On this post I will highlight the places we visited, the best things to see and best things to do in Cádiz, Spain on Day 2.
After spending a brilliant DAY 1 in Cádiz we started our second day with a lovely breakfast at the patio of Hotel Boutique Convento Cádiz.
Subscribe to my blog, so you will not miss any of my posts published every week.
The breakfast was served in a room off the patio, and you could seat inside or outside. It was self-service with a large variety of items such as different types of breads and fruits.
If you are planning a trip to the south of Spain and prefer to have everything organised by a tour, you should check the tours Tourradar offers to many places in Spain.
Tourradar has tours that suits every length of time and budgets and if you use my links to book your trip and enter code RoseG50 you will get a discount on your booking.
Where in Spain is Cádiz? Below is a map showing the city of Cádiz and the places we visited or passed by on Day 2 in Cádiz:
A BIT ABOUT CÁDIZ
Cadiz is very rich in history; it was founded by the Phoenicians in 1100 BC and is regarded as the most ancient city in Western Europe. Since then, it has been through many wars and most of the surviving buildings are from the 18th century. Most important buildings and monuments had been reconstructed, cleaned, and restored.
The old town is full of narrow streets leading to lively squares and it is bordered by the sea and the ancient city walls. The city has many piazzas where most of the important buildings are located.
Cádiz with its history, architecture, excellent beaches and the first quality local cuisine, makes a special place to visit and explore.
VISITING CÁDIZ
After breakfast we continued our exploration of the city. We walked down Avenida del Puerto and through the “Parque de Canalejas” all the way to “Plaza de España”, where we stopped to admire the square and the buildings nearby.
Off the square, there are some stairs just next to Calle Fernando el Católico going up, so we followed it to see where it was going to end up. This was the start of the remnants of the city walls, the “Murallas de San Carlos” (Saint Carlos Walls), taking you all the way to the sea and alongside it.
We walked on top of the walls all the way to the lovely “Jardines Clara Campoamor” (Clara Campoamor’s Gardens). The garden is very well looked after like all gardens we visited in Spain.
Every garden is very green with lots of colourful flowers with beautiful fountains and tiled benches. We continued through the garden and passed “Baluarte de la Candelaria”, a 17th century fortress and a concert venue at present.
Following the road, we entered “Parque Genovés”, another very well looked after park where we stopped for some drinks. This park originates from the 18th century and nowadays is the largest park in Cádiz.
The park exhibits more than 100 different species of plants and trees from all parts of the world and is the proud place for many statues and monuments. One of the nicest ones is “La Gruta” with a waterfall and ducks swimming in the little lake.
Leaving the park, we continued in the direction of “Playa de la Caleta” (Caleta beach). This beach resembles a bit of Havana in Cuba, and because of it, it was used to film the Cuban scenes on the James Bond movie “Die another Day”.
Walking on the promenade, we passed “Castillo de Santa Catalina” (Saint Catalina’s Castle), another 17th century fortress and a gallery with sea views. This fortress has been transformed into a cultural venue to include exhibitions, concerts, workshops etc. It is free to visit except if there is a pre-announced event.
Continuing on the promenade, on the opposite side, there is another fortress, “Castillo de San Sebastian”. This castle is on a small island to the west side of Caleta beach. It was closed for refurbishment when we were in Cádiz.
After some photos at the beach, we entered the old town and wandered through the streets.
We came across the “Cádiz Hospital de Mujeres” (Woman’s hospital) and entered to visit. The building is in a Baroque style with Italian touches.
There are two courtyards inside that looks a bit like the hotel we were staying in. However, the most interesting thing on this visit is the pretty chapel showcasing the beautiful altar of the “Virgen del Carmen”, which also has a painting by El Greco called “St Francis’s Vision of the Flaming Torch”. Beautiful! Very worth a visit!
When the visit to the “Hospital de Mujeres” finished, we continued exploring the maze of streets of the old town until we arrived at the “Mercado Central de Abastos de Cádiz”, built in 1838.
This is known to be the oldest covered market in Spain. By now, if you follow me on my trips, you know that I don’t miss a food market. I just love them.
We entered the market and explored the shops with all the foods available. I’m always impressed with the tomatoes in Spain, they are just gorgeous and tasty!
After seeing so much delicious food in the market we felt hungry, so we walked to the legendary “Restaurante Café Royalty”.
