Four miles from Alicante on the Costa Blanca coast lies Castalla. It is an old village with ruins of a castle on top of a hill. The hill stands out from the surrounding flat landscape, and the castle has in its time provided good protection against enemies. On this hill, archaeological discoveries have been made from various settlements going back to four thousand years ago. The old part of the village surrounds the castle at the foot of the hill. Today, Castillo de Castalla is a popular tourist destination for those interested in civics, history and archaeology.
The hill with the castle at the top and the church at the bottom is visible from a long distance when approaching Castalla. If you park near the church, you get a short distance to what is worth seeing in the village. The most important places to see are:
1) Castillo de Castalla
2) Iglesia de la Asunción
3) The town hall square with the old town halls
4) Museo de la Casa de Pérez with the forgotten toys
5) Casa de Paco Rico
The church is the first thing you encounter on the way to the old town and the castle.
The church was completed in 1572 and is in Gothic-Catalan style. It was constructed by two brothers from the village. It is open to the public from 9-13 on Sundays, but you can book a tour for groups at other times.
The old part of the village at the foot of the hill has narrow streets and old houses. Some of them have been renovated, but many are poorly maintained. The city as a whole can appear a bit gray and boring to a tourist visiting the place for the first time, but some streets have a certain charm.
La Ermita de la Sang is the first building you come across when you walk up the stairs towards the castle. It was built in the year 860. The road up to the castle winds up the slope in hairpin bends. Along the way, you can see archaeological excavations from previous settlements. It costs 3 Euros to enter the castle, and it is only open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 10am-2pm. The most interesting thing to see is inside the castle. Therefore, you should visit the place during the opening hours of the castle.
The castle is of Islamic origin and was built in the 11th century. Archaeological excavations have shown that the place has previously been used by the Romans and settlements back to the year 2000 before Christ. Castillo de Castalla is one of the eight best preserved and interesting castles in the Alicante region. La Ruta de los Castillos del Vinalopó is a historical and cultural tour where, within an area of seven miles, you visit nine municipalities with citizens (https://www.turideer.com/post/valle-de-vinalopó-tur-fra-borg-til-borg).
The town hall square is worth a visit when you are in the old town. The building on the left in the picture below is the oldest town hall building. It has been unused for 40 years, but is now being rehabilitated. The building on the right has been used in recent times, but the administration in the town hall has now been moved to a new building next door (not in the picture).
In the old town of Caballa, you can also visit the architecturally interesting Casa de Paco Rico, which is now the office of the organizers of the traditional la Fiesta de Moros y Christianos. Here you can see costumes and props from the parties.
The Casa de Pérez toy museum is located close to the Casa de Paco Rico. It is an impressive museum with toys from many ages displayed on several floors. It costs 8 euros to enter, and the museum is open every day except Monday.
The new part of Castalla is quite ordinary and not that interesting for a tourist, but there are nice parks, restaurants and quarters here too.
More excursions: www.turideer.com
Excursion of the week: Castalla with the church, the toy museum and the castle with its archaeological excavations.
Suitable for: Everyone, but the ascent to the castle and difficult for prams and wheelchairs because there are a lot of stairs.
Getting there: Follow the A7 from Alicante towards Alcoy. Take the exit to Castalla when you see the sign for the town. Follow this road CV-80 until you enter the city. If you use Google Maps you will be directed to the city centre. It is not a good starting point to get to the most interesting places. It is better to park near the church and walk from there.
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