3/31/2023 0 Comments Finques canigo![]() The arcaded market square is worth a wander too, as is the Plaza de San Fernando, edged with pretty, balconied townhouses. One of the oldest towns in mainland Europe, its streets and squares are chock-full of beautiful buildings and mudejar architecture.ĭon’t miss the Moorish Alcazar (fortress) or the Town Hall, adorned with colourful Portuguese-style tiles. You’ll find this handsome hilltop town about half an hour north-east of Seville (we stop off en route during our touring holidays in Spain’s Andalucia region). It's worth sampling the cuisine while you’re here, too – try salt-baked sea bream, garlicky seafood caldero (stew), or a slice of sticky fig bread alongside an asiático (coffee with cognac and condensed milk). Maybe begin at the Naval Museum, then set out to see everything from Roman ruins right up to modern creations inspired by Gaudi. More recently recognised as the ‘Port of Cultures’, there’s plenty to explore. Steeped in over 2,000 years of history, this port city was built on a settlement site established by a Carthaginian general. Memories of Mallorca is one of our top holidays to Spain, and includes an excursion on the Palma-Soller railway (plus a few days at leisure to explore the island on your own).Ĭartagena doesn’t grab the headlines in the same way as superstar cities like Barcelona and Seville, but it has a fantastically rich history to discover, making it an ideal stop-off on a cruise to Spain. Soller (the ‘old town’ perching in the hills above busy Port Soller) is also lovely, and easy to reach from Palma via the vintage narrow-gauge railway. Towns and villages to look out for include Felanitx, Orient and Pollensa. Hire a car or hop on a bus and explore – you’ll find almond orchards and citrus groves, traditional market towns and sleepy villages, silvery olive trees, honey-stone fincas (farmhouses), and bodegas serving up home-grown wines. While Mallorca isn’t a particularly hidden gem (it’s one of the most popular Spanish holiday spots for Brits), most visitors tend to cluster around the coast, leaving the countryside gloriously unspoilt. It’s about half an hour from Girona or 45 minutes’ drive from Roses, where we stay on our guided tours of Spain’s rugged Costa Brava. You’ll find Besalù in the north-eastern region of La Garrotxa. There are Romanesque churches to admire, sunny squares to relax in, and a fascinating Jewish heritage to uncover (including a 13th-century mikveh, or bathhouse, thought to be one of only three remaining in Europe). This remarkably well-preserved medieval village is like something out of a storybook – all golden-stone houses and cobbled streets, with an 11th-century bridge crossing the babbling waters of the Fluvià river. ![]() Here are six of our favourites… Besalú, Catalonia But venture off the beaten track just a little and there are plenty of fantastic hidden gems to discover, too. Spain’s headline sights and cities are rightly famous, from the magnificent spires of the Sagrada Familia and Seville Cathedral, to the Moorish palace and gardens at Granada’s Alhambra.
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