The labyrinths of narrow streets filled with history, the smells of Paelia and the sounds of Flmenko, magnificent architecture, wide sandy beaches and an endless Atlantic Ocean – all that Spain is so loved is in a small Cadiz.
The claiming the ancient city of Western Europe, Cadiz was erected more than 3,000 years ago almost at the most southern point of the continent. The Greeks and Byzantines called the city on the island, on three sides surrounded by water, the edge of the world. Only a narrow sandy isthmus, built up with multi -storey houses, and three bridges, connects it with the large land.
Entrance rules
For a trip to Spain, Russian citizens need a Schengen visa. You can apply at or visa center. The fee for tourists is 80 euros (approximately 6,500 rubles*).
All Covid restrictions on the entrance are removed.
How to get
From Russia to Spain there are flights with transfers in Ankara, Istanbul or Abu Dhabi. The cost of tickets from Moscow to Madrid starts from 42,000 rubles one way*.
Further to the south of Spain, you can get in several ways:
- by plane (to the cities of the sherry de la-Fruster or Seville, tickets from 5,300 rubles one way*);
- Renfe train;
- ALSA by bus from Seville, Granada, Valencia, Mursia and some other cities.
In Cadiz itself, buses connecting the old city with new areas and the nearest settlements on the mainland.
Where to stop
Kadis is a popular direction for domestic tourism, so there are many options for accommodation:
Casa Caracol (rating 8.6) – hostel, from 3,200 rubles per night*.
Casual Duende Cádiz (rating 8.4) – guest house, from 8,000 rubles per night*.
Parador de Cádiz (rating 9.1) – a four -star hotel, from 19,500 rubles per night*.
What to see
In the old fishing quarters of Cadiz, where the sunlight does not penetrate, among the houses closely adhering to each other, you can wander for hours, forgetting that you are on a small piece of land in the ocean. And then unexpectedly go out on a wide elegant square or high embankment. For example, on a spacious one Plaza San Antonio with the church of the same name, or drowning in flower shelves, fragrant Plaza de las Floreson a shady, surrounded by trees Plaza de mina Or a cozy quiet Plaza Candelaria.
The architecture of Cadis over a long history turned into an elegant cocktail mixed from the cultures of numerous city masters: Phoenicians, Romans, Byzantines, Arab Moors and, finally, Spaniards.
Cathedral Catedral Santa Cruz Cathedral – The main temple of the city – unites Baroque styles, neoclassicians and Rococo. It looks especially majestic and mysterious at night when the towers stand out clearly against the background of the dark sky. The steps of the cathedral were chosen by local youth and vacationing tourists. In the square Plaza de la Catedral Often, street musicians and singers flamenco are often performed – the acoustics there are amazing.
On the northern tower, a paid observation deck with an open view of Cadiz is arranged: white walls, red roofs and the blue ocean merging with the sky.
Another popular overview point is located on the highest construction of the city-the 45-meter Torre Tavira tower. In addition to luxurious panoramic species, here you can see an impressive performance with a camera-sob. This optical device, the predecessor of the camera is a miracle of medieval engineering.
The difficult fate of Cadis, full of turbulent battles, forced its rulers to build defensive bastions. Many have survived well to this day.
Fortress Castillo San Sebastian Built on a small island in 1706 to protect against attacks from the sea. With the city of Citadel, where the lighthouse is now located, connected by a stone dam. It is great to sit there, admiring the Kadis Gulf. During the tide, you can go down to the bottom and wander along the naked stones of a bizarre “alien” species.
There is another fortress nearby – Castillo Santa Catalinadesigned in an unusual form for Andalusia, the correct five -pointed star. The citadel has not changed much since 1598. Now there are museums and halls for temporary exhibitions, educational events and master classes.
On the other side of the island, a forty -like ship is well preserved Candelaria. There are exhibitions and concerts, and often, walking next to him, you can hear a powerful baritone flying over the bay.
Cadis beaches
Kadis with its multi -kilometer line of chic sandy beaches – Mecca of Beginner Warfingists. There are a lot of surf schools, and at the water you can often find groups of people with boards and instructors. Really large waves come from the end of October to May, when the autumn-winter storm begins. In the summer, the Atlantic Ocean off the coast is more often calm, and Cadiz is ideal for ordinary beach holidays.
La Caleta beach
A small beach 450 m long in the bay of the northern part of the island near the boat station. The shore frames the white building of the center of Subakvatika. Against its background, beautiful photos are obtained, and in the shadow of his foundation, vacationers are hidden in heat.
There are naits algae to the shore, but there are never large waves, a very gentle entrance, and water, albeit not the most transparent, warms up much faster than on other beaches. Therefore, La Caleta is great for families with children and those who love a calm ocean.
It is customary to meet the sunset and there is even a touching urban ritual: in street speakers, when the sun leans to the edge of water, romantic music plays.
Santa María del Mar Beach
A beautiful spacious beach on the outskirts of an old city with a length of 850 m. Soft sand, clean, managing to warm up to +24 ° C Ocean, a chic view of the Cathedral and the Old Cadiz, wave -cutting along the edges of the beach and buoys, denoting a large zone for safe bathing, make it ideal for any rest. There is a shower, a toilet, a cafe, a first -aid post. And, of course, unchanged, tanned merchants with carts who will not allow to die of thirst.
In Cadiz, fluctuations in tolls and tides are very noticeable. Therefore, sometimes a couple of additional tens of meters have to go to the water. But during the tide, this beach is great for runs or active walks barefoot.
