We invite you to wear a helmet, morion, breastplate and other parts of armor; to take lance and sword, and to saddle the horse, so that together we can visit the 35 most beautiful medieval towns in Spain.
Cáceres
The largest municipality in Spain also has a majestic medieval and Renaissance quarter. Its Romanesque temple of Santa María de Càceres, the Palacio de las Veletas with its balustrade, pinnacles and gargoyles, and the Torre de Bujaco, are just some of the most representative monuments that bear witness to it.
Besalu
This town in Girona has a medieval area of 5 square kilometres, which highlights a sober medieval bridge, the solemn simplicity of the monastery of San Pedro de Besalú, the Jewish baths, the Palace of the Royal Curia and the Pilgrims’ hospital.
Urueña
The people of Carrasqueños pride themselves on having the most impressive medieval citadel in Valladolid. They give as an example its magnificently preserved 12th century wall, the hermitage of Nuestra Señora de La Anunciada, a splendid example of Catalan Romanesque and its castle.
Lugo
Galicians are also proud of their medieval towns and Lugo is one of the best examples. The oldest city in Galicia, founded in 25 BC by the magistrate Paulo Fabio Máximo, exhibits its Roman wall, the only one in the world that preserves its entire length, the baths, its temples and other monuments.
Pals
The Catalan town of Pals has a medieval center with documentary records from the 9th century, when its castle is already mentioned. Other attractions from the Middle Ages are the Torre de las Horas, the Gothic quarter of streets and alleys paved with stone and its stately homes with semicircular arches and pointed windows.
Albarracin
This small Aragonese community with a Celtic background in the Iron Age has a medieval enclosure in which the castle stands out, the Cathedral of El Salvador with its Gothic ribbed vault; the Episcopal Palace, with its Baroque façade, and the Torre del Andador, with Arabic-style rigging.
Medinaceli
This Castilian town has an impressive medieval area. It is worth seeing its arch, the only sample of a Roman triumphal arch in all of Hispania, the wide main square, the castle, the collegiate church and the convent of Santa Isabel. The Ducal Palace, residence of the Duke of Medinaceli, is in the Renaissance style.
The Pool
The Salamanca town of La Alberca, not to be confused with the Murcian town of the same name, stands out for its religious buildings and images from the Middle Ages. There is the church of Nuestra Señora de La Asunción, with its polychrome granite pulpit, the tower built at the request of the first dukes of Alba de Tormes and several hermitages.
Beget
The most striking medieval characteristics of this Catalan town are its houses with stone walls and mud and lime mortar, and its Arabic tile roofs. The most important building is the Church of San Cristóbal, a Romanesque temple with a nave and a semicircular apse. The bell tower is a notable example of Lombard Romanesque in Catalonia.
Alquezar
This welcoming town in Huesca began to make history since its castle-collegiate church was built in the 9th century for defense against the Christian kingdoms of Aragonese Sobrarbe. The Collegiate Church of Santa María la Mayor dominates the architectural landscape and we recommend you appreciate its fine trapezoidal Romanesque cloister and its frescoes. From Alquézar you can access the Sierra y los Cañones de Guara Natural Park, where you can practice climbing and canyoning.
Castellfollit de la Roca
It is a medieval village of one square kilometer settled on a basalt rock that is part of the only active quarry in Spain. In the town on the cliff, the church stands out with its bell tower, watching over the handful of rustic houses as if on a postcard from a thousand years ago. Castellfollit de la Roca is in the territory of the Garrocha Volcanic Zone Natural Park, whose main attraction is the Santa Margarita Volcano.
Santillana del Mar
The colloquially called “Villa de las tres mentiras” because it would not be holy, nor is it flat, nor does it have a sea, offers in exchange one of the most beautiful medieval quarters in Spain. In the town, the Collegiate Church of Santa Juliana and the palaces of Viveda and Mijares stand out. But its most famous location is the Cueva de Altamira, where some of the most important paintings and engravings of universal prehistory are located.
Mother-in-law
His name has nothing to do with the beloved mothers-in-law, but derives from the times of the Roman Empire. In any case, it is worth going there, both with or without your mother-in-law, to admire the Castillo de la Muela, a 10th-century building whose construction is attributed to Almanzor. Another attraction of the town of Toledo are its 12 windmills from the 16th century, magnificently preserved.
Morella
From its castle located at the top, with its governor’s palace and its parade ground, there is a splendid view of the town. Inside the walled interior, the Church of Santa María, the Convent of San Francisco, the City Hall Palace and the manor houses stand out. It is an ideal place to eat lamb, the young lamb with which various dishes of the exquisite cuisine of Castellón are prepared.
Miravet
In the distance, guarding the community of 750 inhabitants, stands out the Templar castle, considered the second most important Romanesque fort in the country. Already in the town, we recommend you stroll through its narrow and cozy streets and visit its old church. Do not miss out on the most romantic tradition of the place: take a boat ride on the Ebro.
Ainsa
In the Huesca town of Aínsa, the castle, the wall, the parade ground and the church of Santa María stand out. If you go in December, do not miss the “Punchacubas”, artisan wine fair. On the last Sunday of August, La Morisma is represented, a popular theater that commemorates the reconquest of the place by the Christians.
Calatanazor
If you want to know a village from the Middle Ages without walking a lot, you have to go to Calatañazor. Most of the 70 inhabitants of this medieval relic from Soria settle down a steep street that ends in the Plaza de Armas. From a promontory, the Padilla Castle watches over the town that seems petrified in the past.
Beaded
This beautiful medieval town in Girona awaits you with its well-kept spaces and Catalan kindness. The most interesting sites are the Church of Sant Esteve, a 13th century temple; the 14th century palace, the Torre de L’Homenatge and the inevitable castle, whose existence is already documented in the 11th century.
