Peñíscola is one of the most outstanding jewels of the Costa del Azahar, located in the province of Castellón and in the Valencian Community.
This historic town stretches between the Mediterranean Sea and the imposing Sierra de Irta mountain range, offering a perfect combination of cultural heritage, natural beauty and a Mediterranean climate that is ideal to enjoy all year round.
Geographical and Climatic Data
Climate
Current climatic conditions
Tourist attractions
Calvario Bastion or old schools
This bastion, together with the batteries of San Fernando and Santiago, located in the grounds of the Castle Gardens. They form part of the construction of the Renaissance fortification. The work was designed by J.B. Antonelli and built during the reign of Philip II, who visited the city in 1563. The internal vaults, in the form of a casemate, were used to establish arsenals, canteens and gunpowder magazines. These vaults were used to house the children’s schools between 1912 and 1971. The cannon spaces served as windows to the classrooms.
City Council
The Town Hall building dates back to the 16th century. On the façade is the coat of arms of the city with the Latin inscription DILIGITE JUSTITIAM QUI JUDICATIS TERRAM. ANNO 1596, which means: love justice you who judge the earth.
Portal Fosc
It was the only land access to the fortress until the 18th century. Two Italian experts in the service of King Philip II were involved in the construction of this wall. Vespasiano Gonzaga, as the author of the project, and Bautista Antonelli, who directed the works. The beautiful monumental doorway is preserved on the outside of the gateway, above which is the coat of arms of Philip II. Inside the portal there is a guardhouse and a second arcade that opens onto the city. The artistic value of the work and the great power of the Hispanic monarchy during this period can be seen when contemplating the façade, with the ashlar canvases rising from the rock itself and the royal coats of arms that crown the corners.
St. Anne’s Chapel
It is one of the most emblematic chapels in the Old Town, located in Saiz de Carlos Street. A mass dedicated to Santa Ana is celebrated every 26th July.
Water House
The water house is home to ‘La font de Dins’, a spring that used to supply water to the city. Nowadays, the water house is a cultural building dedicated to exhibitions.
Castle
The Knights Templar built this Romanesque structure on the remains of an ancient Arab building at the beginning of the 14th century. The castle was used by Benedict XIII, Pope Luna and his successor, Clement VIII, as a papal basilica, making the city of Peñíscola the third papal seat in the world, along with Avignon and Rome. The fortress was declared a National Historic-Artistic Monument in 1931.
Bufador
A natural tunnel that perforates the rock on which the city is built and connects with the sea. On stormy days, the sea water rises violently, accompanied by a loud roar.
House of Shells
In the 1950s, a couple of neighbours began to place the first shells on the façade of this house. Today the façade is completely covered with shells and has become an obligatory stop for all those who visit the city.
Lighthouse
The present building dates from 1892. Its light signal, a nocturnal warning and guide for navigators, reaches a distance of 35 miles (65 km) and its sequence is one and two illuminations every 15 seconds.
Sculpture of Pope Luna
Made in bronze by the sculptor Sergio Blanco, it reproduces the image of the pontiff with the papal tiara. It was inaugurated in 2007.
City Hall Fountain
Located in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, in a corner next to the Portal de Felipe II.
La Concha Fountain
The Fuente de la Concha, better known as ‘La Font de la Petxina’, was built by order of Felipe II during the second half of the 16th century. In the past, this fountain was a large washing place used by the inhabitants to wash their clothes, but nowadays it is a great tourist attraction.
Church of the Virgin of Ermitana
According to tradition, the Virgin of Ermitana has been venerated since the early years of Christianity in a small hermitage located in the same place as the church. This building, in Valencian Baroque style, was built at the beginning of the 18th century by the governor of the city, Sancho de Echeverría. This is the origin of its more military than religious aesthetic and the military motifs on the façade.
Peñíscola dedicates the first days of September to the veneration of its patron saint. On the 8th and 9th, in the church and its surroundings, extraordinary events of great ethnographic relevance take place: the dances in honour of the Virgin. The Patron Saint’s Festivities were declared of national tourist interest in 1997.
Parish Church of Santa Maria
The parish church of Santa María has undergone many changes over time. Its origins date back to the 13th century, the time of the conquest, as evidenced by its Romanesque door. It also shows Gothic characteristics, as it was rebuilt in the middle of the 14th century, following a fire. The current construction dates from the 18th century, when the church was extended with neoclassical aesthetics, although it is not completely preserved due to its partial destruction during the civil war. The last restoration of the church took place in 2005.