It is a famous restaurant in Cádiz that first opened in 1912. It had (still has) an exquisite decoration and very good food, quickly becoming one of the best places to eat in Cádiz at the time.
In the 1930’s due to the Spanish Civil War, it closed its doors and remained closed for seven decades until 2008, when the Sema Martin family bought and restored it meticulously to its former glory.
Now Café Royalty is not only the most beautiful Café in Cádiz, but it also serves traditional local food with the best produce available in the region. We had a very nice lunch there and particularly enjoyed their Andalusian Gazpacho with Prawn and Gamiture.
After lunch we walked to “Museo de Cádiz” which is a museum of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Ethnography. We admired the Roman Statues and paintings on the various rooms of the museum and spent the rest of the afternoon browsing the collection.
At night we walked on the streets near our hotel looking for a restaurant for dinner.
We chose a restaurant called “D’Cortés” on Calle Plocia. This is a restaurant that serves steaks on the grill and tapas.
We chose to have a steak that was sold by the weight. They brought a scale to the table and weighed it in front of us. It was a big piece of beef to be shared between me and my husband. The meat was barbecued on the grill to our taste and served on a board with some fries.
We also ordered a burrata salad with tomatoes and avocados and a bottle of wine. The food and wine were delicious, and we really enjoyed them, however it was SO expensive! The bill amounted to about £230 Euros! We were surprised with the bill as it was not a gourmet restaurant and what we consumed did not justify the price.
Of course, we paid for it, but felt we were ripped off considering all the other great restaurants where we dined for considerably less. For this reason, we would not recommend this restaurant.
On this tone we finished our last day in Cádiz and returned to our hotel nearby.
Above the food we had at D’Cortés
Next day we would be leaving to “Jerez de la Frontera” and “Seville”, the next stops on our trip.
I hope this post gives you an idea of what can be fitted in a day in Cádiz and helps you to plan your own itinerary of the city.
HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR TRIP
Below you will find a list of what to visit, where to stay and where to eat in Cádiz, Day 2. I classified each place as follows:
BOLD – Visited, tried and recommended
NOT BOLD – Not visited or tried, but planning to visit or try and heard very good reviews
RED – Visited and tried but do not recommend, avoid or be cautious
*** – Excellent
** – Good
* – OK
£££ – Expensive
££ – Fair and affordable
£ – Cheap
WHAT TO SEE
ATTRACTIONS
1- Plaza de España – ***
2 – Murallas de San Carlos – ***
3 – Jardines Clara Campoamor – ***
4 – Parque Genovés – ***
5 – Playa de la Caleta – ***
6 – Castllo de Santa Catalina
7 – Castllo de San Sebastian
8 – Hospital de Mujeres – ***
9 – Mercado Central de Abastos de Cádiz – ***
10 – Museo de Cádiz – ***
WHERE TO STAY
HOTELS
1 – Hotel Boutique Convento Cádiz – 1* – ££ – ***
2 – Áurea Casa Palacio Sagasta – 4* – £££
3 – Soho Boutique Cádiz – 3 * – ££
4 – By Pillow La Sal – 1* – ££
5 – Casa del Consul – 4* – £££
If you prefer to look for you own accommodation just search and book via the widget below:
WHERE TO EAT
RESTAURANTS
1 – Restaurante Café Royalty – *** – ££
2 – D’Cortés – * – £££
3 – Balandro Restaurante – £££
4 – La Tapería de Columela – ££
5 – Fogón de Mariana – ££
If you tried any of my recommendations above, please send me a message and tell me about your experience good or bad, so I can update the list accordingly. Thanks!
Check Cádiz DAY 1 for more suggestions.
If you enjoyed reading this post you might also like to read:
On this trip to Spain:
1 – Experiencing Gibraltar -Day 1
2 – Experiencing Gibraltar – Day 2
3 – Cádiz, The Jewel of Andalusia, Spain – How to spend Day 1
4 – Cádiz, The Jewel of Andalusia, Spain – How to spend Day 2
5 – How to Explore Jerez de la Frontera and Seville – Day 1
6 – Seville – Day 2
7 – Córdoba
8 – Granada – Day 1
9 – Granada – Day 2
10 – Setenil de las Bodegas and Ronda
11 – Marbella
12 – Gibraltar – Day 3
Leave a Reply