# Cáceres

What to see in the monumental city of Cáceres: Plaza Mayor, Bujaco, Santa María, the Golfines and the cistern, how to get there from Mérida or Salamanca and where to eat and sleep.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/extremadura/caceres · Revisado: 2026-11-12

Cáceres keeps within its walls an almost complete medieval and Renaissance city: stone streets without cars, fortified houses with coats of arms, towers, palaces and churches, all in a few hectares on a hill. The monumental city has been a World Heritage Site since 1986, and in 2026 it marks forty years since the declaration. Below, the Plaza Mayor acts as a hinge with the new town. It can be seen in a day, but at night, lit up and silent, is where it truly surprises.

## How to get there from Mérida or Badajoz

By car, from Mérida it is about 75 km on the A-66, under an hour. From Badajoz, about 90 km, a good hour and a half. From Salamanca, about 200 km on the A-66, around two hours twenty. From Madrid, about 300 km on the A-5 and the A-58 via Trujillo, a little over three hours.

By train, Renfe Media Distancia arrives from Mérida, Badajoz and Madrid. The train and bus stations are together, south of the centre, about 2 km from the Plaza Mayor: half an hour on foot or a taxi.

## Where to park

Outside the walls. The monumental city is a restricted-traffic zone and its streets are not for cars: park in the centre, for example in the Obispo Galarza car park, and walk up. If you sleep at the parador you can drive in, but follow its instructions: enter by calle San Ildefonso and register your number plate at reception.

## What to see in a day

Start in the Plaza Mayor, where the tourist office is. Climb the Torre de Bujaco, for €2.50, to see the square from above, and enter the monumental city through the Arco de la Estrella. You soon reach the plaza de Santa María, with the co-cathedral surrounded by palaces.

Continue to the plaza de los Golfines: the palacio de los Golfines de Abajo is visited inside with a guide, in small groups and at fixed times, for €3. It is the way to see how a noble family of the city lived, with its Armoury and its archive. A step away is the plaza de San Jorge, with the staircase of San Francisco Javier. Higher up, in the plaza de las Veletas, the Museo de Cáceres holds an Arab cistern beneath the house; it is free for EU citizens.

In the afternoon, the Museo Helga de Alvear, of contemporary art and free, or an aimless stroll along the streets of the upper part. Come back at nightfall: with the stone lit up and almost no people, it is another city.

If you prefer to be told about it, the full tour by Activa Tours does the route in two and a half hours with an official guide, four admissions and a tasting, for €19.50. It leaves from the Plaza Mayor.

## Where to eat

Inside the walls, the Parador restaurant is open every day with Extremaduran cooking. Torre de Sande, Atrio's eating house, has a garden at the foot of an ivy-covered tower. Next to the monumental city, El Figón de Eustaquio, open since 1947, has a regional menu of migas, chanfaina and venison. For a big occasion, Atrio, with three Michelin stars.

## How much time do you need?

A day for the essentials. With a night, you see the city lit up and visit the Golfines and the museums at leisure. With two, Cáceres is a base for Trujillo, 40 minutes away, for the Monfragüe National Park, an hour away, or for Mérida, an hour away on the A-66.

## When to go

In spring and autumn, when it is pleasant to walk at any hour. In mid-November, the Mercado Medieval de las Tres Culturas fills the city with stalls and shows, with light and sound over the Torre de Bujaco; some museums close on those days. July and August are very hot: leave the visit for the morning and the night.

## Dónde está
- Zonas: Game of Thrones Locations
- Cerca: Trujillo (a 42.1 km), Monfragüe National Park (a 50.7 km), Mérida (a 62.1 km), Marvão (a 86.8 km · Portugal)

