Las Torres de Cotillas: Church, History and Festival Traditions

Las Torres de Cotillas is located in the Huerta Murciana, approximately 15 km from the regional capital. The town offers several distinct points of interest: ecclesiastical architecture, Roman traces, medieval history, traditional festivals, regional sweets and a trail with different formats. For planning purposes, these focal points can be considered separately and combined according to your interests. When preparing your own trip, you can arrange architecture by style and period, events by name and year, and routes by distance and type of activity.

When looking for a holiday apartment in Las Torres de Cotillas, travel dates, room category and cancellation policies can be considered separately. This keeps the accommodation question independent of the local topics, while culture, festival traditions and the three trail formats each provide distinct focal points for planning your trip.

Culture and History

The parish church of Nuestra Señora de la Salceda is located on the main street of Las Torres de Cotillas, near the town hall. The church was built at the end of the 18th century and extended in 1880. Its rectangular floor plan comprises three naves; the central nave is wider than the side naves. Behind the presbytery there is an ambulatory, or processional walkway. This makes it possible to distinguish the building’s location, date of construction and spatial layout.

Roman baths dating from the 1st to the 2nd century AD were found in La Loma. The baths complement the ecclesiastical architectural history with a significantly older historical reference.

History

The Barrio de San Pedro, also known as Cotillas la Antigua, is regarded as the origin of the settlement as a feudal estate in 1318. A surviving section of wall belongs to a medieval aqueduct that connected Alguazas and Cotillas in the 16th century and probably as early as the 14th century. The Palacio de Verano of the Lords of D’Estoup was built in the mid-19th century. Its eclectic façade features lions, coats of arms, rosettes, arches and other ornamental details.

Other destinations in the same area: El Saladillo, La Majada, Mula, Campos Del Río, La Tercia, El Esparragal, Calasparra and Fuente Amarga.

Festivals and Flavours

The Holy Week celebrations in Las Torres de Cotillas include brotherhoods whose history dates back to the beginning of the 17th century. The Easter celebrations commemorating the Resurrection of Christ include the traditional baile de los santos, also known as El Encuentro. Traditional local sweets include paparajotes and buñuelos con chocolate.

The “Juan Madrid Roca” International Folklore Festival was held for the 40th time in 2026. The 2026 patron-saint festivities are celebrated in honour of the Virgen de la Salceda; the 2026 patron-saint celebrations conclude with the traditional Quema del Raspajo.

Trails

Three formats were planned for the Rambla Salada Trail in 2026: a 14K trail, the 7K Promo Trail and a 7K walking route. The different distances and formats help with mentally comparing running and walking options. The Rambla Salada Trail was scheduled to hold its fourth edition in 2026.

For the broader travel overview: Murcia.