Must-see attractions in Spain
San Sebastián de la Gomera
Beautiful Indian laurel trees shade this buzzing central square.
Centro de Interpretación del Castillo de La Iruela
Andalucía
Has background exhibits on La Iruela Castle.
Barcelona
Lined with bars and restaurants, the rowdiest of Gràcia’s squares springs to life on long summer nights.It was the scene of summary executions after an…
Barcelona
Created in 2006, in front of the revitalised El Fòrum district, this gold-coloured artificial beach is the city's easternmost and popular with dog walkers.
Barcelona
This popular square is home to the bustling Modernista produce market of the same name, along with a couple of great little restaurants.
Plaça de la Revolució de Setembre de 1868
Barcelona
This busy square commemorates the toppling of Queen Isabel II, a cause of much celebration in working-class stronghold Gràcia. Today locals gather on…
Barcelona
Pleasant terraces adorn the leafy, pedestrianised Plaça de la Virreina, presided over by the 17th-century Església de Sant Joan, rebuilt in the 1880s by…
Santiago de Compostela
Work on this grand prestige project on Monte Gaiás, 1.5km southeast of the Old Town, was stopped in 2013 after a decade of delays and budget blowouts…
Mosteiro de San Paio de Antealtares
Santiago de Compostela
The long, stark wall of the Mosteiro de San Paio de Antealtares faces the cathedral's east end across Praza da Quintana. Founded by Alfonso II in the 9th…
Rías Baixas
The life and work of Nobel Prize–winning novelist José Camilo Cela is extensively documented in the exhibits at the Fundación Camilo José Cela, in Iria…
Madrid
Across the train tracks east of the Ermita de San Antonio de la Florida is the cemetery where 43 rebels executed by Napoleon’s troops are buried. They…
Zaragoza
Now an exhibition hall, this finely proportioned, pale-brick, Renaissance-style building, just east of the basilica, was constructed in the 16th century…
Andalucía
In an old sailors' hospital, Palos' naval museum hosts an impressive collection of ship models, from prehistoric canoes to Columbus' Niña.
Catalonia
Guided tours (in Catalan or Spanish) take visitors to explore Cardona's salt valley, the source of the region's former wealth. You'll see old mining…
Costa Brava
Today, this elegant 18th-century arch in front of the Monestir de Sant Feliu de Guíxols stands alone, the walls connecting it to the monastery complex…
Menorca
At red-washed Golden Farm, they say, Lord Nelson and his lover Lady Hamilton enjoyed a tryst in 1799. Visits are by guided tour and pre-booking is…
Cerdanya
This 13th-century Gothic church was wrecked multiple times over the course of its history, including a 15th-century earthquake and immense damage during…
León
Abutting the southwestern corner of the Real Colegiata de San Isidro is a fragment of the former muralla (old city wall). The wall dates to the 1st…
Cerdanya
Within a much-modernised 19th-century Carmelite monastery are two floors of exhibitions with flavours of Cerdanya's agrarian past. The permanent…
Cuenca
The Torre de Mangana, near Plaza Mangana, is the last remnant of a fortress that was built by Cuenca's Muslim rulers. It is all that remains of Cuenca's…
Aragón
Off the southeastern corner of Plaza del Torico is the entrance to this 14th-century underground water-storage facility. In addition to showcasing the…
A Coruña
This small square just west of Plaza de María Pita is decked with caricatures of famous laughter-makers from Cervantes to the Pink Panther. Not quite sure…
Mallorca
A short distance north of the main church, in the courtyard of an apartment block, is the neatly restored Torre del Palau, all that remains of a royal…
Castilla-La Mancha
Of the handful of churches in town, the most striking is the 14th-century Gothic Iglesia de San Pedro, with its three-part facade and three naves within,…
Espacio del Geoparque de Sobrarbe
Aínsa
This small museum in one of Aínsa castle’s towers discusses the geology of the Sobrarbe district centred on Aínsa (including a good chunk of the Pyrenees)…
Córdoba
This ancient, much-restored water wheel on the edge of the Río Guadalquivir was originally built by emir Abd ar-Rahman II in the 9th century to send water…
Toledo
The horseshoe arch that beckons to you from Plaza de Zocodover provides a glimpse into Toledo's medieval cosmopolitanism. It was once a doorway in the old…
Albarracín
Once part of Albarracín's complex defences, this 14th-century tower has been rehabilitated by the Fundación Santa María de Albarracín. It is now a gallery…
Centro de Interpretación Laguna de Gallocanta
Aragón
Smaller and older than the one at Gallocanta village, this centre also provides information and exhibits on the lake and its birds. It's beside the Tornos…
Galicia
Ribadavia's Ethnological Museum is worth a visit for its Galician folk history collection and wine-growing exhibition; just up the street is the 12th…
Aragón
This tiny 12th-century Romanesque chapel was actually moved here in 1972 from an abandoned village at the foot of Peña Oroel, the mountain that looms to…
Galicia
Next door to the Claustro de San Francisco is a small but good exhibition of sculptures from Ourense's temporarily closed (since 2002!) archaeological…