## Qué hacer
- **Plaza Mayor and Arco de la Estrella** (30 min · Everyone · On your own · free): What it is
The Plaza Mayor is the gateway to monumental Cáceres: a large, sloping square, with arcades on one side and the wall on the other, crowned by the Bujaco Tower. Since the 13th century it was a fairground, a place for craftsmen and for meetings of the town council, and it became the town's main public stage. On the eastern side it is closed by the 12th-century Almohad wall, and a good part of the south side is occupied by the town hall, from the 19th century. From the square you also see the Ermita de la Paz and the tower. At the tourist office on the square they give you the map.
The Arco de la Estrella
Through the Arco de la Estrella you enter the walled city, a World Heritage Site since 1986. The arch replaced the Puerta Nueva, of medieval origin. As soon as you cross it you find the Bishop's Palace, the Carvajal palace and the Santa María co-cathedral. The arch, the Bujaco Tower and Plaza de Santa María appeared in a scene of Game of Thrones, and Turismo de Extremadura includes them in its route through the series' locations.
How to do it
Cross the arch and let yourself be drawn uphill: the co-cathedral, Plaza de los Golfines with the Golfines de Abajo palace, Plaza de San Jorge and Plaza de las Veletas, with the Cáceres Museum, are a few minutes from one another. There is no entry fee or timetable for walking the streets; the monuments each have their own. Allow half an hour for the square and the arch, and a morning if you go into the monuments. If you prefer to go with a guide, the Activa Tours full tour leaves from Plaza Mayor 38.
Festivals and events in the square
The square is the stage for the city's big events. At the Saint George festival, the week of 23 April, the dragon is burned here. At the Three Cultures Medieval Market, from 12 to 15 November 2026, there are concerts in the square and at the Arco de la Estrella, light and sound on the tower and the Sunday closing at 22:00. On those days the square fills up: if you want quiet photos, come first thing.
Here is where Euron enters King's Landing
In the third episode of the seventh season of Game of Thrones, the monumental city plays King's Landing: Euron Greyjoy crosses the city with his prisoners on the way to the Red Keep. Turismo de Extremadura places the scene at the Arco de la Estrella, the Bujaco Tower, the Torre de los Púlpitos, Cuesta de la Compañía, Plaza de Santa María and the façade of the Casa Palacio de los Becerra, home of the Mercedes Calles and Carlos Ballestero Foundation. That is, the route you take when crossing this arch and going up. House of the Dragon returned for its first season and used up to 25 corners of the old town.
No set or plaque remains: the stone is as it was. If you want each shot pointed out, the Activa Tours film free tour leaves from here, at the foot of the arch's steps.
- **Santa María Co-Cathedral** (30 min · Everyone · €7 · reduced €6 · young people €5 · free under 12): What it is
The main church of the monumental city, in Plaza de Santa María, surrounded by palaces and a few steps from the Arco de la Estrella. It is the oldest church in Cáceres: it stands on a 13th-century church, keeps Romanesque remains and its current Gothic fabric was built between the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Since 1957 it has had the rank of co-cathedral of the Diocese of Coria-Cáceres. On one corner, at ground level, is the sculpture of Saint Peter of Alcántara.
What to see inside
It is an ashlar church with three naves, rib vaults and three Gothic doorways; the one on the Gospel side is the oldest. On the floor you can see slabs with the coats of arms of the city's lineages, and at the sides several Gothic tombs. The main piece is the high altarpiece, Renaissance from the 16th century and Plateresque in style, carved in wood and unpainted. There is also a choir with Gothic stalls and a pulpit of the same style. Look for three crucifixes: the Black Christ, a Romanesque-period carving in the old Blázquez chapel; the Christ of the Battles, beside the choir, and the Christ of Refuge, which came from the convent of San Francisco. Through the Plateresque doorway of the sacristy you pass to the sacred art museum, with pieces lent by other parishes of the city and the province.
The tower is climbed by a spiral staircase and, according to the Junta's tourist office, gives one of the best views of the monumental complex.
Hours and tickets
Monday to Saturday, 10:00 to 20:00; Sundays, 10:00 to 12:30 and 14:00 to 18:30. The last entry is half an hour before closing, and service times may change the day's hours. General admission costs €7 with an audio guide in Spanish, English, French, German and Portuguese; reduced (over-65s), €6; young people aged 12 to 18, university students up to 25 and accredited pilgrims, €5. It is free for accompanied under-12s and for accredited Cáceres residents. It is bought online from the co-cathedral's website or at the door, and bookings are made on 660 799 194.
There are two guided visits of its own. The night one, on Fridays at 20:00, lasts about 90 minutes and costs €12. The LUX visit, one hour and €9, covers the nave, the altarpiece, the sacristy-museum, the choir, the tower rooms and the belfry; from May to September it leaves on Fridays at 18:30 and Saturdays at 12:00 and 18:30, and from October to April at 17:30 instead of 18:30.
How to combine it
Allow half an hour for the church and a little more if you climb the tower. From the Plaza Mayor you reach it by crossing the arch, and the Plaza de San Jorge and the Golfines de Abajo palace are a few minutes away. It is also part of the Activa Tours full tour.
The square in the two series
Plaza de Santa María, in front of the co-cathedral, appears in Game of Thrones and in House of the Dragon. In the first it is part of Euron Greyjoy's walk through King's Landing, in the seventh season. In the second it is already recognisable in the first episode, as is the Aldana slope, according to Turismo de Extremadura. For the photo, stand in the lower part of the square, with the co-cathedral tower on your left: it is the most repeated framing.
- **Cáceres Museum and its Arab cistern** (1 h · Everyone · Free for EU citizens): What it is
The Cáceres provincial museum, opened in 1992, occupies two buildings of the monumental city: the Casa de las Veletas, at Plaza de las Veletas 1, and the Casa de los Caballos, joined together. The Casa de las Veletas was the Almohad alcázar and became a palace at the end of the 15th century; under its floor is the Hispano-Muslim cistern from the 11th and 12th centuries, one of the best preserved on the peninsula and one of the few remains of the alcazaba. The Casa de los Caballos dates from the 16th century: it was a stable and later a home.
Warning: the cistern is under works
In July 2025 the Junta de Extremadura reopened the Casa de los Caballos after two years of renovation and, at the same time, closed the Veletas Palace and the cistern to begin the second phase of the full restoration, the first major renovation in more than forty years. The aim is to recover the double reading of the building: the Christian Renaissance palace and the Almohad defensive complex of the cistern. The Junta has not published a reopening date, so if you are coming for the cistern, call 927 010 877 first or write to museocaceres@juntaex.es to find out whether you can go down yet.
What you can see now
The Casa de los Caballos holds the fine arts section in a renewed chronological tour. On the ground floor there are pieces from Prehistory to the 18th century, with medieval and modern sculpture, metalwork and painting; the best-known work is El Greco's Saviour. On the upper floors, sculpture, painting and installations from the 19th to the 21st centuries, with Spanish and Extremaduran artists and work by Picasso, Miró and Tàpies. With the reopening, 31 pieces never shown before were exhibited. When it reopens, the Casa de las Veletas will recover the archaeology and ethnography sections, with medieval collections and Roman inscriptions in the basement beside the cistern.
Hours and price
The Junta gives for the Casa de los Caballos Tuesday to Friday 9:00 to 15:00 and 16:00 to 20:00; Saturdays and public holidays, 10:00 to 15:00 and 16:00 to 20:00; Sundays, 10:00 to 15:00. It is closed on Mondays, and access closes ten minutes earlier. Turismo de Extremadura publishes a slightly different afternoon timetable depending on the season, so confirm by phone if you go late. Admission is free for citizens of the European Union; for everyone else, €1.20, and it is also free for under-18s, students, over-65s and pensioners. There are guided visits, booked on the same phone number. Guide dogs are allowed.
