Culture & Heritage

Rute and the surrounding areas offer a range of interesting places to explore:

• visit local museums (e.g. Anís Museum, Chocolate Museum in Rute)
• or take a relaxing stroll through typical Andalusian villages

Discover the little secrets and courtyards of the villages, for example the little blue inner court in Iznájar.

The centre of culture and learning during Moorish rule, Córdoba has much to offer. The city already existed in ancient times and thus has good examples of buildings from Roman, Visigothic and Moorish periods in Spain, including the prominent Great Mosque (which has been turned into a Cathedral) stemming from the time when the city was the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate in Spain.

Málaga, one of the biggest cities on the southern mediterranean coast of Andalucia has a wonderful walkable city centre featuring excellent shopping in the Calle Larios and the Malaga Cathedral, complete with a picturesque mediterranean shorefront, and then up on the hill there’s the Alcazaba above the Roman theatre and a bit further up Gibralfaro Fortress overlooking the sea. In December/January there’s Christmas celebrations with street carols and fantastic decorations for those who wish to brave the cold.

The last capital of the Moors in Spain, Granada is famous for its Alhambra, the castle and royal palace of the Nasrid dynasty and its old town, which has Spanish, Moorish and Jewish influences, the latter especially seen in the quarter of Albaicin, which is well worth a visit. Additionally, the city is located higher than most other cities in Andalucia and neighbours the scenic Sierra Nevada, as well as the Alpujarras.

The provincial capital of Andalucia, Sevilla holds a lot of the Spanish history in the region, from the Plaza de España, constructed in a mix of Baroque, Renaissance and Moorish Revival architecture for the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in the stunning María Luisa Park, to the world heritage site in the old town that contains the Archive of the Indies, the repository for historical documents relating to the administration of the overseas Spanish Empire in the Americas and Philippines, the Royal Alcázar of Seville along with the Seville Cathedral for three historical buildings within easy walking distance of each other.