What should I do in Cadiz, Spain?

[Essexlass2]

Any suggestions for a nice day in Cadiz? None of our ship's tours are filling us with enthusiasm and we've seen lots of architecture, churches, etc. A private venture into Seville doesn't appeal either.

 

Has anyone been to Cadiz and done something really nice, maybe a bit different even?

 

Any tips, advice or suggestions will be much appreciated.

[RJHNorthyorks]

We spent our day in Cadiz following a self guided walking tour which we picked up from the tourist information office sited close to the pier. There is a choice of walking tours which are marked on the footpaths I recall. We really enjoyed our day in Cadiz which wa a pleasant surprise.

[paul929207]

We took the Princess Seville on your Own tour. Cost was about the same a taxi round trip. Seville is a beautiful city

[cberge]

There is a LOT of info on this board re Cadiz and what one can do...just put Cadiz in the search this forum in the right hand corner on the main page and you will see a lot of info.

[cberge]

Oh, I forgot...shop here. Great prices and beautiful leather goods.Just in case you do like to shop.

[cberge]

You may want to post on the Spain baord.Forget what I said about searching on this board...wrong one.Go the the Spain board to search.Sorry I didn't catch before.

[Essexlass2]

We spent our day in Cadiz following a self guided walking tour which we picked up from the tourist information office sited close to the pier. There is a choice of walking tours which are marked on the footpaths I recall. We really enjoyed our day in Cadiz which wa a pleasant surprise.

 

That's a nice idea, we'll look into that when we arrive in Cadiz. We'd be able to do a walk at our own pace which would suit my DH very well.

 

Thanks also Cberge, will make a note to check out a couple of shops there too.

[Keith1010]

We had a wonderful time walking around this very lovely town.

 

The town is across the street from the Cruise Ship Terminal.

 

We enjoyed all of the little streets which had restaurant and shops and we visited churches, outdoor gardens and also a really nice outdoor market.

 

It was nice to enjoy the day without having to sit in a car or on a bus.

 

Keith

[groovechick]

We were there on a Sunday morning, Essexlass2, a couple of weeks ago (is it really only that long?:() and followed the self-guided tour, which was just great. If you go out of the port gate and walk left, you soon pick up the orange and purple routes. IIRC there was someone from the tourist office in Azura's atrium who had a stack of maps with the routes on them We did all the purple route, a bit of the blue and green, and got to see loads of the old buildings and streets.

 

It was around 9.00, the streets had just been washed and it was very quiet because the natives weren't up, so there were unimpeded views, then gradually there was the odd person walking the dog, going for the newspaper or to the bakery for their morning rolls. Because the streets are quite narrow it was also shaded a lot of the time, which made for very comfortable walking. Around 10.30/11 the shops started to open, so we browsed, and finished off the morning with a couple of drinks in a large square facing the sea and just a short walk from the port. I think it was possibly my favourite port of the whole cruise.

[John Bull]

Cadiz is a very pleasant & relaxing place, & the older part of the city is right outside the port gate. So for a lazy day, just wander.

 

For something a bit more energetic, consider a 30 minute train ride (station will be 5 - 20 mins from your ship, depending where you port) to the town of Jerez de la Frontere, the home of sherry. The word sherry is a corruption of the word Jerez.

 

Also home to the renown Andalusian equestrian school, http://www.realescuela.org/

 

Stacks of sherry bodegas in town, the Sandeman bodega http://www.sandeman.eu/visitus/jerez/en is just a few paces from the equestrian school.

Like the other vintners, Sandeman's production is from a modern industrial winery on the outskirts of town, but the original bodegas are geared to tours & well worth a visit.

 

JB :)

[Cornishpastyman1]

Any suggestions for a nice day in Cadiz? None of our ship's tours are filling us with enthusiasm and we've seen lots of architecture, churches, etc.

Has anyone been to Cadiz and done something really nice, maybe a bit different even?

 

Any tips, advice or suggestions will be much appreciated.

I was there on 17 August. We just walked around in the morning and went up the Torre Tavira to see the Camera Obscura, which gives a 360 degree live panorama of the city. You will quickly see this tower, which is very close to the city centre. A 'guide' explains the landmarks with a pointer, and as it is done in 2 or 3 languages I would call in early and book a slot in your language and then return at the appointed time. It cost €5, lasts about 15 minutes and was very interesting.

 

In the afternoon we caught the No 1 bus (€1.50 ?) from by the dock to Victoria beach. This is a long beach with plenty of bars etc if it gets too hot, and a nice sea. Cadiz is a fine place to have a relaxing but still interesting day for minimal effort or travelling.

 

All the best, Tony

[Essexlass2]

Oh wow, spoilt for choice now! Thanks everyone, your input is very much appreciated. We think we'll go see the Andalusian Training School and then spend the rest of the day wandering around back in Cadiz.

