– Travel Insurance
– Transportation by bus with air-conditioning, video, reclining seats etc.
– 1 night in 4-star hotels based on half board (breakfast and dinner)
– English speaking tour guide
– Visits with local guides

Day 1.

Departure at the agreed time from Roquetas de Mar. After several stops on route, to have breakfast, have a drink and use the services, we arrive in Carmona. Visit of Carmona, including the Alcazar, Puerta de Sevilla, Museum of the city, Puerta de Cordoba and the Roman Necropolis. In the afternoon, we continue to Cordoba. Arrival at the hotel, dinner and accommodation.

Day 2.

After breakfast we visit the ruins of the magnificent capital of the Caliphate of Cordoba, the famous Medina Azahara (“the bright city”). Through a video we will go back in time to discover the greatness and wealth of this magnificent city. Next, we visit the museum and also the archaeological site. In the afternoon, return to the city of origin. We follow the Route of the Caliphate, between Cordoba and Granada, through olive groves, castles and charming towns. Stop for lunch in Luque, an old railway station converted into an original restaurant. Arrival in Roquetas de Mar and end of our services.

Sitting on the plain of the Corbones River, Carmona is a city that stands out for its monumentality and for the imprint of the different cultures that have populated it throughout its long history. Churches, palaces and walls are part of the important artistic heritage that houses its historic center, dominated by the imposing image of its fortress of Arab origin, the Alcazar del Rey Don Pedro. Populated since ancient times, Carmona has a long history that has seen the passage of the most diverse cultures. Thus, it was inhabited by Tartessians, to later become a Phoenician colony. Centuries later, Romans and Arabs settled in the area, civilizations that have left their particular mark on the rich monumental legacy that this Sevillian town hides. Of Roman origin is the walled enclosure, to which the gates of Cordoba and Seville, and the Amphitheater belong. So is its Necropolis (1^st century BC), located on the outskirts of the city, which has hundreds of tombs and rich burial chambers carved out of the rock. Within the old walls, the old quarter of Carmona has managed to preserve its appearance of an Arab medina, with streets in which beautiful manifestations of civil and religious architecture appear. Mudejar-style houses, built between the 15^th and 17^th centuries, Renaissance and Baroque buildings appear at every step. Some illustrious buildings are the Aguilar palace, the Rueda palace or the Casa del Marques de las Torres, current headquarters of the city’s Archaeological and Ethnographic Museum.

The caliph city of Medina Azahara (Madinat al-Zahra – “the bright city”), was built at the desire of Caliph Abd-al Rahman III about 8 km outside of Cordoba in a western direction, more specifically, in Sierra Morena. It was designed to be the capital of a new province of the Caliphate of Cordoba but finally the looting of the city-palace led it to be remembered as Cordoba la Vieja (the Old Cordoba). Caliph Abd al-Rahman III was a great cultural promoter and a skilled politician who made his domains the most prosperous in the West of his time, only comparable to Baghdad and Byzantium. The Medina Azahara plan is almost rectangular. It was built on stepped terraces that took advantage of the slope of the mountain. Each terrace was separated from the others using walls that divided the city into 3 parts. The Royal Alcazar is located in the uppermost and the intermediate, while the lower area was reserved for houses and the mosque, built outside the walls. Remains of plinths, paintings and columns of the Composite and Corinthian style are still preserved. It is an unavoidable visit to walk through its 2 restored rooms. It was declared a National Monument in 1923 and World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2018. To complete the visit, the archaeological site has an interpretation center that serves as the starting point for the tour. The building is located underground, emulating an archaeological site, and has a museum collection on the most relevant periods of Medina Azahara. The visit to the interpretation center lasts about an hour, includes audiovisual projections and continues with the visit to the archaeological site (which is reached by bus from the same building).

The Route of the Caliphate is an adventure of the spirit: from Cordoba to Granada, two twists in history, two unrepeatable moments, two golden centuries. Cordoba, the apogee, the blinding brilliance that made the other cities of the West pale. Granada, the refined terminal mannerism of a whole civilization put in check. And in between, the castles, the cities that were first posts or milestones of a more or less bumpy exchange, and later a camp and base to besiege Granada. This route is not just a history lesson. It is also an aesthetic enjoyment, an enjoyment of the senses. This route, which is part of the Routes of the Andalusian Legacy, is designated a Great Cultural Itinerary of the Council of Europe.

* Pepe Tours reserves the right to alter and modify the itinerary and the order of the excursions for organizational reasons.. Depending on hotel availability or in case of last-minute bookings, Pepe Tours may replace the scheduled hotels by others of the same category (see list of scheduled hotels in this link).