# Cardona

A town in the Bages with a mountain of salt you visit from the inside, 86 m underground, and a 9th-century castle turned Parador. One day for the two visits; a night if you sleep in the fortress.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/cardona · Revisado: 2026-11-13

## What can you see in a day?

Two things, and both need a reservation: the Salt Mountain and the castle with the collegiate church of Sant Vicenç. The mountain is a salt diapir that rises 120 m above the Cardener valley and continues about two kilometres downwards. It was the Mina Nieves between 1929 and 1990 and today it is the Salt Mountain Cultural Park. A minibus takes you down to a gallery of about 500 m, 86 m underground, where veins of white, grey and reddish salt fold above your head and salt stalactites hang. The visit lasts an hour, always with a guide.

Opposite, at the top of the hill, stands the castle that Guifré el Pilós had built in 886 and which, as they tell it in Cardona, was never taken. Inside is the collegiate church of Sant Vicenç, from the first half of the 11th century, a major work of Lombard Romanesque in Catalonia, and the Minyona tower, the oldest part. The rest of the fortress is a Parador.

With the morning for one visit and the afternoon for the other, the day is full. Cardona Turisme recommends leaving two hours between the start of one and the start of the next. If you have time left, go down to the historic centre along the Camí Vell and finish at Plaça de la Fira, or do the viewpoints walk to see the castle and the mountain from outside.

## How do you get there and where do you park?

By car, from Barcelona it is about 89 km and an hour and twenty minutes without traffic, along the C-58 or the A-2 to Manresa and then the C-55. From Manresa, half an hour; from Lleida or Girona, a little under two hours along the Eix Transversal.

Without a car, the tourist office reports four daily ALSA buses from Barcelona, on the line that continues to Andorra; see the ALSA bus. Cardona has no train: the nearest one reaches Manresa, 30 km away.

For parking, there is free open-air space at each visit: at the Salt Mountain Cultural Park itself, on the castle esplanade, at Les Torretes (Avinguda del Rastrillo) and next to the football pitch. Plaça de la Fira and Cal Badia are paid. If you sleep in the castle, you drive up to the door.

## Is it worth sleeping in the castle?

Yes, if you want the castle to be more than a visit. The Parador de Cardona occupies the fortress: as evening falls the groups leave and you have the courtyard, the cloister and the walls almost to yourself. The dining room is in the old refectory, under pointed arches. In November 2026 the Paradores website gave the double room from €104 a night without breakfast, and the next three Saturdays of November already showed no availability.

In town, the Hotel Bremon occupies a former convent with a terrace that looks onto the castle and the mountain. Five minutes by car, in La Coromina, La Premsa is a 1637 house with nine rooms and a restaurant.

## Dónde está
- Zonas: Unusual places to stay in Spain
- Cerca: Berga (a 25.2 km), Montserrat (a 37.9 km), Vic (a 47.5 km), Caldes de Montbui (a 50.5 km)

