Santa María de la Asunción

Arcos de la Frontera clings impossibly to an outcropping of rock with the Guadalete River at its foot. Navigate carefully up its maze of narrow, one-way alleys or you may (as we did once) find yourself backing down those steep, twisty streets in the face of a big truck with traffic being expertly (sort of) directed by amused locals. Since you are approaching from the north, the route up the hill to the Plaza de España at the heart of the old town on top is fairly easy. Although the view here is the main attraction, you will also want to see (and perhaps climb the tower of) the Santa María de la Asunción church on the plaza and wander through the ancient, romantic, winding streets of the old town, where you get a real feeling that you have stepped into life as it was in the Middle Ages.