Top 10 Phoenician and Roman ruins to visit in Cadiz
Cadiz is the oldest city in Western Europe and you do find many remains from ancient civilizations. Cadiz is where the Phoenician civilization decided to settle first in Spain to trade with the Tartessians, native Iberian civilization, and later on the Romans arrived. Please keep reading this blog to find my favourite top 10 Phoenician and Roman settlements in Cadiz province.
Phoenicians came from Tyre, what now would be Lebanon. They settled in Cadiz so they could be on the Strait of Gibraltar and control the trading on both sides of the Mediterranean.
Later, the Roman civilization arrived winning the land from the Carthagenians and it became a very important city. The Balbos in Cadiz where so important that they received lots of money from Rome to build the theatre and amphitheatre and had one of the theatres in Rome named after them. They had their private seats in the Colosseum of Rome and even Julius Caesar came many times to visit his friend.
Overall Cadiz province was a very important location for the Phoenicians and Romans to settle in.
1)Roman ruins Baelo Claudia in Tarifa
These ruins are some of my favourite. It is considered the Pompeii of Spain because of how open it is and easy to see the Roman city distribution. You can see the streets, the temples, the stores, basilica and even the food market (very similar to nowadays).
Baelo Claudia had Roman city status because of the importance in trading with North Africa and the fish salting and garum factories. It is found in one of the most beautiful beaches in Spain and within the natural park of El Estrecho.
2)Archaeological Site of Gadir in Cadiz city
The incredible archaeological remains of Gadir are the oldest of the remains in this list. Archaeologists believe that Phoenicians settled in Cadiz in the 9th century B.C., so these remains could be from this time. Even in “la silla del papa”, another site in the province, the Tartessians, a native Iberian civilization, founded it more or less around the same time in 10th century BC.
In Gadir you can see the layers of a Phoenician street with Roman salting factories built on top of these ruins.
3)Archaeological Remains of Doña Blanca
Here we can find the second Phoenician ruins of the province of Cadiz. Here we can find the ruins of a town and port before the sedimentation of the bay of Cadiz.
There are two levels in this city as the Phoenicians used to build a new house on top of the previous house. This is why in the photo you can see buildings built in vertical.
They even have the oldest winery cellar in Western Europe. They did not make wine but grape juice pressed macerated with herbs.
4) Roman villa in Cape Trafalgar
These ruins were discovered several years ago but they finally received money to excavate in 2022. They found this Roman villa in the Eastern side of Cape Trafalgar where you can see the factory and some of the industrial rooms.
Close to here, towards Caños de Meca, they have found more ruins. They found Roman baths and a building used to clean the fish but it was reburied to protect it.
5)Roman theatre in Cadiz city
This theatre, same as the amphitheatre in Cadiz, is from the 1st century BC. Built thanks to the importance of the Balbo family from Cadiz who got the money from Rome to build it.
It was one of the largest theatres in the whole Roman empire with a capacity for around 10,000-15,000 people. You can only see a third part of the whole Roman theatre and they found it in the 1980s.
6) Roman Salting factory in Cadiz city
Here we can understand the Roman history in Cadiz city and its industrial importance to make garum sauce and the salting industry.
7) Archaeological Ruins of Ocuri in Ubrique
In these remains we can see some of the first native Iberian remains, the Tartessians, and also a Roman city. This city was very well connected and the views from here are outstanding.
Below you can see the Roman baths in this ideallic location.
8) Archaeological Roman Remains of Carteia in Algeciras
Carteia was very important for its location in the bay of Gibraltar, just across the straight from Africa. It was the second most important Roman city in Cadiz province, much larger than Baelo Claudia. We know this from the size of the city and its buildings including the temples, theatre, large Roman baths and a gym.
9) Roman road and sewage system in the archaeological museum of Medina Sidonia
In Medina sidonia you can buy a ticket which enters the museum, the Roman road and the castle for a very low price.
Medina Sidonia was an important Roman city in Cadiz province. This city was important because of the great farming soil around it. You can visit a part of a Roman main road, a part of the Roman sewage system as well as other small remains.
10) Roman castle at the top of Medina Sidonia
The Roman castle at the top of Medina Sidonia has some of the best views of Cadiz province.
It is one of the only places where you can actually see three different walls and compare Roman, to Arab to medieval. You can see three castles in one including some refurbishments that the French did for their cannons.
Culinary and cultural tours in Cadiz province with me!
My name is Carlos and I have a tour agency based in Vejer de la Frontera, Explore la Tierra. I focus on doing private culinary tours, cultural and hiking tours within Cadiz province. Please, read below what type of team building activities in Cadiz I lead for some companies!
Cultural tours in Cadiz
If you are interested in visiting any of these Phoenician and Roman settlements in Cadiz province I can help you organize a great trip through Cadiz province. I can organize great experiences combining historical tours with culinary and hiking tours.
Food and culinary Tours
Cadiz province is home to one of the most known international wines, the famous sherry wine. I do private sherry and Andalusian wine tastings at your rental house or wherever you are. Join our culinary and cultural tours where we go and visit the famous white towns of Cadiz. You will learn about the traditional bluefin tuna fishing method, almadraba, or visit a local olive press, almazara. I look forward to showing you the incredibly diverse gastronomy and traditions that the province has to offer.
If you are interested in a sherry winery tour, please watch the next video to see what do we do in the sherry winery tour:
Hiking tours in the natural parks of Cadiz
In these private guided hiking activities in Cadiz province I offer incredible hikes in La Breña, El Estrecho and Los Alcornocales natural parks. You will learn about local traditions and about the culinary, medicinal and gastronomical use of the Mediterranean plants. I worked in the environmental and conservation fields in Canada, UK and Spain for over 5 years and know many of the species in the area.
Cadiz province is one of the most biodiverse provinces in mainland Spain. Habitats range from dense forest reminiscent of cloud forest to Mediterranean forest, dune systems, and more. Moreover, enjoy the majestic views of Cadiz and the Strait of Gibraltar. Cadiz has the highest percentage of protected habitat in Andalusia, while its climate and sunlight hours are similar to Canary Islands. I look forward to showing you this incredibly diverse province in the most southern point of mainland Spain.
Contact us
If you are looking into visiting Phoenician and Roman settlements in Cadiz, please contact us. If you want to join me in any of these tours, please do not hesitate to visit my website and contact me at info@explorelatierra.com.
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