How to combine it
Plaza de las Veletas is at the top of the monumental city, a few minutes from Plaza de San Jorge. Allow an hour. The museum is also part of the Activa Tours full tour, which advertises the visit to the cistern; with the works, ask when booking which part is seen.
- **Bujaco Tower and its viewpoint** (30 min · Everyone · 2,50 €): What it is
The best-known tower of the Cáceres wall, at the top of the Plaza Mayor. It is an Arab tower of almost square plan and 25 metres high, built around the 12th century to protect the Almohad wall, and today one of the symbols of the city. Inside is a municipal interpretation centre dedicated to the three cultures of medieval Cáceres, and above, from the battlements, a viewpoint with the Plaza Mayor at your feet and the rooftops of the monumental city behind. Turismo de Extremadura counts it among the best views of the complex.
What the visit includes
According to the town council, from the interpretation centre you cross by a raised walkway over the Adarve de la Estrella, the sentry walk beside the arch, and come out at street level on the same adarve. The ticket also includes the Roman site of Mayoralgo, which appeared in 2001 in the courtyard of a building during its renovation: about 530 square metres with part of the forum of Norba Caesarina, a stretch of road, a house with courtyard and cistern and, from a later period, remains of a forge and of a wall repair. It is visited at the same hours as the tower and without an appointment. The council has also sold a bundle of tickets for all its tourist centres, with the tower, the wall system, Mayoralgo, the Baluarte de los Pozos and the Holy Week Museum; ask at the box office whether it is still on sale.
Hours and price
It costs €2.50 per person. In winter it is open 10:00 to 14:00 and 16:30 to 19:30, and in summer 10:00 to 14:00 and 17:30 to 20:30. It closes one weekday: the municipal listings do not agree on whether it is Tuesday, so confirm at the tourist office, on the same square. The ticket is bought at the tower itself. It is included in the Activa Tours full tour.
During the Three Cultures Medieval Market, from 12 to 15 November 2026, the tower's façade is the screen for a light and sound show: Friday and Saturday at 21:00 and 21:30, and Sunday at 20:30 and 21:00.
With children and how to combine it
It is a short visit, half an hour: you have to climb stairs to the battlements, but the route is short and works well with children who already walk. On leaving you are next to the Arco de la Estrella, which takes you into the walled city on the way to the Santa María co-cathedral.
- **Golfines de Abajo Palace, with a guide** (1 h · Everyone; there is a family visit · 3 €): Where the Catholic Monarchs stayed
Almost all the palaces of the monumental city are seen from outside. This one is seen inside, and furnished. The Golfines de Abajo palace, on Plaza de los Golfines, between the Santa María co-cathedral and Plaza de San Jorge, was the home of one of the most powerful lineages of Cáceres and the residence the Catholic Monarchs chose when they passed through the city. Since September 2015 it has been a museum and holds the legacy of Tatiana Pérez de Guzmán el Bueno.
It is not a museum of display cases: you walk through the rooms of a noble home with its furniture and works of art, from the 16th to the 20th centuries, arranged as in a lived-in house.
What you see in the hour's visit
The visit goes with a guide and in a small group, and lasts about an hour. It passes through the Armoury, built in the first half of the 16th century, with the family's heraldry and a portrait gallery; through the collection rooms; and through the upper gallery, where an original oratory remains with an 18th-century tile altar frontal. The guide also tells of the house's archive, with more than 9,000 documents and volumes, the oldest from the 14th century, among them account books of Isabella the Catholic. It is being digitised and part of it can be consulted online.
Hours: mind Sunday and summer
You can only enter with a guided visit, at a fixed time. From October to April they leave Tuesday to Saturday at 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 16:30, 17:30 and 18:30; from May to September, the afternoon ones move to 17:00, 18:00 and 19:00, and from 1 July to 15 September the 17:00 one is dropped. On Sunday there are only morning visits, from 10:00 to 13:00.
It is closed on non-holiday Mondays, Sunday afternoons, 24, 25 and 31 December, 1 and 6 January, 23 April (Saint George), 30 May (Saint Ferdinand) and during WOMAD and the Three Cultures Medieval Market. If you go on those dates, check first.
Price and tickets
General admission costs €3. Over-65s and groups of more than 15 pay €2; university students and higher-vocational students under 26 and people with disabilities pay €1, and under-12s go in free. Reductions are verified at the box office. Tickets are bought on its website or at the box office, which opens Tuesday to Saturday in the morning and afternoon, and on Sunday from 10:00 to 13:00.
With children
There is a family visit with riddles and challenges so that little ones go round the house playing. Ask the dates when you buy.
- **Helga de Alvear Museum of Contemporary Art** (1 h 30 · Adults and teenagers · Free): What it is
The museum of the contemporary art collection of the gallery owner Helga de Alvear, in the heart of Cáceres' old town. It began in 2010 as the Visual Arts Centre in the Casa Grande, a restored Art Nouveau building, and in 2021 it opened a new building designed by Tuñón Arquitectos, the studio of Emilio Tuñón that also designed the nearby restaurant Atrio and the MUSAC in León. Since then it has been called the Helga de Alvear Museum of Contemporary Art.
The new building is on the line that separates the World Heritage city from the modern part: white concrete pillars, oak wood, angular forms and lots of natural light, with a public pedestrian passage linking Calle Pizarro with Camino Llano and recovering the gardens of the plot. It has four floors of galleries, and a corridor with an auditorium on the top floor links it with the Casa Grande, which holds the temporary exhibitions, the library and the workshops.
What you will see
The Helga de Alvear collection brings together nearly 3,000 works, and about 200 are displayed at once in the museum, according to Turismo de Extremadura, with names such as Picasso, Kandinsky, Tàpies or Ai Weiwei. A semi-permanent selection is now on show titled "Can the Archipelago Enter the Museum?". In the Casa Grande, from 11 December 2026 to 23 May 2027, the temporary exhibition "Dreamwork: The Echo of Ancestors in the House of Tomorrow", curated by Omar Kholeif. Allow an hour and a half to see it in peace.
Hours and price
Admission to the museum and the exhibitions is free. From 1 October to 31 May it opens Tuesday to Saturday 10:00 to 14:00 and 17:00 to 20:00; from 1 June to 30 September, Tuesday to Saturday 10:00 to 14:00 and 18:00 to 21:00. On Sundays it is always open 10:00 to 14:30. It closes on Mondays, except those of national long weekends, and on 1 January, 1 May, 25 December and the day of the local fair of San Fernando; on 24 and 31 December it closes in the afternoon.
You do not need to book and tickets can be taken at the box office, but the museum recommends online booking to be sure of a place, especially at weekends and public holidays. The guided visit costs €5, and on Sunday morning it is free for everyone. There are creative workshops for children and activities in the monthly agenda. For groups, reservas@museohelgadealvear.com; phone, 927 626 414.
How to get there
The collection is visited in the new building, with entrance on Calle Pizarro 10, and on Plaza Marrón, beside Camino Llano. From the Plaza Mayor it is a short walk through the old quarter. If you are staying at Atrio, it is close, and the architecture is by the same studio.
- **Plaza de San Jorge and San Francisco Javier church** (30 min · Everyone): What it is
The square of the city's patron saint, a step from Plaza de los Golfines and the Golfines de Abajo palace, dominated by the steps and façade of the church of San Francisco Javier. It is named after Saint George because Alfonso IX entered Cáceres on 23 April 1229, the saint's day, and he has been the city's patron ever since.