Victoria beach
A wide three -kilometer beach is entirely on a sandy isthmus leading to the mainland. He is one of the six best beaches of Spain and was awarded an international award – a blue flag. Despite safety, a convenient entrance to the water and a rural type of rescuers, it is worthwhile to be careful. Sailing from the shore, you find yourself face to face with a giant Atlantic ocean with its difficult disposition and underwater trends.
At night, during the tide, the lights of lanterns that wander in the distance from the shore are often visible here. These are local fishermen collect sea living creatures from a naked bottom.
Cortadura beach
The beach with golden sand in the suburbs of Cadiz, stretching along the highway 4 km. A strip of trees and bushes separates him from the road. There are no restaurants, shops and crowds of loud -haired tourists. This place is suitable for a secluded relaxed vacation, and rocky areas are good for calm snorkeling.
All Cadiz beaches are free, but you will need to pay extra for sunbeds and umbrellas.
Places for long walks
Almost the entire Cadiz can be circumvented by moving along the promenade and the embankment along the ocean. Even if you get lost in the back streets of the old city, sooner or later you will go to the water. And on the embankment it will already be easier to understand where to move in order to get to the desired point.
A long walk with picturesque views can be arranged by starting it from the La Caleta beach towards the Sta Beach. María. Promenade on the street Campo del sur It goes along a high fortified shore. From there to the horizon, a sparkling ocean is visible, and in bad weather the spray of waves crashes against the wall fly to passers -by. Here, fishermen with long fishing rods are often sitting here, distributing compliments to the girls coming by. And between the stones, street cats are hidden, which are fed with compassionate townspeople.
After the beach Sta. María Walk along the coast can be continued along the promenade Paséo Marítimo Until the departure from the new city.
If you go the other way from La Caleta, then the path will lie along the Kadis Bay along the promenade Paséo Santa Barbara.
There is also a park Parque Genovés – A garden where more than 300 species of trees and flowering plants grow is an artificial pond, a waterfall and a grotto. But the most interesting here is the curly haircuts of the crowns of trees and shrubs, giving them bizarre forms.
After a little more along the embankment, you will get into a secluded park AlaMeda With huge ficus trees, among the roots and curved trunks of which unusual photos are obtained. The park is decorated with paving black and white tiles, fountains and traditional Spanish ceramics-Asulehos, which was obtained by Cadis from the Moors.
Fishermen and local teenagers also gather on the embankment in this area in the evenings. From the promenade, you can observe the multi -storey cruise liners moving to the horizon, leaving the parking lot Kadis port. At night, the lights of other cities on the mainland are distinguishable in the distance.
Moving further along the bay, you will meet more and more landscapes with silhouettes of port cranes and fewer passers -by and tourists. In this unpopular place for walking, it is good to wander after sunset: the rumble of the city will drown out the noise of the waves, and bright stars are burning above the head.
Cafe, restaurants, bars, shopping
Kadis is full of interesting places where you can eat deliciously without parting with the vacation budget for the evening:
- market Mercado on Plaza Libertad with fresh seafood, fruits and vegetables;
- Tapas bars on Calle Zorilla;
- restaurant Balandrowhere in the bar they serve restaurant food from the chef at democratic prices;
- Cafe Library La Clandestina with the best carrot cake in Cadiz;
- restaurants with beautiful terraces on Calle de la Palma;
- supermarket networks Mercadona, Día, Carrefourwhere there are always high -quality famous Spanish cheeses and Hamon.
Bars, where you can have a noisily relax in the evening with your company and inevitably find new friends, settled on Calle Sagasta And nearby.
The pedestrian shopping area with stores of the mass market goods, famous Spanish and world brands stretched through the streets Calle Sacrammento And Calle Columela. And small craft benches with authentic gizmos are hidden in alleys near the main cathedral.
Keep in mind that the townspeople tremendously honor the traditions of their favorite siesta, and in the afternoon many establishments can be closed in the heat, including restaurants and grocery stores. The cafe is filled with talkative Spaniards closer to 9 pm.
Entertainment and cultural program
The main event in the city, for which residents are diligently preparing for a whole year, is a colorful February Kadis carnival, famous for all of Spain. There are many musical groups and ensembles in Cadiz. In the summer, they, rehearsing right on the street, train to sing, play instruments and walk at the same time. So do not be surprised if somewhere on the embankment or in a secluded lane you will meet you an orchestra of wind instruments, a male choir or a drum ensemble, performing world and Spanish classics. Music, reflected from the ancient walls of the city, sounds fascinating.
Kadis is rich in museums and theaters:
- Bolshoi Theater Fali (Teatro Falla);
- Puppet Theater (Teatro Tía Norica);
- Cadis Museum (Museo de Cadiz);
- Archaeological Museum (Yacimiento arqueológico gadir);
- Cadis History Museum (Museo de las Cortes);
- Museum of puppets and lithography (Museos del Titere Y Litográfico);
- The remains of the ancient Roman theater (Teatro Romano);
- The space of modern culture (Espacio de Cultura Contemporánea de Cadiz Ecco).
You can listen to the Spanish guitar and traditional flamenco in many theatrical bars of Cadiz: Peña Flamenca la Perla de Cádiz, Taberna Flamenca La Cava, Café Teatro Pay Pay. Some concerts are free, sometimes they are transferred to the free platforms of the embankment.
In the city center, there are often open exhibitions, for example, on the walls of the Mercado market buildings demonstrate the work of Spanish and European artists and illustrators.
Kadis is definitely from those cities, to dive into the atmosphere of which will pull you again and again.
*Prices are relevant at the time of publication.
