Castellar De La Frontera: Castle, Nature and Historic Trails

In Castellar de la Frontera, Castillo de Castellar Viejo is one of the few surviving inhabited medieval fortifications. The complex is an Arab border fortress built in the 13th century. As a monument, Castillo de Castellar Viejo is protected under the Bien de Interés Cultural status; its associated code is 110130001.

Culture

The Convento de Mercedarios de la Almoraima was built in 1603 along the wall of Castellar and at the foot of the castle. Its large cloister has survived. It features stone arcades in the Tuscan order, whose architectural classification is linked to the surviving structure. At the Castillo, this brings together the construction period, former function and current heritage status in a single complex. The surviving cloister adds a clearly identified architectural detail of the convent to this historical picture.

Hiking

The La Calzada Dehesa Boyal trail is 5.2 kilometres long. It takes approximately two hours. The trail has a moderate difficulty level. Along its route, La Calzada Dehesa Boyal passes a watchtower. It then reaches a 10th-century castle. This castle shows strong Muslim influence and is still inhabited today. The route follows a path believed to be of Roman origin. This keeps the trail’s length, approximate duration and difficulty level just as clear as its stops at the watchtower and castle. The sequence of the stops mentioned runs from the watchtower to the inhabited castle; the reference to its possible Roman origin applies to the path itself.

Nature

The fortress of Castellar Viejo is located in Los Alcornocales Nature Park. This nature park is home to the largest cork oak forest on the Iberian Peninsula. In a river basin, lush ash trees and holm oaks alternate with ferns, scrubland and meadows. The landscape elements mentioned range from the trees to the open meadow areas. The nature park landscape therefore includes both the extensive cork oak population and the small-scale succession of plant habitats in the river basin.

Getting There

From eastern Andalusia, Castellar de la Frontera can be reached via exit 130 of the A-7 towards Guadiaro–Castellar–Sotogrande. The route then follows the A-4100 for 10 kilometres. The A-4100 is a particularly scenic mountain road.

From western Andalusia, Castellar de la Frontera can be reached via the A-381 and A-405, following the route indicated as Algeciras–Ronda. After 20 kilometres, the route enters the municipal area.

The route via the A-7 and A-4100 describes the approach from eastern Andalusia, while the A-381 and A-405 indicate the western Andalusian direction with the route designation Algeciras–Ronda.

Other Places

Other places: Chipiona, El Bujeo, Barbate, Poblado Sancti Petri, Grazalema, Espera, Cádiz, Jerez De La Frontera

Animal Centre

Zoo de Castellar is a private animal rescue centre. It was opened to the public in 2002.

When planning a trip to Castellar de la Frontera, searching for a hotel can complement a stay in the town without presupposing a particular property or availability.

For the overview of the wider travel area: Cadiz.