The church of San Francisco Javier
It was built by the Society of Jesus in the 18th century, beside its college, and together they form a Baroque complex that dominates a good part of the old town. It is also known as the Preciosa Sangre. The façade has columns with composite capitals and a broken pediment under a balcony; in the centre, a semicircular arch frames the niche with the saint's image, and on each side rises a square tower with a pyramidal top.
Inside it has a single nave with side chapels. The high altarpiece has two Corinthian columns and between them a canvas with the miracle of the crab, one of the episodes in the life of Saint Francis Xavier. In the crypt is the Cáceres Holy Week Interpretation Centre. The old Jesuit college is now the seat of the Extremadura Higher School of Dramatic Art.
Turismo de Extremadura gives the church's hours as every day from 10:00 to 14:00 and 16:30 to 19:30, with the phone number 927 25 57 65. It does not publish the price; ask at the tourist office on the Plaza Mayor, which also has the day's summer hours. Entry is included in the Activa Tours full tour.
The festival of Saint George
The square is the stage of the patron saint's festival, on 23 April, which commemorates the reconquest of the city and mixes history and legend. According to Turespaña, that week there are re-enactments of the battle between Moors and Christians, processions to the shrine of the Virgin of the Mountain, a bonfire contest and the search for the golden hens through the city; the central event, the burning of the dragon, takes place in the Plaza Mayor. That day some museums of the monumental city close, such as the Golfines de Abajo palace.
How to visit
The square is free, day and night, and you can pass through with a dog on a lead. From the Santa María co-cathedral it is a few minutes' walk along cobbled, sloping streets. Allow half an hour for the square and the church.
A corner of House of the Dragon
For the first season of House of the Dragon, Cáceres once again stood in for King's Landing. Turismo de Extremadura counts up to 25 corners of the old town in the filming and names this square along with Callejón del Gallo, San Mateo, Cuesta de la Compañía, Las Veletas and Calle Amargura. The San Francisco Javier steps and the statue of the saint slaying the dragon were there before the series.
- **Full tour of Cáceres, with tickets and tasting** (2 h 30 · First visit · Desde 19.5 € per person): Four doors that open with the same ticket
The monumental city of Cáceres can be walked on your own and for free, but the places worth seeing inside charge a separate entrance fee and have different hours. This Activa Tours tour solves it in two and a half hours: an official guide takes you on foot through the walled city and goes into four places with you, with tickets already paid. It is €19.50 per person, all included, and ends with a tasting of local products.
The route, from the Plaza Mayor to the Foro de los Balbos
It starts from the Activa Tours office, at unit 38 on the Plaza Mayor. First you climb the Bujaco Tower, one of the three towers that preside over the square, with its small interpretation centre on the city's history and the viewpoint above. Then you cross the Arco de la Estrella, the entrance to the medieval part, to Plaza de Santa María, and enter the co-cathedral, where Romanesque, Gothic and Mudéjar mix.
From there to Plaza de San Jorge, to see inside the church of San Francisco Javier, the one with two white towers, with the 18th-century canvas of the high altarpiece. The fourth ticket is the Cáceres Museum, in the Veletas palace, where you go down to the Arab cistern. The end goes through the old Jewish quarter, reaches the Baluarte de los Pozos tower, a remnant of the Almohad alcázar, and finishes at the Foro de los Balbos and the town hall.
The order may change depending on each building's opening hours or the number of visitors that day.
What to know before booking
You book on the Activa Tours website by choosing the day on its calendar. If you have doubts, the phone number is 924 110 888. The tour is in Spanish only; for other languages you have to ask separately. Look for the guide dressed in pink at the starting point.
It is not suitable for reduced mobility: there are cobbled slopes, stairs in the tower and the descent to the cistern. It is two and a half hours on foot, with stops: think about it if you go with small children.
Cancellation is free up to 48 hours before, with a full refund or change of date. Within those 48 hours there is no refund, but a change of date is allowed. If you do not turn up, everything is lost.
Who it is for and who it is not
It is the most efficient way to see Cáceres if you only have a morning or an afternoon and it is your first time. If you already know the city or prefer to go at your own pace, buy the tickets separately and add what the tour leaves out, such as the Golfines de Abajo palace or the Helga de Alvear museum.
- **Three Cultures Medieval Market** (3 h · Everyone): What it is
Every autumn, in the second week of November, the monumental city of Cáceres fills with stalls, music and shows dedicated to the three cultures of medieval Cáceres: Christian, Arab and Jewish. The market is split into three zones, one per culture, through the streets and squares of the old quarter, and combines crafts, food, street theatre and recreations. In 2026 it runs from Thursday 12 to Sunday 15 November. The previous edition was cancelled because of a storm of rain and wind, so this is the market's return.
What there is
Besides the craft and food stalls, with tastings at midday, the town council announces a children's corner with giant games and rides, displays of artillery and siege machines, medieval camps of the three cultures and craft workshops such as carpentry, blacksmithing and coin minting. All day there are musical and theatrical parades, juggling, dance and entertainment, and concerts in the Plaza Mayor and at the Arco de la Estrella.
The novelty of 2026 is the light and sound shows projected on the Bujaco Tower: on Friday 13 and Saturday 14 there are shows at 21:00 and 21:30, and on Sunday 15 at 20:30 and 21:00. The market closes on Sunday at 22:00 in the Plaza Mayor, with all the companies.
Hours and price
Walking round the market is free and there is no entrance fee. The council notice does not publish the stalls' opening hours; for any doubt, the council can be reached on 927 255 800, and the tourist office is in the Plaza Mayor itself. Allow at least three hours to go round it all without hurrying.
Good to know
Those days are very busy and some museums, such as the Golfines de Abajo palace, close. If you want to see the monuments in peace, avoid those dates; if you want atmosphere, they are the best. With children, the children's corner and the craft workshops are made for them, and the light and sound shows start before 22:00. The streets are cobbled and sloping: wear comfortable shoes and, if you go with a pushchair, expect steps and crowds in the squares.
- **Cáceres film free tour, through the sets of Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon** (1 h 30 · Series and film fans; not suitable for reduced mobility · Free tour · you pay the guide what you wish): It is a guided walk through what has been filmed in the streets of Cáceres. It is organised by Activa Tours, the guide agency on the Plaza Mayor, and lasts an hour and a half. This is not a filming location in itself, but a way of visiting them all with someone who shows you each shot.
What you see
The route follows Euron Greyjoy's path through King's Landing in season seven of Game of Thrones, when he enters the city with his prisoners: the Arco de la Estrella, the Plaza de Santa María, the Cuesta de la Compañía. According to the agency, it ends at the facade that in the series is the Great Library of the Citadel, where Samwell Tarly studies to be a maester. There is a stop for House of the Dragon, set in the reign of Viserys Targaryen, and others for films and series shot in the city, such as La catedral del mar, Inés del alma mía or 1492: Conquest of Paradise.
Turismo de Extremadura confirms the basis: the Euron scene was shot at the Arco de la Estrella, the Torre de Bujaco, the Torre de los Púlpitos, the Cuesta de la Compañía and the Plaza de Santa María, and House of the Dragon used up to 25 corners of the old town.
How it works