## Qué hacer
- **Cardona Salt Mountain, the mine from inside** (1 h · All ages; children, better from age 5 · Adults €12.75 · pensioners €10.25 · ages 12 to 16 €12 · ages 5 to 11 €6 · ages 2 to 4 €3): What it is
The Salt Mountain is a diapir: a mass of salt pushing up from below and rising about 120 m above the Cardener valley, with about two kilometres more underground. It is still growing while rain erodes it from outside. Between 1929 and 1990 it was the Mina Nieves, one of the world's great potash mines. Today the old mining site is the Parc Cultural de la Muntanya de Sal, run by the Fundació Cardona Històrica.
What the visit is like
It is always guided and lasts about an hour. You arrive at reception, are given a helmet (compulsory for everyone, children too) and a minibus takes you down to the gallery, open to the public since 1997. You walk about 500 m at 86 m deep. The floor is flat, with a few small slopes and no stairs. What you see are the folds of the salt in white, grey and reddish bands, and stalactites hanging from the ceiling. Photos are only allowed in the room they call the Sistine Chapel, the most spectacular; on the rest of the route, no.
Outside, under the headframe of the María Teresa shaft, the route continues in the open air through the old facilities: the shaft's engine building, with machinery built by Alsthom in the 1920s, the audiovisual "Alma minera" at the Albert shaft and the Salt Craft Centre, Art-Sal, in the Casa del Romero.
Prices and hours
Guided visit: €12.75 adults, €10.25 pensioners, €12 ages 12 to 16, €6 ages 5 to 11 and €3 ages 2 to 4. There are visits Tuesday to Sunday and on public holidays; on Mondays that are not public holidays, no. Departure times are chosen when you buy the ticket on the Cardona Turisme website. Large families get a 10% discount with the code the website itself publishes.
At weekends and public holidays there is also "GeoTok, the eighth wonder", a theatrical visit in Catalan designed for families, with the same route: €14 adults, €12 pensioners, €8 ages 5 to 11 and €4 ages 2 to 4.
Before you go
Buy your ticket on the website in advance: capacity is limited and at weekends it sells out. Arrive 30 minutes before your time. Inside it is 17 or 18 degrees all year, so in summer bring a light layer. After rain, drops fall from the stalactites: take care with leather clothing. Dogs are not allowed on the site and pushchairs can't go down the mine. If you use a folding wheelchair, you can do the visit; if it is not folding, give 15 days' notice so they can adapt the minibus.
Getting there
The Parc Cultural is on the Carretera de la Mina, less than 2 km from the centre of Cardona. It has free open-air parking, a picnic area with tables and toilets and a shop.
Round off the day
Cardona Turisme recommends leaving two hours between the start of this visit and that of the castle and collegiate church of Sant Vicenç. On leaving the site, the return minibus passes the best spot to see the south face of the castle. For lunch afterwards, La Volta del Rector is in the old town.
- **Cardona Castle and the Collegiate Church of Sant Vicenç** (1 h 30 · All ages; with a pushchair, the ground is uneven · Self-guided €6 (reduced €4, free up to 16) · guided €8.75 adults, €6 ages 12 to 16, €4 ages 7 to 11): What it is
Cardona castle crowns the hill that overlooks the town and the salt valley. It was ordered built by Count Wilfred the Hairy in 886 and was completed over the centuries; the Cardona family, one of the most powerful lineages in Catalonia, made it their residence and from the 17th century surrounded it with a crown of bastions. It was built, in large part, to control the salt of the mountain opposite.
Inside the complex there are two pieces that justify the trip. The Collegiate Church of Sant Vicenç, built in the first half of the 11th century, is for the Agència Catalana del Patrimoni Cultural one of the best examples of early Catalan Romanesque: bare stone, height and very little decoration. Beside it is the cloister. And the Minyona tower, circular in plan, the only remnant of the first castle. Legend says the lords locked their daughter in there so she wouldn't see her lover, a young Muslim. The rest of the buildings today house the Parador de Cardona.
Self-guided or with a guide
Self-guided visit, by the Agència Catalana del Patrimoni Cultural: €6, reduced €4 (over-65s, pensioners, Carnet Jove and others) and free for under-16s. It is free for everyone on the last Tuesday of each month from October to June, on 18 April, on 11 September and on the European Heritage Days.
Guided visit, by Cardona Turisme: an hour and a half through the modern fortress, the comital castle, the Minyona tower and the collegiate church. €8.75 adults, €6.50 pensioners, €6 ages 12 to 16 and €4 ages 7 to 11. It leaves from the castle's visitor service office, Tuesday to Sunday and public holidays.
For families, at weekends and public holidays: "The True Story of the Minyona Tower", a 1 h 15 theatrical visit that starts at the Casamata. €9 adults, €7 pensioners and ages 12 to 16, €6 ages 5 to 11.
At sunset, in July and August: Thursdays at 19:00 in Catalan and Saturdays at 19:00 in Spanish, with the sunset from the Minyona tower. €9 adults.
Opening hours
Tuesday to Saturday, from 10:00 to 17:30 from October to April and from 10:00 to 19:00 from May to September. Sundays and public holidays, from 10:00 to 15:00 all year. At Easter, Friday to Sunday until 19:00. The ticket office closes half an hour earlier. Closed on Mondays that are not public holidays, on 25 and 26 December and on 1 and 6 January.
Getting there and moving around inside
You drive up to the free car park on the esplanade. On foot, from the town, the Camí Vell has a steep slope. If you bought your ticket online, you validate it at the History Museum office, next to the Parador reception. The courtyard, the cloister, the collegiate church and the bastions are adapted for people with reduced mobility; the Minyona tower is only reached by stairs. The ground is old and uneven, awkward for pushchairs. In rain, the visit goes ahead anyway. The Parador café is open to visitors.
With a dog
Cardona Turisme allows the visit with a dog around the outdoor areas, quietly and without bothering the group. It can't enter the collegiate church or the Casamata.
- **Historic centre of Cardona, Sant Miquel and the Salt Museum** (1 h 30 · All ages · Self-guided, free · guided visit €5.50 adults, €4 ages 12 to 16, €3 ages 7 to 11 · Salt Museum €4, free up to age 16): What it is
