián

Reached by a long causeway from La Caleta, this fortress stands on a small island where ancient writers placed a temple, and it gu...

Puerta de Tierra de Cádiz

The monumental 18th-century land gate in the city walls has long been the main land entrance to old Cádiz, and its white stone arc...

Food and Drink 1

Mercado Central de Abastos

Built in the 19th century around an elegant colonnaded courtyard, this is one of the oldest covered markets in Spain, and its fish...

Neighborhoods 1

Barrio de la Viña

The old fishermen's district between the cathedral and La Caleta is the soul of Cádiz Carnival, where comic choirs rehearse and lo...

Entertainment 1

Gran Teatro Falla

Named after Cádiz-born composer Manuel de Falla, this theatre is an eye-catching neo-Mudéjar building of red brick with horseshoe...

Museums 1

Museo de Cádiz

On the leafy Plaza de Mina, the provincial museum is best known for its two Phoenician anthropoid sarcophagi of white marble, a ma...

History 2

Oratorio de San Felipe Neri Cádiz

In this oval Baroque church the Cortes of Cádiz met during the Napoleonic siege and approved the Constitution of 1812, a milestone...

Roman Theatre of Cádiz

Uncovered by chance in 1980 beneath the old Pópulo quarter, this theatre was built in the 1st century BC and was one of the larges...

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Photo credits

Photo: Benjamin Smith, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Photo: Silvia (Tagzania user ID: 4383), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Photo: Jorge Franganillo, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0

Photo: Silvia (Tagzania user ID: 4383), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Photo: Diego Delso, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Marostegui, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Unknown author, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Werner Wilmes, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Photo: "Pablo Jones (Peejayem)", Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: “Pablo Jones. Peejayem”, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: "Pablo Jones (Peejayem)", Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Benjamin Smith, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Jorge Franganillo, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0

Photo: BelquiorGoncalves, Wikimedia Commons, CC0

Photo: Chemasanco, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0

Photo: Diego Delso, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Heparina1985, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.5

Photo: Pablo Jones. Peejayem, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Photo: Zarateman, Wikimedia Commons, CC0

Photo: Hermann Junghans, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 de

Photo: Benjamin Smith, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Photo: Peejayem, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo: Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0