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Northern mountains
In the Sierra Morena north of Cordoba city is a
wild mountainous landscape where deer and wild boar roam the pine
and oak forests. This region is little visited by tourists, but
there are many rewarding places to explore here: from remote coal-mining
towns in dramatic locations, such as Espiel and Bélmez,
to a village with a dramatic history, Fuente Obejuna, where
villagers staged an uprising against a cruel lord in the 15th century
and publicly executed him, an event recreated in a famous Lope de
Vega play named after the village.
Guadalquivir valley
The restored castle, Almodóvar del Río.
The Guadalquivir valley runs east-west across Cordoba
province, from neighbouring Jaen. The fascinating town of Montoro
sits above a bend in the river, which is spanned by the mighty 16th-century
Puente de las Donadas, a bridge that was 50 years in the making
due to lack of funds. The local women sold their jewellery to raise
the money to finish it. As well as being the gateway to the Sierra
de Cardeña
y Montoro Natural Park to its north, the town
is famous for its fine leather crafts and saddlemaking.
West of Cordoba city on the river bank is Almodóvar
del Río overlooked by an imposing heavily restored castle.
Southern wine & olive route
The landscape south of Cordoba is dominated by endless
undulating fields of olive groves and vineyards and many of its
towns and villages are famous for their production of olive oil
and wine. One such town is Baena,
which makes excellent olive oil that you can buy at one of the town´s
presses. Montilla
is equally well known for its fine wines, named after the town,
which you can sample at its bodegas.
Several towns noted for their wines and olive oil
also boast some outstanding examples of Baroque architecture. By
far the most famous of these and Cordoba´s leading town for
Baroque churches is Priego
de Cordoba, a prosperous olive-growing town with an exceptional
number of impressive Baroque churches. Although lacking the immediate
appeal of Priego de Cordoba, the extensive furniture showrooms enveloping
the industrial town of Lucena
hide a surprisingly high number of exquisite Baroque churches that
are well worth a visit. Aguilar
de la Frontera also produces olive oil and wine and has a striking
octagonal square, Baroque monuments and a handful of elegant mansions.
Southeastern mountain villages
In the southeast of the province, close to borders
of Jaen, Granada and Malaga, is the ruggedly beautiful Sierras
Subbéticas Natural Park, with some of the province´s
most attractive and unspoilt villages on its fringes.
Zuheros
is a spectacularly sited whitewashed village on a cliffside, topped
with a Moorish fortress from where there are superb views. Don´t
miss the nearby limestone Cueva
de los Murciélagos, which has many dramatic rock formations.
Just east of Zuheros is Luque
in a similarly stunning position, on a rocky crag crowned with a
castle. On the western edge of the park is the charming village
of Cabra, with
many handsome churches, convents and mansions. Linking these villages
is a spectacular walking and cycling route, once a railway line,
called the Vía
Verde of the Subbética.
South of the park is the pretty hilltop village
of Iznajar that
overlooks a reservoir of the same name.
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