The town was born at the foot of the castle at the end of the 10th century. Its starting date is the town charter that Count Borrell II gave it on 23 April 986. The old town is small and is walked in an hour: narrow streets descending from the hill, gateways, the Plaça de la Fira with its viewpoint over the salt valley and the Gothic church of Sant Miquel, with its great nave. Beside the church, an arch passes under the rectory: the volta del rector, which gives its name to one of the restaurants on the square.
Self-guided
Start at Plaça de la Fira. Next to the sculpture commemorating the thousand years since the founding is Cardona's best-known viewpoint: from there you understand at a glance the relationship between the salt valley and the castle. Continue along Carrer de les Flors towards Sant Miquel and Plaça de Santa Eulàlia, and let the streets lead you. If you come from the castle, walk down the Camí Vell, the old covered path, which ends at the foot of the hill, near the tourist office.
With a guide
At weekends and public holidays, Cardona Turisme organises a guided visit of an hour and a half. It starts at the Centre Cardona Medieval with the audiovisual "The Cardonas, lords of salt", uses the 986 town charter as a thread and ends inside Sant Miquel. It costs €5.50 adults, €4.50 pensioners, €4 ages 12 to 16 and €3 ages 7 to 11. The route is adapted for people with reduced mobility.
The Josep Arnau Salt Museum
In the old Crestó butcher's shop, at Plaça de Santa Eulàlia 11–13, a private museum shows Cardona's salt craft through the work of the craftsman Josep Arnau, with pieces worked in salt. It opens Friday, Saturday and Monday from 11:00 to 13:30 and from 17:00 to 20:00, and Sundays from 11:00 to 13:30; Tuesday to Thursday, by appointment. Admission costs €4, €3 for pensioners, and is free up to age 16. Phone 938 690 858.
Getting there and parking
Leave the car in the free car park at Les Torretes, on Avinguda del Rastrillo, or at El Portalet. The one on Plaça de la Fira is paid. The streets of the old town are narrow and steep.
Round off the day
The walk fits between the visit to the Salt Mountain and the castle. For lunch, La Volta del Rector is on the same Carrer de les Flors, facing the square.
- **Cardona viewpoints route, from the castle to the salt valley** (All ages; the Camí Vell is very steep · Self-guided · free): What it is
Cardona is best understood from outside: a hill with the fortress, a town at its feet and, opposite, the salt valley with the salt mountain. The tourist office suggests an itinerary through the viewpoints that link the three. It is done on foot, self-guided and without a ticket, except for the first two points, which are within the castle grounds.
The route
From the castle. If you do the castle and collegiate church visit, climb the Minyona tower, the highest point: you see the town, the River Cardener, the Pyrenees and Montserrat. Then go round the bastions' wall-walk, which explains how the fortress was defended.
The Camí Vell. To go down to the town, take the old covered path. It passes the old gateways, walls, parapets and arrow slits, and ends at the foot of the hill, near the tourist office. It has a steep slope: it is harder to climb than to descend.
The north viewpoint. Map in hand, go to the Paseo de Mossèn Joan Riba. Look towards the Pyrenees and, in the foreground, the Pla de les Hortes, the Cardener plain with its fields, woods and farmhouses.
La Pietat. Along Avinguda de la Pietat, the old Calaf road, you reach the church of the same name. There are benches. From here the castle appears whole over the roofs of the old town and the extension, and to one side you see the Meer tower, a 19th-century defensive building.
Plaça de la Fira. Back in the centre, the viewpoint beside the sculpture of the town's millennium is the best known. From here you clearly see the relationship between the salt valley and the castle.
From the Salt Mountain
If you do the Salt Mountain visit, two more views await you. At point 2 of the old Mina Nieves site, the 46 m headframe of the María Teresa shaft is in the same photo as the castle. And when the visitors' vehicle drives back up the track, the south face of the fortress appears on the right, looking at the salt valley it watched over.
When to go
Any day will do, Mondays too, when the visits are closed: the town's viewpoints are in the street. In July and August, Cardona Turisme also organises a sunset castle visit that ends with the sunset from the Minyona tower. With children, the Camí Vell stretch is popular for its gateways and arrow slits.
With a dog
In the streets, walks and viewpoints, on a lead. Inside the castle grounds, on the guided visit only the outdoor areas; no dogs are admitted at the Salt Mountain.
- **Solsona, the cathedral and the Diocesan Museum 20 minutes away** (2 h 30 · Adults and teenagers; under-16s free at the museum · Museum €5 · reduced €3 · free up to 16 · Saturday guided visit €7): What it is
Solsona is the capital of the Solsonès, about 20 km from Cardona on the C-55, a little over twenty minutes by car. Its main church was an abbey until the bishopric of Solsona was created in 1593 and it became a cathedral. Beside it, on Plaça del Palau, the old bishop's palace houses the Diocesan and Regional Museum, with one of the most important collections of Romanesque art in Catalonia and works from all periods. Among them are fragments of the mural decoration and panels from Sant Miquel de Cardona, the Gothic church you will have seen on Plaça de la Fira.
It is the shortest excursion from Cardona: it fits in an afternoon or the morning of the second day. Beware if you plan to save it for Monday, when Cardona's visits close: the museum also closes.
The museum
It opens Wednesday to Saturday from 11:00 to 18:30 between 16 March and 14 December, and from 11:00 to 17:00 from 15 December to 15 March. Sundays and public holidays, from 11:00 to 14:00 all year. In July and August it also opens on Tuesdays. On Mondays and Tuesdays, the rest of the year, it is closed.
Admission costs €5; €3 for pensioners, unemployed, young people aged 16 to 18, students, Carnet Jove and large or single-parent families, and is free for under-16s. Every Saturday at 12:00 there is a guided visit to the permanent collection, for €7. Phone 973 48 21 01.
The cathedral and the old town
The cathedral is a few steps from the museum, in the old town. It was an abbey before it was a cathedral, and inside the nave ends in a tall apse with stained glass. From Plaça del Palau, the old town is walked at leisure.
Getting there and parking
From Cardona, take the C-55 towards Solsona: about 20 km and a little over twenty minutes. The museum and cathedral are together in the centre; park on the edge of the old town and go in on foot.
Who it suits
The museum asks for some interest in medieval art; teenagers may be caught by the Romanesque painting of the apses if they go on the Saturday guided visit. Under-16s enter free.