 

We like the idea of the coloured routes which will make walking around so much easier and probably more interesting too. :)

[groovechick]

Forgot to say that on the routes, when you get to an important building or monument, they have plaques in English and Spanish on the walls that provide very interesting information. Also loved the fact that from open street doors we could see into the courtyards of apartment blocks, all tiles, fountains and tropical plants - very Moorish!:D

[Essexlass2]

Forgot to say that on the routes, when you get to an important building or monument, they have plaques in English and Spanish on the walls that provide very interesting information. Also loved the fact that from open street doors we could see into the courtyards of apartment blocks, all tiles, fountains and tropical plants - very Moorish!:D

 

Oh that sounds lovely, thank you! :D

[mom4mom]

Cadiz is a very pleasant & relaxing place, & the older part of the city is right outside the port gate. So for a lazy day, just wander.

 

For something a bit more energetic, consider a 30 minute train ride (station will be 5 - 20 mins from your ship, depending where you port) to the town of Jerez de la Frontere, the home of sherry. The word sherry is a corruption of the word Jerez.

 

Also home to the renown Andalusian equestrian school, http://www.realescuela.org/

 

Stacks of sherry bodegas in town, the Sandeman bodega http://www.sandeman.eu/visitus/jerez/en is just a few paces from the equestrian school.

Like the other vintners, Sandeman's production is from a modern industrial winery on the outskirts of town, but the original bodegas are geared to tours & well worth a visit.

 

JB :)

 

Thanks for the insight. This is something that we are seriously considering. Since we are doing this on our own, I hesitate to book the exhibition tickets at Real Escuela in case of bad weather or train strikes, etc. Do you know if the half tour is available for purchase on a walk in?

[John Bull]

Thanks for the insight. This is something that we are seriously considering. Since we are doing this on our own, I hesitate to book the exhibition tickets at Real Escuela in case of bad weather or train strikes, etc. Do you know if the half tour is available for purchase on a walk in?

 

Sorry, can't really help you.

We were on a break of a few days in Tarifa & drove to Jerez for the main show. Didn't want a wasted journey, so we pre-booked. Although we'd been told that it often books-out it wasn't on that day, & folk who called on-spec were able to purchase show tickets on a walk-in.

That was for the main show. I don't know if the half-tour is more-likely or less-likely to book-out, or even whether for operational reasons they don't sell the half-tour on-the-day. But I've checked availability for the next available dates, from Tuesday next week - and they're showing availability throughout. So prospects are pretty good.

 

But although 1001 things can go wrong between now & your visit, I don't see the possibility of train strikes as worthy of consideration - folk on CC do seem to worry overly about such rare events. Seriously bad weather can threaten your ship's call at Cadiz, but I think Cadiz has a good reliability record. The show, most of the half-tour & the museum are all indoors, so poor weather won't threaten them.

Simply because of my reassurances, Murphy's Law will probably come into play :D

 

JB :)

Edited August 30, 2013 by John Bull

[mom4mom]

We will probably take our chances that space might be available for the show on the date that we will visit. Thanks for your input.

[Putterdude]

Last year we did the HOHO bus ride around the town, got a feel for it and then got off on the far side of town near the cathedral and had a very pleasant walk thru the town, exploring on our way back to the ship.

[nickie2000]

Thanks everyone for your input on cadiz will be one of our stop this coming sept. 2014 i think we will be do the do it yourself walking around town especially after i read that there are many shoe stores...:d

 

 

last year we did the hoho bus ride around the town, got a feel for it and then got off on the far side of town near the cathedral and had a very pleasant walk thru the town, exploring on our way back to the ship.

[justjcruzn]

Thank you so much to those that contribute on their experiences. I am traveling there in 2 months and this helped me decide. I enjoy being able to just walk around and enjoy at my own pace, stopping at things that interest me.

Excited to walk off ship and then explore.

Thank you again.

J

[dmacp]

I would reconsider going to Sevilla, if you can swing it.

 

The Alcazar is amazing and the Cathedral in Sevilla is the largest gothic cathedral in the world, and it contains the tomb of Cristopher Columbus (although this is somewhat debated).

 

Both of these things are a 10 minute taxi ride from the train station, and train travel in Spain is frequent, reliable, punctual and affordable. Sevilla is probably about 45-60 minutes away by the Avant high speed train service.

[dmacp]

Just did a quick check of the train timetable, and the trip is about 1 hour and 40 minutes each way, which is more than 3 hours travel total, probably not worth the time you would have, unfortunately.

[Cruzer Two]

Do the Hop On, Hop Off bus tour that departs just accross the street from the port and then do a self-guided walking tour of the old part of the city. This is a very walkable city.

 

Click on http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=38089309&postcount=291 for more information.

 

Ron

[smoothsailors]

Loved your video!!! Thanks so much for sharing...it confirmed our decision to spend a leisurely day in Cadiz instead of another long excursion to Seville. See you at out M&G!:)

[Cornishpastyman1]

Loved your video!!! Thanks so much for sharing...it confirmed our decision to spend a leisurely day in Cadiz instead of another long excursion to Seville. See you at out M&G!:)

That's all I did too. If there is a next time I'll go to Seville but as Ron shows, Cadiz is a very nice relaxing day on your own. Here's a bit more video from last summer