Fortaleza de la Mota

About Fortaleza de la Mota

La Mota was fortified in the Moorish period and for two centuries was a key fortress on the frontier between Castile and Nasrid Granada. Alfonso XI took it in 1341, and the town became Alcalá la Real. The walls held the whole town, with its main church, the Iglesia Mayor Abacial, until people moved down the hill; the church was burnt in 1812.

You enter by the Puerta de las Lanzas, remodelled in 1578, and climb through the old town, where houses, streets, cisterns, silos, wine cellars and an ice pit have been excavated. At the top, the alcázar keeps its Torre del Homenaje, Torre de la Campana and Torre Mocha. Below stands the roofless abbey church with the Chirino chapel.

Tickets cost €8 (ages 7–16 and over-65s €4, under-6s free) with an audio guide, bought at the entrance without booking. It opens daily 10:00–18:00 from mid-September to April and 10:00–19:00 from May to mid-September; closed 1 and 6 January and 25 December. No pets. Allow 1.5–2 hours. Cobbled slopes and steps make it unsuitable for wheelchairs.

Clear spring and autumn days give the longest views. The hill is cold and windy in winter and exposed in summer, so go in the morning and take water. Use the audio guide: the excavated town makes far more sense with it.

Fortaleza de la Mota in pictures

What you’ll find

• Archaeological siteRuins visit (€4–€8)Ticket
• Audio guideAudio guideBuy
• Monument visitSelf-guided visit (€4–€8, 10:00–18:00)Ticket
• ViewpointSightseeingFree

Nearby places to visit

Alcalá la Real sits near the borders of Córdoba and Granada provinces, so day trips run in several directions. In Priego de Córdoba, the Adolfo Lozano Sidro House Museum (24 km) shows the work of the local illustrator, while the Federico García Lorca House Museum (27 km) at Valderrubio is the poet's family summer home. In the Subbética hills, the Cueva de los Murciélagos de Zuheros (34 km) has guided cave tours. Jaén, with the Castillo de Santa Catalina, Jaén (36 km) and Jaén Cathedral (36 km), is under an hour away by car.