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Cádiz province throughout the year

From the White Villages Route to the ones which are in the border, from the

Iberoamerican legacy to the mixture of Campo of Gibraltar. The province of Cádiz is

so special due to its different landscapes and environments, which are very

different in summer and quite appealing when autumn comes. Cádiz throughout the

year.

1- Where the horses dance

Jerez is the home of the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art where you

can see how the horses dance. The show starts at noon every Tuesday, Thursday

and Saturdays with special galas.

The School puts on shows for groups and you can also watch training sessions.

Once there, do not miss the chance to visit the Carriage Museum.

On Saturdays you can also catch the show performed at the Cartuja de Jerez

Stud. Take a break to enjoy the shows as well as exploring how this institution has

been devoted to improving the Cartujan horse breed since the Middle Ages.

2- The astonishing wineries are waiting for you

The Marco de Jerez embraces much more than wineries, you will find authentic

Wine Museums full of history, tools from the nineteenth century and such a superb

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air of legend that you will feel like if you were in a movie. The main cellars are in

Jerez, El Puerto de Santa María and Sanlúcar. All of them have a special charm.

For example, Tío Pepe winery owned by González Byass houses more than

100,000 casks, with the oldest dating back well over 350 years. Leading figures

from all walks of life have visited the winery, including the writer Leopoldo Alas

"Clarín", Harold Lloyd, Jean Cocteau, Winston Churchill, Ayrton Senna, Roger Moore

and Steven Spielberg. The list is endless.

The casks in some Jerez wineries bear famous quotes written on them by

their illustrious visitors, such as the inventor of penicillin, who wrote: "my medicine

cures the sick but this wine raises the dead".

The Valdivia winery has set up some guided tours that include special

activities for children, while the tradition winery is home to one of the best

collections of paintings in Spain, with works by Zurbarán, Velázquez, Madrazo and

Lucas Villamil.

The White Villages Route

A huge variety of white villages are waiting for you to discover them. Arcos,

Grazalema, Setenil de las Bodegas, El Bosque, Olvera. Zahara de la Sierra. Take a

short break and see them. If you decide to stay, there are dozens of small hotels

and charming country guest houses.

You can visit lots of fascinating places on your way: watch blankets being

made by hand at the factory in Grazalema, find out how olive oil is produced at the

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Zahara de la Sierra de Oleum Viride olive oil mill, and drop in on leather craftsmen

at work in Ubrique.

There is nothing like bread

In la Sierra it is also possible to take part on the elaboration of bread in an old mill

from the eighteenth century at the Molino de Abajo located in El Bosque.

La Sierra Green Way

The Green Way follows the route taken by the old railway line for 36

kilometres, passing through 30 tunnels, 4 viaducts and 5 disused stations.

This is a beautiful trail for walking, cycling or gazing at "Chaparro de la

Vega", a venerable holm oak tree of 700 years old standing over 13 metres tall that

has been declared in 2002 a national monument of Andalucía. It is located 1,5 km

from Coripe’s station.

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The Foundation has restored many resorts to provide accommodation to the

travellers.

Luxury leather

Halfway the White Villages Route is located Ubrique, whose surrounding area is

famous for leather goods sold by prestige brands.

In Ubrique it is worth to visit the factories, the Leather Museum and of course the

shops, where you can buy designer articles with the highest quality.

Crossing the bay

Crossing the Bay of Cádiz is something you simply have to do. A busy

schedule of catamaran trips is available. This lovely trip leaves the capital and runs

to both Puerto de Santa María and Rota.

The best Swing

According to the golf experts, the province of Cádiz is the home of first-class

golfing facilities. Cádiz has 23 golf courses attracting thousands of golfers keen to

play on the same courses as the world's top players.

Leading names such as Ballesteros, Tiger Woods, Olazábal, Sergio García,

etc, have made their mark on these courses of southern Andalucía. Some of them

have designed and promoted signature courses, others have played in memorable

tournaments.