Meeting point: Plaza Mayor, at the foot of the steps of the Arco de la Estrella. Look for the guide dressed in pink.
Duration: 1 h 30.
Price: it is a free tour. There is no fee: at the end you pay the guide what you think it was worth.
Language: Spanish only. For other languages, the agency can be reached on 924 110 888.
Booking: choose the day on their website; the dates and times it publishes change with the season.
Accessibility: not suitable for people with reduced mobility. Everything is uphill and cobbled.

Who it is for
For those who have seen the series and want to put each scene in its place, and for teenagers who get bored with a tour of palaces. If what you want is to go inside the monuments, the full tour from the same agency includes admissions; this one does not enter any.

## Dónde comer
- **Parador de Cáceres Restaurant** (Restaurant, Cáceres, €€€). Qué pedir: Extremaduran zorongollo and Iberian sirloin with Casar cheese sauce; técula mécula for dessert
- **Torre de Sande** (Restaurant, Cáceres, €€€). Qué pedir: the €57 tasting menu for the whole table, or charcoal-grilled Iberian cuts and a stew such as the tripe and pig's snout; in good weather, a table outside
- **El Figón de Eustaquio** (Restaurant, Cáceres, €€). Qué pedir: the regional menu: Extremaduran migas or the house soup, and for the main chanfaina, venison stewed with mushrooms or Iberian beef cheek

