The Best Day trips from Cadiz (Spain).
There are many beautiful places in the Cadiz region, places with dramatic beauty without the hordes of visitors you’ll see in other parts of Spain (such as the Costa del Sol or Costa Blanca). And the beauty is varied: from historic towns to mountain villages to seaside towns with beautiful white beaches.
This post covers the best day trips from the city of Cadiz. I’ll start with the easiest and most accessible and will branch off from there. Most of the places I list are accessible by public transport (I’ll give you details on that) but there are a few that are best visited by car, taxi or tour. I’ll give you some options.
Rota
Rota is a beautiful beach town that also has a very pretty historical center. On top of that, it’s a very easy ferry ride across the bay from Cadiz.
The beaches are white and there’s a long promenade with cafés and restaurants. Step through the city walls and you’ll see a main square with a castle (that you can visit) and church. Just a little further is the municipal market and tourist office. Lots of pretty whitewashed streets where you can stroll and some nice views over the Atlantic.
I’d even suggest that Rota makes for a nice base in the area, especially if looking for something a bit more relaxed (and less expensive) than Cadiz.
How to get there: The best way is to take the ferry from Cadiz. There are 7 or 8 departures a day and it will take you 35 minutes to get to Rota.
El Puerto de Santa Maria
We stayed 2 weeks in El Puerto de Santa Maria, using it as a base in the region. I wrote about why we chose El Puerto de Santa Maria as a base instead of Cadiz here.
To sum it up: El Puerto is historic, charming, authentic, less expensive than Cadiz and is better situated if looking for a base to do day trips. I mention in the post that the city reminds me of Havana with its old palaces (El Puerto de Santa Maria is known as “the city of 100 palaces”). It also has a beautiful historic church and a fortress. And if you like Sherry, El Puerto is one of the main cities on Cadiz’s Sherry trail.
How to get there: Like Rota, El Puerto de Santa Maria is across the bay from Cadiz and you can get there on a 30-minute ferry ride. You can also take the commuter train which takes 35 minutes to get to Cadiz’s train station.
Jerez de la Frontera
A beautiful and historic city about 45 minutes from Cadiz by commuter train (30 min by media distancia train). I think Jerez is one of Spain’s most underrated cities.
Jerez is known for Sherry tasting and equestrian shows. But there’s much more: it’s a very walkable city with lots of pretty plazas, some lovely pedestrian streets with grandiose buildings and lots of greenery. You’ll find a Moorish-era fortress and two beautiful churches (one being the cathedral, the other being the Iglesia de San Miguel). It’s a city to explore, there’s lots of beauty to see and you can easily spend a full day there (I cover everything there is to see in the link above).
Getting there: Media distancia trains take about 35 minutes from Cadiz to Jerez and leave almost every hour. Alternatively, you can take the cercanias commuter train (also about every hour) which will take about 45 minutes.
Arcos de la Frontera
Arcos de la Frontera is the first of a string of Cadiz’s famous white villages and the easiest accessible from Jerez (Arcos is 40 minutes by bus from Jerez, which is 45 minutes from Cadiz = you can get to Arcos from Cadiz in approx. 90 minutes).
It’s a historic town built on a rock overlooking the Guadalete river and valley. Dating back to the Romans, it was later a boundary town between Moors and Catholics. Highlights include great views, a very impressive basilica (the Basílica de Santa María de la Asunción), and a charming whitewashed old town.
All about Arcos de la Frontera.
Getting there: Take the commuter train from Cadiz to Jerez (45 min). Next to the train station is the bus station where you can take the M-951 or the M-953 bus. They’re frequent and will take about 40 minutes to get to Arcos.
Tour: I’m going to cover a few of my favorite white villages below and they’re even harder to get to than Arcos de la Frontera. You might consider taking a tour such as this one that picks you up in Cadiz and takes you to Arcos de la Frontera, Zahara de la Sierra and Grazalema.
A few more white villages…
Zahara de la Sierra
Among my favorite White villages of Cadiz. It’s a very small town but the geography here is superb and we loved hiking up to the tower that rises above town. Incredible.
Below the castle is a charming little town with a church, pretty square and lots of views. You won’t spend a lot of time in Zahara de la Sierra (you can see everything in 2 hours tops) but it is really worth it.