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Flying through the air

There are 31 surfing and kite surfing schools in Tarifa. This is a thrilling and

extreme experience. After 15 hours of tuition, you could be flying over the waves

and getting hooked on this exciting sport. Tarifa is the Europe's windsurfing and

kite surfing Mecca. Young people from all over Europe come here to enjoy the

town's sporting activities, fashion and great atmosphere.

The sweetest Museum

Sweet, mild, aromatic, wonderful with pine nuts or walnuts, made from

rosemary tree, strawberries... and highly nutritious. We're talking about honey

from Rancho Cortesano in Jerez, where they've been keeping honey bees for 30

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years and where there's an extremely sweet Museum open to the public. The

Museum is aimed at adults and children of all ages, who will have a great time

watching how the bees work and dressing up as beekeepers.

Rancho Cortesano has around 2,000 hives spread across the province of

Cádiz, especially in the Grazalema and Alcornocales nature parks. They normally

produce between 30,000 and 40,000 kilos of honey per year.

The Museum offers a wide variety of products to try and buy, including jars

of Thousand Flower honey, Holm Oak honey, Eucalyptus honey, Orange Blossom

honey, honey confectionery, "meloja" (made from honey yeasts), pollen, royal jelly

and honey soaps.

The Museum displays illustrate the vital role bees play in pollination and in

the production of fruit and seeds. In fact, Rancho Cortesano also has an organic

orchard with a huge variety of fruit trees, namely mangos, custard-apple, pears,

apples, almonds, oranges and olives.

Rancho Cortesano makes its own organic honey, bearing the Nature Park quality

mark awarded by the Government of Andalucía Department of the Environment and

its products are sold in gourmet stores in Spain and Germany.

www.ranchocortesano.net

The Time Palace

The Time Palace in the centre of Jerez seems to have come from one of Jules

Verne's journeys. Step inside and you're plunged into a fantasy world of clocks,

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precious stones, special effects and a master clockmaker in 18th century dress who

amazes visitors with his knowledge.

The Time Palace (the new clock museum) is based in an old palatial home

inside La Atalaya theme centre and houses an extensive collection of more than

300 working clocks, Bohemian and Baccarat crystal, noble wood, mother of pearl

and ivory, all displayed in a fantasy setting. You can also hear some of the most

famous clock chimes in the world, including Big Ben.

These time-measuring machines come from France, England, Italy,

Switzerland, Austria and Germany, and include curious items such as a sun dial

shaped like a cannon, a ship that sways and measures time, and a clown juggling

cups.

www.elmisteriodejerez.org

Come into Doñana

From Sanlúcar de Barrameda, you cross the Guadalquivir on board the Real

Fernando to venture into Doñana. The boat moors at various points so passengers

can see and enjoy the National Park and the nature park that surrounds it. A guide

is with you for the whole trip.

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The boat is berthed in Bajo de Guía, opposite the old ice factory, which houses a

very interesting exhibition on the rich wildlife and landscapes in Doñana.

www.visitasdonana.com.

Although the best option to explore the national park is be accompanied by

the guides who will show you the park by 4x4.

www.donanavisitas.es (4X4)

The Two Towers

Tavira Tower (Torre Tavira) stands on the highest point in the old quarter of

Cádiz. It used to be one of the lookout towers used for spotting ships, from which

you will be amazed by the beautiful views over Cádiz and the sea in all of its

fullness

Inside the Tower you will find an obscure chamber, a curious artefact that

enables you to see what's happening in real time and watch both passers-by and

local people outside the Tower and on Cádiz's rooftops.

There are spectacular views from the West Tower of the Cathedral too, once

you've climbed the spiral staircase hewn from local sedimentary rock that runs up

from the cathedral to the bell tower.

www.torretavira.com

www.monumentosalavista.com

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A Place to Relax

For people who prefer a quieter kind of break, Cádiz offers a wide range of

hotels where water is the main source of health and relaxation. There has been a

spa complex in Chiclana since 1803. Try out the saunas, jacuzzis, hydro massage,

Turkish baths, heated pools... just let your troubles melt away.

The province has more than 30 spa complexes, all with their own distinctive

features, ranging from Arab-style baths to those inspired by Asian culture or by the

area's major activity, wine production which is deeply-rooted to this land. For that

reason you cannot miss the wine therapy that Spa Club Jerez offers.