## By car: Outside the wall, and on foot inside
Cáceres is on the A-66 and the A-58: an hour from Mérida, an hour and a half from Badajoz and under two and a half hours from Salamanca. The monumental city is a restricted-traffic zone, so the car is left outside and you walk inside. The car is useful for using Cáceres as a base for Trujillo, 40 minutes away, or Monfragüe, an hour away.
Presupuesto orientativo: 70–130 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir if you're driving
- **Hotel Atrio** (Small hotel): San Mateo, at the top of the old city
Atrio is at Plaza de San Mateo 1, in the upper part of the monumental city, opposite the church of San Mateo and a couple of steps from Calle Ancha. From the door you walk down to the Plaza Mayor and pass Plaza de San Jorge and the Santa María co-cathedral without looking for them. It is a five-star Relais & Châteaux hotel with only fourteen rooms, and its reason for being is the restaurant: three Michelin stars and the National Gastronomy Prize, in the hands of the chef Toño Pérez and the maître d' José Antonio Polo, who have been in Cáceres for more than thirty years.
The building is the work of the architects Emilio Tuñón and Luis Mansilla, who raised a contemporary house between historic walls.
Fourteen rooms and eleven more on Calle Ancha
The hotel has four categories: superior double, junior suite, deluxe junior suite and superior suite. They are spacious, with restrained decor, works of art and views of the city. The website does not publish square metres or equipment by category: if the view or the bath matter to you, ask when booking.
The same house runs the Palacio Paredes Saavedra, at Calle Ancha 3, renovated by Emilio Tuñón and Carlos Martínez-Albornoz: eleven rooms of great luxury on three floors, each different, with pieces by artists such as José Pedro Croft or Jorge Galindo. If you are after more space and a palace to yourself, it is the other Atrio option.
Pools, cellar and dinner
There are outdoor pools, a solarium and a gym, and a private wellness room with steam bath, massage area and a magnesium-salt pool that is booked for exclusive use. The cellar holds more than 4,500 references and can be visited.
Coming here is almost always coming to dine. The house sells packages that put it all together, such as a night with tasting menu for two, or two nights in the palace with the Atrio tasting menu and a lunch at Torre de Sande, its eating house on Calle Condes. Prices are not published: you see them when you choose a date in its booking system.
What the website does not say
There is no public information on parking, dogs, check-in and check-out times or breakfast. Plaza de San Mateo is inside the restricted-traffic zone: call 927 242 928 or write to info@atriocaceres.com beforehand so they tell you where to enter by car and where to leave it.
- **Parador de Cáceres** (Hotel): Calle Ancha, inside the walled enclosure
The Parador de Cáceres is not on the outskirts or beside the wall: it is inside, on Calle Ancha, in the upper part of the monumental city. From the door you walk down to the Plaza Mayor and the Arco de la Estrella in about five minutes, and Plaza de San Jorge, the Santa María co-cathedral and the Golfines de Abajo palace are a short walk along cobbled streets. That is the reason to sleep here: at night, when the groups leave, the old city is yours.
The building is two joined palaces. The house of Ovando-Mogollón, Perero and Paredes is Gothic; the palace of the Marquises of Torreorgaz is too, though its neoclassical façade was added in the 18th century and is now the main entrance. Inside remain cobbled courtyards and enclosures, wooden beams, the original fireplace in the lounge, one of the few towers the city keeps and a 2nd-century Roman tombstone with its inscription.
The car and the restricted zone
This is the first thing to know. Calle Ancha is in a restricted-traffic zone. With a booking you can enter, but you must give your registration at reception when you check in, or the fine will come to you. Paradores expressly asks that you do not put the parador's address into your satnav: programme Calle San Ildefonso 1, drive up to Plaza de Santa Clara, walk the few metres to reception and there they tell you where to park. If you arrive by train or bus, a taxi to Plaza de Santa Clara saves you the climb with the suitcase.
Rooms, breakfast and dining room
There are two room types: standard double and accessible double. All have air conditioning, a safe with room for a laptop, minibar, flat-screen television with Chromecast and access to digital press. The hotel has a lift, garden, terrace, room service and meeting rooms.
Breakfast is served Monday to Friday 8:00 to 11:00 and Saturdays and Sundays 8:30 to 11:00. The café is open from 11:30 to 23:00. The parador restaurant serves lunch every day 13:30 to 16:00 and dinner 20:30 to 22:30 Sunday to Thursday, and 21:00 to 23:00 Friday and Saturday, with Extremaduran cooking: zorongollo, Iberian sirloin with torta del Casar, migas. When booking you can choose room only, with breakfast or half board.
Before booking
The website does not publish this parador's pet policy or check-in and check-out times: ask when booking on 927 211 759 or at caceres@parador.es. If you are after something else in the same old town, Atrio is a few minutes away, with its haute-cuisine restaurant.
- **Alameda Palacete** (Small hotel): General Margallo, the street that runs down from the Plaza Mayor
Alameda Palacete is at number 45 Calle General Margallo, in Cáceres' shopping centre and outside the walled enclosure. The house says it is 150 metres from the Plaza Mayor; in any case, a few minutes' walk, and from the square you go up through the Arco de la Estrella to the monumental city. This location has a practical advantage: you are not inside the restricted-traffic zone, so arriving by car is easy, and in the evening you have shops, bars and the city's daily life nearby, which in the old part barely exists.
It is a late 19th-century manor house, restored and converted into accommodation, and has the category of two-star hostal. It keeps the original structure, the high ceilings and the stucco, and has a quiet inner courtyard where you can have a coffee with wifi. It has appeared in the Lonely Planet guide and in a New York Times article, which the house links from its website.
Eight rooms, two of them suites
There are eight rooms, each decorated differently. Six are doubles of 20 m², for two people or single use. Two are suites of 35 m² with an adjoining sitting room and up to four beds; if there are five of you, the house asks you to enquire. All have their own full bathroom, of about 10 m², air conditioning, heating and television, and extra beds can be added in all of them, which makes the suites a useful option for families with children.
Breakfast is served in the room. The website gives neither price nor hours: ask when booking.
Car, dog and arrival
Parking is free subject to availability; if there is no space, there is a car park nearby for about €8 a day. Pets are accepted on request: let them know before arriving and ask about the conditions. To book, the phone number is 927 211 674, there is a mobile, 676 983 635, and the email is reservas@alamedapalacete.com.
What is nearby
On foot: the Plaza Mayor and the Bujaco Tower, and from there the whole old town. For eating without taking the car, El Figón de Eustaquio, on Plaza de San Juan, is a short walk.
### Servicios
- **Cáceres Tourist Office**: On the Plaza Mayor · every day, morning and afternoon · maps and monument opening times