Why you should visit Zahara de la Sierra
Getting there: As mentioned in the section on Arcos de la Frontera, you can see Zaraha de la Sierra as well as Arcos and Grazalema taking this tour from Cadiz.
Olvera
30 minutes from Zahara de la Sierra is another white village called Olvera. It is a beautiful town with a castle built on a steep escarpment that looks out on the region.
Besides the castle, the town has a large church, a pretty main square and several parks and miradors with views.
Getting to Olvera: Unfortunately, you really need your own wheels to get here. Or get creative; we hired a taxi driver for the day and he took us to Zahara de la Sierra, Olvera and Setenil de las Bodegas (the next place on this list). It cost us 250 Euros but – depending on how many you are – that might be cost effective.
Setenil de las Bodegas
Setenil de las Bodegas is probably the most famous of Cadiz’s white villages, known for its homes built within the layers of a canyon. You’ll see streets covered by huge boulders which is an unusual sight.
You can wander around, admiring the cave homes and then go up to the top of the town where you’ll find a church, a Moorish tower and some viewpoints.
All about Setenil de las Bodegas.
Getting to Setenil de las Bodegas: As mention above, you really need your own wheels to get here….or hire a taxi driver for the day as I mention above.
These places are south a of Cadiz and can be accessed by public transport…
Tarifa
We loved Tarifa. It’s unique: the southernmost point in Spain, the closest point to Africa (only 14 km to Tangier, Morocco), and where to Mediterranean and the Atlantic meet. Because of that, it is almost always windy which makes it a haven for sports enthusiasts. The nature and beauty is wild, with long white beaches in all directions. If you want to see whales, Tarifa is the place: many people come here to take a whale tour.
You’ll find a huge fortress, plazas looking out over the strait of Gibraltar, and a charming old town. But the highlight here is the nature. You might decide that you want to spend more than a day trip here…
More: Why Tarifa is absolutely worth visiting
Getting to Tarifa: Comes has about 7 departures daily from Cadiz to Malaga, with stops in Tarifa (it takes about 2 hours). The bus stop is about 10 minutes from Tarifa’s old town.
Tour: This tour includes Tarifa and Bolonia (below). If you don’t have a car, it is the best way to visit both the town and the Roman ruins at Bolonia.
Bolonia
About 25 minutes north along the Atlantic coast is the town of Bolonia with its Roman ruins (called Baelo Claudia). You really need a car, which we didn’t have. As mentioned above, you can also take a tour from Cadiz (such as this one) during busier parts of the year which includes both Bolonia and Tarifa. We were there in February and no tours were available. Many of our readers have told us that Bolonia is an essential visit. Another blogger’s post on Bolonia here.
Vejer de la Frontera
Vejer de la Frontera is considered by many to be the prettiest white village in Spain. That’s not my opinion but then again we weren’t lucky: it was gloomy and raining when we visited (it rained for most of 2 days).
Despite that, I would recommend it as a day trip from Cadiz. It has a historic old town, one of the prettiest main squares you’ll see anywhere and – on a nice day – great views all the way to the Atlantic.
Getting there: A bus from Cadiz’s bus station takes 1 hour to get to Vejer. Just double check that the bus goes to Vejer and not to Barca de la Frontera (at the bottom of the hill and a 10 Euro taxi ride).
Tour: You might want to save yourself the logistics by taking a half-day tour from Cadiz that includes Vejer, Conil and the beach at El Palmar.
Seville
I usually would never suggest Seville as a day trip because there’s just so much to see. But if you’re in Cadiz and have never visited Seville, it is absolutely worth a visit. It is probably Spain’s most beautiful city.
You won’t see everything there is to see in Seville but you can checkoff some of the highlights: the Real Alcazar (ie. Royal Palace), the Cathedral, Plaza de Espana and the Santa Cruz district are all doable in a day.
This post covers all the highlights of Seville and tells you what to prioritize.
Getting there: taking the train will take you about 1 ½ hours to get from Cadiz to Seville.
Do you have a favorite day trip from Cadiz?
Related: The 20 Best Things to See and Do in Granada (Spain)
Related: Underwhelmed by Cadiz
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