## Dónde comer
- **La Volta del Rector** (Restaurant, Cardona, €€€). Qué pedir: the fried eggs with potatoes, chorizo and sobrasada, the mutton from the 1714 recipe or the oxtail, and let them advise you on the wine.
- **Parador de Cardona Restaurant** (Restaurant, Cardona). Qué pedir: the escudella with galets, the slow-roasted shoulder of kid and the mató timbale with honey.
- **La Premsa Restaurant** (Restaurant, La Coromina (Cardona)). Qué pedir: whatever is in season and a wine chosen in the cellar itself; here oil and wine rule.

## Consejos

### Buy tickets on the website
Both visits have limited capacity and an assigned time. Online sales secure your slot; at weekends they sell out.

### Do the mine first
The Salt Mountain visit is the most rigid on timetables. With the castle ticket you can fit in better in the afternoon.

### Bring a layer in summer
Inside the gallery it is between 17 and 18 degrees all year and drops fall from the stalactites after rain.

### Look at the castle from below
From the Fira viewpoint and from the path back from the mine you understand why the fortress was built to watch over the salt.

## Preguntas frecuentes

### How much does it cost to see the Salt Mountain and the castle?
The guided visit to the Salt Mountain costs €12.75 for adults and €6 for ages 5 to 11. The castle is visited on your own for €6 (free up to age 16) or with a guide for €8.75. Cardona Turisme also sells the Pack Cardona Essential, which combines the two guided visits in a day.

### What day is it closed?
On Mondays that are not public holidays. The castle is also closed on 25 and 26 December and 1 and 6 January.

### Can you go with children?
Yes. At weekends and on public holidays there are dramatised family visits at the mine (GeoTok) and the castle (the legend of the Minyona tower). In the mine a helmet is compulsory for everyone and pushchairs are not allowed.

### Can you visit the castle without staying at the Parador?
Yes. The collegiate church, the cloister, the courtyard, the bastions and the Minyona tower are seen with the ticket; the Parador occupies the bedroom wings and the refectory, and its café is open to visitors.

### What is nearby?
Solsona, with its cathedral and Diocesan Museum, 20 km away. Berga, about 40 minutes, and Montserrat, an hour.