Pope Luna, Benedict XIII, and his successor Clement VIII held pontifical celebrations in this church. The man who later became Pope Callixtus III was consecrated bishop. It preserves pieces of goldsmith’s work from the city’s papal period of extraordinary historical and artistic merit.
Artillery Park
The artillery park and the castle gardens unite the medieval walls with the Renaissance ones. The most outstanding features of the whole complex are the powder magazine and the strategically hidden access that leads to the Porteta jetty, on the other side of the walls.
La Porteta
In this very characteristic monument of Peñíscola, all the products were unloaded and loaded for their entry or exit in Peñiscola, it functioned as an old customs office.
North beach
Enjoy five kilometres of fine sandy beach in a spectacular setting with Papa Luna’s Castle in the background.
Certified with the Blue Flag, the ‘Q’ flag of the Spanish Tourism Quality Institute, the ‘green’ flag of AENOR and the ‘Qualitur’ flag of the Valencian Tourism Agency.
Museu de la Mar – Prince’s Bastion
Of medieval origin, but built in the 18th century for the installation of an artillery barracks. From 1912 onwards, the space became known as Les Costures, as the old premises were fitted out as classrooms for the town’s girls’ schools. In 1996 it was refurbished as the Museu de la Mar to conserve and exhibit the town’s cultural and seafaring heritage.
In 1956 it was used as a set for the film Calabuch, by Luís García Berlanga, and series such as El Chiringuito de Pepe.
South Beach
It is characterised by the fine sand that makes up its 470 m length and 70 m width. It has lifeguard, life-saving and access point services; cleaning, litter bins and police services.
Santa Maria Square
Scenes from series such as Game of Thrones (2015) and Chiringuito de Pepe (2014) have been filmed in this historic square. Its charm leaves no one indifferent.
Challenge Portal
The citadel’s hamlet is made up of approximately 510 houses that are arranged around 27 narrow, steep streets with a generally tortuous and irregular layout that conserve the characteristics of the primitive mediaeval structure. There are unique and suggestive corners and elements, such as the Portal del Desafío.
Felipe II Descent
The Philip II ramp leads to the Portal Fosc, which was the only land access to the fortress until the 18th century, when the Gate of Santa Maria was opened, located in the lowest part of this part of the wall. The ramp is framed by the Renaissance wall that forms the main façade of the city and was built in the last quarter of the 16th century. The work was promoted by Philip II and involved two Italian experts in the service of the king: Vespasiano Gonzaga, the author of the project, and Bautista Antonelli, the director of the work.
Sant Pere Portal
Built in 1411 by order of Benedict XIII, this arch provided a new access to the city by sea, since until the construction of the fishing port in 1925, the sea reached the city walls. In the central part is the coat of arms of Pope Luna. Tradition has it that, at the time of the Western Schism, Saint Vincent Ferrer came here to convince the Pope to abdicate. Pope Luna’s reply was the famous non possumus, because he always considered himself the only true pope.
Plaza de armas
The Plaza de Armas is considered to be the anteroom to the castle and the Ermita de la Virgen de la Ermitana. This place is very well known among the locals, as the traditional dances dedicated to the Patron Saint are held here on the 8th and 9th of September.
Sierra de Irta Natural Park
The Sierra de Irta Natural Park is a natural treasure, located in the Baix Maestrat region, in the north of the province of Castellón. With an extension of 7,743 protected hectares and a maritime strip that extends along 12 kilometres of unspoilt coastline, this park is a refuge for lovers of nature and tranquillity. It was declared a Natural Park and Marine Reserve on 16th July 2002 for its ecological value, being one of the last undeveloped coastal areas on the Mediterranean coast.
Fishing Port
The port is divided into an area dedicated to fishing boats and another to sports boats, which admits boats of up to eight metres in length and is managed by the Generalitat. It offers the services of a port in a privileged location, on the slopes of the hill that houses the castle of Papa Luna and the old part of the town.
Badum Tower
The Badum Tower is circular and truncated cone-shaped and is eleven metres high. It is built of stone masonry, but its main feature is that it has no doors. It is accessed at a height of about six metres through a window that leads to the watchmen’s quarters. This is in an attempt to make it more difficult for pirates to enter.
On its façade you can see the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Valencia with the double-headed eagle of the Habsburgs, from the time of Carlos I. This was added later during one of its many renovations.
This tower has been declared an Asset of Cultural Interest since 1985. We encourage visitors to Peníscola to visit the Badum Tower to admire it and enjoy the marvellous views of the municipality. From the tower you can start many interesting hiking routes through the natural park.
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