Alcaraz – Plaza Mayor, Carpet-Making Tradition and Nature

At the centre of Alcaraz stands the Plaza Mayor, which was built at the beginning of the 16th century. Its layout is an irregular rectangle, with arcades lining the square on three sides. The Torre del Tardón has a hexagonal layout; Bartolomé Flores began its construction in 1555. The Lonja del Corregidor dates from 1518 and has an arcade gallery with five arches in its lower section.

Culture

The Castillo de Alcaraz preserves wall foundations and defensive entrances. Today, it survives as an archaeological complex and is freely accessible without fixed opening hours. The Iglesia de San Miguel Arcángel now serves as a cultural centre.

Alcaraz still has a long tradition of producing carpets by hand using the Spanish knotting method. In February 2023, this tradition was recognised by the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha as intangible cultural heritage of special interest.

Guided visits to the parish museum of the Iglesia de la Santísima Trinidad can be organised by prior arrangement. Guided tours of the old town can be requested through the Oficina de Turismo de Alcaraz. For planning your own time, pre-arranged tours, freely accessible sites and a market held at a set time can be compared as different types of visits.

Nature

The La Molata y Los Batanes micro-reserve can be reached from Alcaraz via the Alcaraz–Mesta road and is freely accessible on foot. Coincya rupestris, a plant endemic to and threatened in the province of Albacete, grows in the micro-reserve.

The natural area extends around the confluence of the Escorial and La Mesta rivers with the Alcaraz River. It forms a system of landforms, gorges and rocky escarpments. When planning your day, you can classify the natural area according to your preferred focus, between observing plants and viewing distinctive landforms.

Routes and Dates

The Vía Verde de la Sierra de Alcaraz follows the former Baeza–Utiel railway line, which was never used, and is suitable for a cycling tour. The medieval market appears in Alcaraz’s events calendar for the weekend before or after 1 May. For planning purposes, you can compare the cycling tour and the market date as different time and activity priorities.

When choosing a holiday apartment in Alcaraz, you can compare travel dates, room categories and cancellation conditions. How you weigh this information is up to you and can be considered alongside your preferred local activities, without setting a specific daily schedule or order of visits. The described priorities can be weighted differently: buildings and the carpet-making tradition represent culture-related visits, the micro-reserve represents nature observation and landforms, the Vía Verde represents a cycling tour, and the market represents an event held at a set time. This allows travel dates and personal interests to be considered side by side.

Other Places

Villarrobledo, Vianos, Corral-Rubio, El Morrión, El Cañar, Los Alejos, Fuente-Alamo, El Sahuco

Food and Drink

Ajo pringue is highlighted as part of the mountain cuisine of Alcaraz.

For the overarching travel overview: Albacete.