The Provincial Council of Tourism has published a handbook with all the

offers which can be delivered home free of charge. You just have to send an email

to recepcion@cadizturismo.com or ask for it through the web

www.cadizturismo.com in the Publication section.

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Venturing the parks

Many enterprises provide information as well as a wide range of ways to

venture the natural scenario of Cádiz and practising bird watching or studying the

local flora. The province of Cádiz has six nature parks: the parks of Los

Alcornocales and Grazalema inland, while along the coastline the parks of Breña,

Marismas de Barbate, Parque del Estrecho and Bahía de Cádiz cover the

countryside around Doñana. Together, these areas make Cádiz the province with

the greatest number of protected land in the whole of Andalucía.

With Dolphins and Whales in the Strait

Incredible but true. Several companies based in Tarifa run whale and dolphin

spotting trips. You'll have a great morning out on the Strait of Gibraltar, with views

of the African continent. Whales and dolphins have always come here; in fact, a

whaling factory was based in the Bay of Getares in Algeciras in the early 20th

century. The area is visited by killer whales in the summer, but you can see

dolphins all year round because they are residents of this stretch of sea connecting

southern Europe with northern Africa.

www.firmm.org

www.turmares.com

www.whalewatchtarifa.net

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The enterprise AlBarco has an extensive experience in organizing coast trips in

the area of Sancti Petri and Chiclana. Since people were very interested in these

trips because of its historical background, the enterprise decided to offer its

services in Cádiz on occasion of the bicentenary of Cádiz Constitution.

www.albarco.com

Feel like a Roman

One of the province's most outstanding attractions is the archaeological site

of Baelo Claudia, a Roman town founded in the 2nd century BC near the Bolonia

inlet. This is the most complete Roman town on the Iberian peninsula and draws

over 100,000 visitors every year.

The Baelo Claudia site was discovered by George Edward Bonsor Saint

Martin, a French painter, archaeologist and historian, who was born in England and

then settled in Spain. The guide published by the Regional Government of Andalucía

Department of Culture tells how, from the 7th century AD, the Bolonia inlet had

been more or less abandoned. It also describes how, between 1700 and 1900,

scholars and travellers suggested that Roman ruins might be found there. However,

it was not until 1917 that the site was fully investigated in four separate digs

carried out by the French Hispanist Pierre Paris, who excavated most of the town's

basic structure, while George Bonsor excavated the eastern necropolis. In 1966, a

series of geophysical surveys carried out by Professor Pellicer established that

"nowhere else on the Iberian Peninsula is it possible to obtain such a complete

overview of Roman town-building as in Baelo Claudia, and this is what makes it so

interesting".

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Its origins are closely linked with north Africa, but the town's economic

wealth was tied into the fishing industry and garum, a fish sauce that was

extremely popular throughout the Roman Empire.

The town fell into decline following a tidal wave thought to have devastated

it in the 2nd century AD, but Baelo was still inhabited until the 7th century, when it

was finally abandoned.

Nowadays it is one of the province's biggest attractions, both for its

archaeological value and its beautiful setting, the stunning beach of Bolonia.

The Phoenicians were here

Another of the province's archaeological treasures is the pair of Phoenician

sarcophagi housed in Cádiz Museum.

Only ten of these sarcophagi have ever been found in the world: on the

coastline of Tyre and Sidon (now Lebanon), in Carthage and in Cádiz. Only three of

them belong to women and are kept in the museums of Beirut, Carthage and in the

Louvre. The two sarcophagi found in Cádiz have the most Greek features of all and

are the only two items made by Phoenician craftsmen ever to have been found on

the peninsula.

But apart from their historical value, an even more remarkable story

surrounds them. Almost a century elapsed between the discovery in Cádiz of the

first sarcophagus and the second. The second was found in 1980, right underneath

the house occupied by Pelayo Quintero, who was director of the Museum for many

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years. A great scholar, researcher and excavator at the Cádiz necropolis in the early

20th century, he died in 1946 convinced that there had to be a female sarcophagus

somewhere in the city. It was eventually found under the foundations of his house.