Montoro

About Montoro

Montoro sits at 195 metres on a promontory inside a deep meander of the Guadalquivir; the meander is a protected natural monument. The Roman town of Epora stood here. Fernando III took the town on St Bartholomew's Day, 24 August, in 1238 or 1240. The old town has been a Conjunto Histórico since 1969, and the municipality has about 9,000 people.

Plaza de España gathers the 15th-century church of San Bartolomé, Gothic-Mudéjar with a neoclassical tower, and the 16th-century town hall. Santa María de la Mota, a 13th-century chapel probably built over a mosque, holds the free archaeological museum (Tue–Sun mornings). See the shell-covered Casa de las Conchas and cross the Puente de las Donadas, built in the 15th–16th centuries.

Montoro is 45 km east of Córdoba, about 40 minutes on the A-4, and 80 km from Jaén. Park on the edge of the centre: the old town is steep and cobbled, so wheelchair users should keep to Plaza de España. Allow two to three hours. It suits history lovers and photographers.

Visit in spring or autumn; summer here is among the hottest in Spain. Holy Week, of National Tourist Interest, features the Imperio Romano, a troop of costumed Roman soldiers, and the feria of the Virgen del Rosario runs on 7–12 October. Try olive oil of the Montoro-Adamuz designation, honey, mazapanes and torta montoreña, and leather crafts.

Montoro in pictures

What you’ll find

• ChurchChurch visitFree
• FestivalAnnual festivalFree
• Historic centreOld town walkFree
• Local craftsCraft shoppingBuy
• Local foodLocal cuisineBuy
• Moorish quarterMoorish heritage walkFree
• MuseumFree museum (10:00–13:30)Free
• Tourist officeVisitor information (09:30–15:00)Free
• ViewpointSightseeingFree

Nearby places to visit

In Marmolejo, the Mayte Spínola Contemporary Art Museum (18 km) shows more than 250 contemporary works in the courtyard of an old olive mill. Córdoba is 40 minutes west, with the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba (39 km) and the Roman Bridge of Córdoba (39 km). Northwards, the Sierras de Cardeña y Montoro Natural Park is one of the last strongholds of the Iberian lynx, with marked trails through holm oak woods. The nearest villages in this series are Luque (53 km) and Zuheros (54 km), both in the Subbética.