Guided visit "Mérida in Full", with tickets

Six stops and four tickets in one morning

Mérida has so much to see that a first visit often ends up as back-and-forth between ticket offices. This Activa Tours route puts it in order: three and a half hours on foot with an official guide, from the Puerta de la Villa to the theatre, with the tickets for four sites included in the price. It costs €42 with tickets or €27 without, if you already have the Consortium's joint ticket.

From the Puerta de la Villa to the stage front

The meeting point is its office, on Calle José Ramón Mélida 32, the museum's street. The first stop is the Puerta de la Villa, where one of the four monumental gates of Augusta Emerita, the capital of Lusitania, stood; there the guide places the city before you start. Then, Plaza de España and the co-cathedral of Santa María la Mayor, to talk about the reconquest of 1230.

The first ticket is the Morería archaeological complex, with the longest surviving stretch of wall. Along the bank of the Guadiana you continue to the Alcazaba, with the Roman bridge in view; inside you see the walls and go down to the cistern. Back to the centre for the Temple of Diana and the forum portico, seen from the street. The third ticket is the House of the Amphitheatre, with mosaics, remains of wall and a necropolis with mausoleums. And the finale, the theatre and amphitheatre: first the gladiators in the arena, then the stage front.

Left out are the National Museum of Roman Art, which has its own ticket office, the circus and the Los Milagros aqueduct: save them for the afternoon or the next day.

How to book and what happens if you change plans

You book on its website, choosing the day on the calendar, or by calling 924 110 888. The tour is in Spanish only; for other languages, ask them. The guide is dressed in pink.

Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before, with a full refund or change of date. Within those 24 hours neither change nor refund is accepted, and if you do not turn up everything is lost.

Pace and accessibility

It is three and a half hours on foot, with stretches over archaeological remains, the riverbank and stairs in the Alcazaba cistern. It is not accessible for reduced mobility. In summer bring water and a cap: almost the whole route is outdoors.

The short version

If you are short of time, the same company has "Mérida Essentials", two hours, from the forum portico to the Roman bridge with the theatre inside: €30 with the theatre and amphitheatre ticket, €18 without, and that one is accessible.