A path opposite the Hotel Arco de la Villa leads to Zahara's 12th-century castle keep (it's a steep, steady 10- to 15-minute climb). The castle's recapture from the Christians by Emir Abu al-Hasan of Granada, in a night raid in 1481, provoked the Reyes Católicos (Catholic Monarchs) to launch the last phase of the Reconquista, ending with the 1492 fall of Granada.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
12.16 MILES
Twenty kilometres southwest of Ronda la Vieja are some of Andalucía’s most ancient and fascinating caves. Torchlit guided tours into the dark belly of the…
14.02 MILES
In existence for more than 200 years, this is one of Spain's oldest bullrings and the site of some of the most important events in bullfighting history. A…
23.96 MILES
Lined with fine ancient buildings, Plaza del Cabildo is the heart of Arcos' old town, its vertiginous mirador affording exquisite panoramas over the Río…
14.23 MILES
This crazy, cluttered museum is the private collection of Juan Antonio Lara Jurado, who has been a collector since the age of 10. Now in his 80s, he still…
14.24 MILES
Several landscaped terraces give access to La Mina, an Islamic stairway of nearly two hundred steps cut into the rock all the way down to the river at the…
14.13 MILES
Straddling the dramatic gorge of the Río Guadalevín (Deep River) is Ronda's most recognisable sight, the towering Puente Nuevo, so named not because it's…
Basílica Menor de Santa María de la Asunción
23.94 MILES
This Gothic-baroque creation is one of Andalucía's more beautiful, intriguing churches, built over several centuries on the site of a mosque. Check out…
28.29 MILES
Jimena's romantically ruined 13th-century Nasrid castle, built on Roman ruins, once formed part of a defence line stretching from Olvera down through…
Nearby attractions
1. Iglesia de Santa María de Mesa
0.12 MILES
Completed in 1779, the pastel-pink baroque Iglesia de Santa María de Mesa houses a small museum devoted to religious artefacts; among these, a 16th…
2. Capilla de San Juan de Letrán
0.14 MILES
This dainty yellow-and-white chapel dates from the 20th century. Its slender, whitewashed Torre del Reloj (clock tower) is the only remaining element of…
5.56 MILES
Grazalema's delicate wool shawls and blankets rose to fame in the 18th and 19th centuries. At this working textiles factory, 350m northwest of Plaza de…
5.71 MILES
One of several of its kind in Grazalema, this striking four-spouted fountain is of probable Visigothic origins.
5.72 MILES
Grazalema centres on the 18th-century Plaza de España, overlooked by the Iglesia de la Aurora, begun in 1760 and completed 40 years later, and refreshed…
5.73 MILES
Overlooking Grazalema's main square, with an austere stone facade topped by three ornamental pinnacles, the Iglesia de la Aurora was begun in 1760 but…
8.53 MILES
Some 20km northwest of Ronda, off the A374, is the relatively undisturbed Roman site of Acinipo at Ronda la Vieja. Although completely ruined, with the…
8. Iglesia Parroquial Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación
9.45 MILES
Built over a Gothic-Mudéjar predecessor, Olvera's neoclassical top-of-the-town church was commissioned by the Duques de Osuna and completed in 1841.