Plaza Mayor and Castle of Aínsa

Aínsa's medieval old town is up on the height, separated from the modern part by the road junction. You enter by one of its gateways and arrive at the Plaza Mayor, from the 12th and 13th centuries, with arcades whose arches are almost all different and two communal wine presses beneath them. At the far end, the castle. The whole old town is declared a Historic-Artistic Site.

The Square

It was the setting for fairs and markets, and the municipal leaflet regards it as possibly the only one that preserves its original buildings. It is trapezoidal in plan and narrows towards one end. The arcades are Romanesque, round-arched, with some pointed ones, so it is hard to find two identical arches. The roofs, which were of slate slab, were replaced by Arab tile. At number 1 is the Town Hall. From the square leave Calle Mayor, also called Gonzalo I, and Calle Santa Cruz, which meet in the little square of San Salvador, where remains of an old church survive.

The Castle

It is a walled enclosure that was once surrounded by a moat, with a drawbridge that gave access to an enormous parade ground, flanked by four towers. The keep is from the 11th century; the major alterations came in the 16th and 17th centuries, when in the time of Philip II new defences were planned with the engineer Tiburcio Spanochi. Look at the round arches that support the wall-walk, which can be walked. The outer enclosure is visited without a ticket.

Inside are the Pyrenean Fauna Ecomuseum, in the keep, and the Pyrenees Geopark Space, in the south-east tower, each with its own hours. In summer, the parade ground hosts the Castillo de Aínsa International Music Festival.

The Walls and the Cruz Cubierta

The walls are almost entirely preserved, although hidden by the houses built against them on the inside. Five of the seven gates remain: Portal de Abajo, de Afuera, de Arriba, de Tierra Glera and del Callizo. At the entrance is the Cruz Cubierta, a circular shrine of 1655 that recalls the legend of the cross over the holm oak, the symbol of Sobrarbe. La Morisma, which re-enacts that battle, is held in the square on the first Sunday of September in even-numbered years.

To go into the church, book the guided visit to Santa María; to have it all explained, the Saturday guided visit to the old town.