The hilly and beautiful country straddling the Desfiladero de Despeñaperros gorge is the Parque Natural de Despeñaperros: for information on the park and walking routes, visit the Centro de Visitantes Llano de las Américas, 2km west of A4 exit 257 along the Miranda del Rey road.
Parque Natural Despeñaperros
Andalucía
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
28.22 MILES
This famous chapel, built between 1536 and 1559, is the flagship of Úbeda Renaissance architecture. Commissioned by Francisco de los Cobos y Molina as his…
Castillo de Calatrava la Nueva
25.19 MILES
This magnificent castle-monastery looms high in the sky some 35km south of Almagro, from where it once controlled the path into the Sierra Morena and…
28.17 MILES
As was the case in much of Andalucía, the Reconquista destroyed Baeza's mosque and in its place built a cathedral. It's a stylistic melange, though the…
28.09 MILES
Baeza’s most flamboyant palace was probably built in the late 15th century for a member of the noble Benavides clan. Its chief glory is the spectacular…
28.18 MILES
Úbeda's ayuntamiento (town hall) is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful – if not the most beautiful – in Spain. It was built by Vandelvira in about 1562…
28.05 MILES
The medieval Sinagoga del Agua was discovered in 2006 by a refreshingly ethical property developer who intended to build apartments here, only to discover…
28.53 MILES
These fascinating tours of a working oil mill near Baeza will teach you all you could want to know about the process of turning olives into oil, how the…
28.2 MILES
The lovely Plaza Vázquez de Molina is the monumental heart of Úbeda's old town and the perfect place to start exploring. An early case of Andalucian urban…
Nearby Andalucía attractions
1. Museo Batalla de las Navas de Tolosa
3.71 MILES
The course of Spanish history changed 2km west of Santa Elena on 16 July 1212, when Christian armies defeated the Muslim Almohad army in the battle of Las…
2. Castillo de Calatrava la Nueva
25.19 MILES
This magnificent castle-monastery looms high in the sky some 35km south of Almagro, from where it once controlled the path into the Sierra Morena and…
27.8 MILES
Andrés de Vandelvira’s last architectural project, completed in 1575, has been dubbed the Escorial of Andalucía in reference to the famous monastery…
27.87 MILES
This 16th-century monastery suffered grievously from an earthquake and Napoleonic sacking in the early 19th century. The main point of interest is the…
27.93 MILES
The Ayuntamiento, a block north of the Paseo de la Constitución, has a particularly marvellous plateresque facade. The four finely carved balcony portals…
6. Centro de Interpretación Olivar y Aceite
27.94 MILES
Úbeda's olive-oil interpretation centre explains all about the area's olive-oil history, and how the oil gets from the tree to your table, with the help…
27.97 MILES
The lonely Torre de los Aliatares is one of the few remnants of Muslim Bayyasa, having miraculously survived not only the Reconquista but also Isabel la…
28.04 MILES
One of the town's medieval gates, still standing in the eastern walls.