Laredo
It is a medieval town facing the Cantabrian Sea, with a charming old town, where you must see the church of Santa María de la Asunción, the Casa de las Cuatro Témporas and the Market Building or “fish square”. Laredo is ideal for a night of drinks and in the third week of September the town commemorates the last landing of Emperor Carlos V.
Covarrubias
This old monastic manor is one of the three vertices of the Arlanza Triangle, a Burgos tourist denomination that integrates together with Lerma and Santo Domingo de Silos. It contains a good number of medieval sites of interest, such as the wall, the collegiate church, the Fernán González Tower, the Church of Santo Tomás and the House of Doña Sancha, a jewel of the town’s traditional architecture.
Yours
Many people go to this municipality in Pontevedra to admire the Cathedral of Santa María de Tuy or cross over to Portugal over one of the bridges over the Miño. The 12th century Romanesque temple, with Gothic contributions, has the best preserved medieval cloister in all of Galicia. Also noteworthy are the biblical scenes on its main doorway and its chapter house. The Diocesan Museum and Historical Archive and the Convent of the Poor Clares are also very interesting.
Hervas
The point of origin of this medieval town was a hermitage built by the Knights Templar in the 12th century. In the 15th century, its Jewish quarter began to be formed, of which totally original buildings and pieces are preserved. Other emblematic buildings are the Convent of the Trinitarians, the Church of Santa María, the Town Hall and the Palacio de los Dávila.
Ayllon
This Segovian medieval enclave has a past that includes its destruction by the Romans in 190 BC. Among the monuments in Ayllon, the City Hall Palace, the La Martina Watch Tower and the former convent of San Francisco stand out. An intense artistic activity takes place in the town throughout the year.
Vich
It is a Catalan town of high tourist interest due to its medieval complex and its gastronomy. The Roman temple has a beautiful Corinthian capital and the Cathedral of San Pedro ranges from Romanesque to Baroque, passing through Neoclassical and early and late Gothic. Another place of interest is the Leather Art Museum, with trunks, chairs and other magnificent objects made of leather.
Penaranda de Duero
The castle of this town in Burgos offers a beautiful view of the town. In the fortress, the keep stands out with its wooden beams. Two gates of the 15th century wall remain, while the Palace of the Counts of Miranda shows all its Renaissance sobriety, with its rooms beautifully decorated with coffered ceilings. A curiosity of the town is a 17th century apothecary that still sells medicines and has a museum.
Puentedey
Another town in Burgos, located on a rock from which its 50 inhabitants scan the horizon. Its main monuments are its church with Romanesque lines and the Palacio de los Porres. Nearby is the La Mea waterfall.
Penafiel
The imposing castle of this town in Valladolid has a profile that makes it look like a ship. Other valuable medieval buildings in the town are the Plaza del Coso, which becomes a bullring during the San Roque festivities; the Clock Tower of the Church of San Esteban and the Convent of San Pablo, where the remains of the Infante Don Juan Manuel and Juana de Aza, mother of Santo Domingo de Guzmán, rest.
Torla
This Aragonese town of three hundred inhabitants is very close to the French border. Its most significant medieval monuments are the church of San Salvador with its altarpieces; the castle where today is the Ethnological Museum and where you can see the medieval paintings of the Crypt of San Jorge, and its large houses.
Montefrio
The people of Montefri are proud of their castle and their Optical Towers, the three watchtowers (del Cortijuelo, de los Anillos and de los Guzmanes) erected as part of the defensive system of the fortress during the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada. If they offer you a ropa vieja, don’t be offended, it is shredded meat that the Andalusians prepare exquisitely.
Cold
In this peaceful town in Burgos you can sink into your Castilian origins, as it is part of the Raíces de Castilla community, together with the municipalities of Oña and Poza de la Sal. It has the name of a city and with its 265 inhabitants, it is the smallest of Spain. The buildings that symbolize its medieval history are the Roman road, the 143-meter Romanesque bridge, the Castle of the Dukes of Frías and the hanging houses.
Pedraza
The walled town of Pedraza welcomes you through its medieval gate, which is its only access. The porticoed main square is a dream and it seems that at any moment a Segovian nobleman will appear on horseback and with a lance at the ready. Other interesting structures are a 13th century jail and the Church of San Juan.
Valldemossa
It is one of the most beautiful medieval testimonies of insular Spain. It is located on the western side of the island of Mallorca, where it awaits you with its famous charterhouse, which was the love nest of Frederic Chopin and the novelist George Sand. Among its medieval mansions, the one where Santa Catalina Tomás was born is preserved.
Barcena Mayor
source: youhaveplaneshoy.com This small Cantabrian village of less than a hundred inhabitants, surrounded by oak and beech forests, has a charming presence with its medieval mountain architecture. It is the only inhabited place within the Saja-Besaya Natural Park and from the villa you can climb Alto Abedules, a 1,410-meter mountain that separates the Fuentes and Queriendo rivers.
Olite
This Navarrese merindad (in the past, a territory governed by a Merino) has magnificent monuments from the Middle Ages, such as the Palace of the Kings of Navarra, the Old Palace or the Teobaldos, the Romanesque-Baroque church of San Pedro and the Gothic church of Santa María La Real, which exhibits an altarpiece by the Spanish Renaissance painter Pedro de Aponte.
Toledo
We close our walk through the Middle Ages in Toledo, a city whose interest goes far beyond medieval times. There are too many essential places in Toledo. A short list has to include the Alcázar, the Castle of San Servando, the Cathedral of Santa María, the Monastery of San Juan de los Reyes, the El Greco Museum, the Synagogue of El Tránsito and the Church of San Ildefonso, patron saint of the city.