## Car-free: By train from Mérida or Madrid
The Renfe train reaches Cáceres from Mérida, Badajoz and Madrid, and the train and bus stations are together, about 2 km from the Plaza Mayor. From there, everything that matters fits into a walk through the monumental city.
Presupuesto orientativo: 60–110 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir without a car
- **Hotel Atrio** (Small hotel): San Mateo, at the top of the old city
Atrio is at Plaza de San Mateo 1, in the upper part of the monumental city, opposite the church of San Mateo and a couple of steps from Calle Ancha. From the door you walk down to the Plaza Mayor and pass Plaza de San Jorge and the Santa María co-cathedral without looking for them. It is a five-star Relais & Châteaux hotel with only fourteen rooms, and its reason for being is the restaurant: three Michelin stars and the National Gastronomy Prize, in the hands of the chef Toño Pérez and the maître d' José Antonio Polo, who have been in Cáceres for more than thirty years.
The building is the work of the architects Emilio Tuñón and Luis Mansilla, who raised a contemporary house between historic walls.
Fourteen rooms and eleven more on Calle Ancha
The hotel has four categories: superior double, junior suite, deluxe junior suite and superior suite. They are spacious, with restrained decor, works of art and views of the city. The website does not publish square metres or equipment by category: if the view or the bath matter to you, ask when booking.
The same house runs the Palacio Paredes Saavedra, at Calle Ancha 3, renovated by Emilio Tuñón and Carlos Martínez-Albornoz: eleven rooms of great luxury on three floors, each different, with pieces by artists such as José Pedro Croft or Jorge Galindo. If you are after more space and a palace to yourself, it is the other Atrio option.
Pools, cellar and dinner
There are outdoor pools, a solarium and a gym, and a private wellness room with steam bath, massage area and a magnesium-salt pool that is booked for exclusive use. The cellar holds more than 4,500 references and can be visited.
Coming here is almost always coming to dine. The house sells packages that put it all together, such as a night with tasting menu for two, or two nights in the palace with the Atrio tasting menu and a lunch at Torre de Sande, its eating house on Calle Condes. Prices are not published: you see them when you choose a date in its booking system.
What the website does not say
There is no public information on parking, dogs, check-in and check-out times or breakfast. Plaza de San Mateo is inside the restricted-traffic zone: call 927 242 928 or write to info@atriocaceres.com beforehand so they tell you where to enter by car and where to leave it.
- **Parador de Cáceres** (Hotel): Calle Ancha, inside the walled enclosure
The Parador de Cáceres is not on the outskirts or beside the wall: it is inside, on Calle Ancha, in the upper part of the monumental city. From the door you walk down to the Plaza Mayor and the Arco de la Estrella in about five minutes, and Plaza de San Jorge, the Santa María co-cathedral and the Golfines de Abajo palace are a short walk along cobbled streets. That is the reason to sleep here: at night, when the groups leave, the old city is yours.
The building is two joined palaces. The house of Ovando-Mogollón, Perero and Paredes is Gothic; the palace of the Marquises of Torreorgaz is too, though its neoclassical façade was added in the 18th century and is now the main entrance. Inside remain cobbled courtyards and enclosures, wooden beams, the original fireplace in the lounge, one of the few towers the city keeps and a 2nd-century Roman tombstone with its inscription.
The car and the restricted zone
This is the first thing to know. Calle Ancha is in a restricted-traffic zone. With a booking you can enter, but you must give your registration at reception when you check in, or the fine will come to you. Paradores expressly asks that you do not put the parador's address into your satnav: programme Calle San Ildefonso 1, drive up to Plaza de Santa Clara, walk the few metres to reception and there they tell you where to park. If you arrive by train or bus, a taxi to Plaza de Santa Clara saves you the climb with the suitcase.
Rooms, breakfast and dining room
There are two room types: standard double and accessible double. All have air conditioning, a safe with room for a laptop, minibar, flat-screen television with Chromecast and access to digital press. The hotel has a lift, garden, terrace, room service and meeting rooms.
Breakfast is served Monday to Friday 8:00 to 11:00 and Saturdays and Sundays 8:30 to 11:00. The café is open from 11:30 to 23:00. The parador restaurant serves lunch every day 13:30 to 16:00 and dinner 20:30 to 22:30 Sunday to Thursday, and 21:00 to 23:00 Friday and Saturday, with Extremaduran cooking: zorongollo, Iberian sirloin with torta del Casar, migas. When booking you can choose room only, with breakfast or half board.
Before booking
The website does not publish this parador's pet policy or check-in and check-out times: ask when booking on 927 211 759 or at caceres@parador.es. If you are after something else in the same old town, Atrio is a few minutes away, with its haute-cuisine restaurant.
- **Alameda Palacete** (Small hotel): General Margallo, the street that runs down from the Plaza Mayor
Alameda Palacete is at number 45 Calle General Margallo, in Cáceres' shopping centre and outside the walled enclosure. The house says it is 150 metres from the Plaza Mayor; in any case, a few minutes' walk, and from the square you go up through the Arco de la Estrella to the monumental city. This location has a practical advantage: you are not inside the restricted-traffic zone, so arriving by car is easy, and in the evening you have shops, bars and the city's daily life nearby, which in the old part barely exists.
It is a late 19th-century manor house, restored and converted into accommodation, and has the category of two-star hostal. It keeps the original structure, the high ceilings and the stucco, and has a quiet inner courtyard where you can have a coffee with wifi. It has appeared in the Lonely Planet guide and in a New York Times article, which the house links from its website.
Eight rooms, two of them suites
There are eight rooms, each decorated differently. Six are doubles of 20 m², for two people or single use. Two are suites of 35 m² with an adjoining sitting room and up to four beds; if there are five of you, the house asks you to enquire. All have their own full bathroom, of about 10 m², air conditioning, heating and television, and extra beds can be added in all of them, which makes the suites a useful option for families with children.
Breakfast is served in the room. The website gives neither price nor hours: ask when booking.
Car, dog and arrival
Parking is free subject to availability; if there is no space, there is a car park nearby for about €8 a day. Pets are accepted on request: let them know before arriving and ask about the conditions. To book, the phone number is 927 211 674, there is a mobile, 676 983 635, and the email is reservas@alamedapalacete.com.
What is nearby
On foot: the Plaza Mayor and the Bujaco Tower, and from there the whole old town. For eating without taking the car, El Figón de Eustaquio, on Plaza de San Juan, is a short walk.
### Servicios
- **Cáceres Tourist Office**: On the Plaza Mayor · every day, morning and afternoon · maps and monument opening times
- **Cáceres train station**: Renfe Media Distancia from Mérida, Badajoz and Madrid · on Avenida Juan Pablo II, beside the bus station
- **Cáceres bus station**: On Calle Túnez, beside the train station · services between cities and to neighbouring towns

