Alcalá la Real is a delightful little town with an impressive fortress, once a strategic stronghold during medieval times and subsequently occupied by the Moors in 713. It has about 21,700 inhabitants.

The castle dates back to 727, when the town was under Muslim rule, and was later expanded. It was badly damaged in the nineteenth century during battles against France, and it was abandoned thereafter. For over 150 years, the Fortress marked the frontier between the Kingdoms of Granada and Castile.

The rebuilding of the Abbatial Palace was ordered by the Abbot, Esteban Lorenzo Mendoza y Gatica, in 1781, who decided to build it in the expansion area of the city after leaving Castillo de la Mota in the upper part, endowing it with baroque and neoclassical elements

Iglesia de Santa Maria La Mayor - Alcalá la Real

The church, also known as the Iglesia Abacial, is situated inside a high fortified enclosure, where in Islamic times there was a model Muslim medina with commercial and residential areas. After the re-conquest, King Alfonso XI ordered the razing of the mosque and the construction of a church on the site, dependent on the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Toledo and with a domain extending over a vast territory.

Municipal Museum is conserving, exhibiting and disseminating numerous artefacts of archaeological, ethnological, anthropological, paleontological, scientific and technical interest.

Construction of the Town Hall began in 1733. It is symmetrical with three elegant floors and a tower on each side. Inside, it preserves the banner and standard with which the city was reconquered.

The Amphibian and Reptile Rescue Center was inaugurated on March 30, 2015, by then-mayor Carlos A. Hinojosa Hidalgo, as stated on a plaque affixed to the entrance. The municipally run centre collects specimens before releasing them into their same distribution areas.

This church was built between 1747 and 1785, following the model of the Tabernacle of the Cathedral of Jaén. Its interior space is organised from a hall plan of a single rectangular nave

The site of the Church of San Juan Bautista is composed of the church, sacristy and other annexed units. It shows an architectural variant, typical of the popular building, with a marked contrast between the white lime and the stone, which denote a corner of Andalusian physiognom

The previous Convent was built in the mid-seventeenth century. As of 1835, with the arrival of the confiscations, it passed into private hands and was converted into private homes and an oil factory. The original façade was modified in the twentieth century by the addition of an artistic double staircase and large windows.

The crossroads of Calle Real, Calle Oteros and Calle Rosario opens up into a small public square; here, the portal of a former convent is located. The foundation (1590) was laid by the Order of Preachers and the Dominicans, who remained in it until 1835. Later it was the vice-parish of Santa María la Mayor, until it was ruined and abandoned as a result of the Spanish Civil War of 1936. The church, now completely deconstructed, was of great dimensions, and responded to the Renaissance style. The Civil Hospital and the Casa Cuna were installed in this enclosure. Located on Calle Real.

This eighteenth-century church was built in the vicinity of a small sixteenth-century hermitage. The ground plan has an ellipsoidal shape and at the end of its axes there are four rectangular spaces that correspond to the feet, the main chapel and the side chapels. It is worth highlighting the perfection of its elliptical floor plan and brick vault.

History of Alcalá la Real

Alcalá la Real is situated in a strategic area connecting the Guadalquivir Valley (through the Guadajoz River) with the Granada plains, through the Frailes and Velillos Rivers. Its position has made it fundamentally important to communication routes throughout history, particularly when the surrounding area became a border zone with the Kingdom of Granada during the Middle Ages.

Built by Manuel López Ramírez in the early twentieth century, this manor house preserves the constructive essence of the buildings of the time with stucco or tile plinths, ceilings with decorative paintings and a spiral staircase. It currently houses an exhibition of popular textile arts and is decorated with period furniture.

Traditional Festivals in Alcal la Real include Candelaria, Carnical, Holy Week and Summer Feria.

Pilar de los Alamos - Alcalá la Real

The fountain is a Renaissance work, dated 1552, as seen in the legend of the frieze. The façade shows a large relief in which two tenants hold and adorn the shield of the city, protected in turn by two fabulous hybrid winged animals, with the head of a lion, the body of a dragon and masks on the ends of the wings, which symbolise the guarding and defense of the city. Francisco Florentín took part in the construction.

Location

Located on Calle Alamós

The helpful tourist office in Alcala la Real is located in the historic Palacio Abacial where the town museum is also located.

Alsa bus company provide a return bus service between Alcala la Real and Granada and Jaén city.

Weather - Alcalá la Real - if you are considering visiting this town you will be interested to check the latest weather forecast for the next few days from the table below.