## Luxury: Three Michelin stars and a palace
Cáceres has one of the few three-Michelin-star restaurants in Spain inside a five-star hotel. A luxury weekend here is organised around that table, with the monumental city empty at night as you leave.
Presupuesto orientativo: From €450 por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir in style
- **Hotel Atrio** (Small hotel): San Mateo, at the top of the old city
Atrio is at Plaza de San Mateo 1, in the upper part of the monumental city, opposite the church of San Mateo and a couple of steps from Calle Ancha. From the door you walk down to the Plaza Mayor and pass Plaza de San Jorge and the Santa María co-cathedral without looking for them. It is a five-star Relais & Châteaux hotel with only fourteen rooms, and its reason for being is the restaurant: three Michelin stars and the National Gastronomy Prize, in the hands of the chef Toño Pérez and the maître d' José Antonio Polo, who have been in Cáceres for more than thirty years.
The building is the work of the architects Emilio Tuñón and Luis Mansilla, who raised a contemporary house between historic walls.
Fourteen rooms and eleven more on Calle Ancha
The hotel has four categories: superior double, junior suite, deluxe junior suite and superior suite. They are spacious, with restrained decor, works of art and views of the city. The website does not publish square metres or equipment by category: if the view or the bath matter to you, ask when booking.
The same house runs the Palacio Paredes Saavedra, at Calle Ancha 3, renovated by Emilio Tuñón and Carlos Martínez-Albornoz: eleven rooms of great luxury on three floors, each different, with pieces by artists such as José Pedro Croft or Jorge Galindo. If you are after more space and a palace to yourself, it is the other Atrio option.
Pools, cellar and dinner
There are outdoor pools, a solarium and a gym, and a private wellness room with steam bath, massage area and a magnesium-salt pool that is booked for exclusive use. The cellar holds more than 4,500 references and can be visited.
Coming here is almost always coming to dine. The house sells packages that put it all together, such as a night with tasting menu for two, or two nights in the palace with the Atrio tasting menu and a lunch at Torre de Sande, its eating house on Calle Condes. Prices are not published: you see them when you choose a date in its booking system.
What the website does not say
There is no public information on parking, dogs, check-in and check-out times or breakfast. Plaza de San Mateo is inside the restricted-traffic zone: call 927 242 928 or write to info@atriocaceres.com beforehand so they tell you where to enter by car and where to leave it.
- **Parador de Cáceres** (Hotel): Calle Ancha, inside the walled enclosure
The Parador de Cáceres is not on the outskirts or beside the wall: it is inside, on Calle Ancha, in the upper part of the monumental city. From the door you walk down to the Plaza Mayor and the Arco de la Estrella in about five minutes, and Plaza de San Jorge, the Santa María co-cathedral and the Golfines de Abajo palace are a short walk along cobbled streets. That is the reason to sleep here: at night, when the groups leave, the old city is yours.
The building is two joined palaces. The house of Ovando-Mogollón, Perero and Paredes is Gothic; the palace of the Marquises of Torreorgaz is too, though its neoclassical façade was added in the 18th century and is now the main entrance. Inside remain cobbled courtyards and enclosures, wooden beams, the original fireplace in the lounge, one of the few towers the city keeps and a 2nd-century Roman tombstone with its inscription.
The car and the restricted zone
This is the first thing to know. Calle Ancha is in a restricted-traffic zone. With a booking you can enter, but you must give your registration at reception when you check in, or the fine will come to you. Paradores expressly asks that you do not put the parador's address into your satnav: programme Calle San Ildefonso 1, drive up to Plaza de Santa Clara, walk the few metres to reception and there they tell you where to park. If you arrive by train or bus, a taxi to Plaza de Santa Clara saves you the climb with the suitcase.
Rooms, breakfast and dining room
There are two room types: standard double and accessible double. All have air conditioning, a safe with room for a laptop, minibar, flat-screen television with Chromecast and access to digital press. The hotel has a lift, garden, terrace, room service and meeting rooms.
Breakfast is served Monday to Friday 8:00 to 11:00 and Saturdays and Sundays 8:30 to 11:00. The café is open from 11:30 to 23:00. The parador restaurant serves lunch every day 13:30 to 16:00 and dinner 20:30 to 22:30 Sunday to Thursday, and 21:00 to 23:00 Friday and Saturday, with Extremaduran cooking: zorongollo, Iberian sirloin with torta del Casar, migas. When booking you can choose room only, with breakfast or half board.
Before booking
The website does not publish this parador's pet policy or check-in and check-out times: ask when booking on 927 211 759 or at caceres@parador.es. If you are after something else in the same old town, Atrio is a few minutes away, with its haute-cuisine restaurant.
### Servicios
- **Cáceres Tourist Office**: On the Plaza Mayor · every day, morning and afternoon · maps and monument opening times

## As a family: A city of towers to explore on foot

The monumental city of Cáceres is compact, car-free and full of towers, arches and staircases: to children it feels like a film set. The hard part is the cobbled slopes with a pushchair.

### What works best
Climbing the Bujaco Tower, for €2.50, and seeing the square from above

The family visit of the Golfines de Abajo palace, with riddles; free for under-12s

The cistern of the Cáceres Museum, free for EU citizens

The Three Cultures Market, in November

### Where to sleep
Alameda Palacete, with suites for up to four

### Where to eat
El Figón de Eustaquio, with a regional menu and terrace

Parador Restaurant, open on Sundays too

### Good to know
A baby carrier is better than a pushchair

The Golfines visits are at fixed times and do not wait more than five minutes

### Qué hacer as a family
- Plaza Mayor and Arco de la Estrella
- Cáceres Museum and its Arab cistern
- Bujaco Tower and its viewpoint
- Golfines de Abajo Palace, with a guide
- Three Cultures Medieval Market

## Consejos

### Come at night
The monumental city lit up and empty is the best of Cáceres.

### Book the Golfines
The visits are for small groups and at fixed times.

### Shoes with a firm sole
The cobbles are slippery, especially going downhill.

## Preguntas frecuentes

### What is there to see in Cáceres in a day?
The Plaza Mayor and the Torre de Bujaco, the Arco de la Estrella, the Santa María co-cathedral, the palacio de los Golfines de Abajo, the plaza de San Jorge and the Museo de Cáceres with its cistern.

### How long does it take from Mérida to Cáceres?
Under an hour by car on the A-66. There is also a Renfe train.

### Where do you park in Cáceres?
Outside the walls, in the centre, and walk up. The monumental city is a restricted-traffic zone.

### Do you have to pay to enter the monumental city?
No. The streets are free; you pay at the Torre de Bujaco, the co-cathedral and some palaces.

### Can you go with children?
Yes. The Torre de Bujaco, the cistern and the Golfines family visit appeal to them. With a pushchair, the slopes are hard going.

### When is the Mercado de las Tres Culturas?
In November. In 2026, from the 12th to the 15th.