Explorer Cordoue

Viana Palace is a noble house in the Santa Marina quarter of Córdoba, begun in the 15th century and enlarged over the following centuries; it takes its name from the Marquesses of Viana, its last owners. Its roughly 6,500 m² hold twelve patios, a garden and furnished rooms, and it has been open to the public since 1981.

Calleja de las Flores is a narrow, dead-end pedestrian alley off Calle Velázquez Bosco, a few steps north of the Mosque-Cathedral, ending in a small square. Its whitewashed walls are hung with flowerpots, a habit residents began in 1939, and its arches and pebble paving date from a 1950s remodelling by the architect Víctor Escribano Ucelay.

The Córdoba Synagogue is a small Mudéjar synagogue on Calle de los Judíos in the Jewish Quarter, dated to 1314–1315 by its foundation inscription. A courtyard and vestibule lead to a square prayer hall of about 40 m², covered in carved plasterwork with Hebrew verses from the Psalms and a women's gallery above. It served as a synagogue until 1492.

The Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba is the city's cathedral, built as the Great Mosque from 785 under Abd al-Rahman I and enlarged until the late 10th century. It became a church in 1236, and in the 16th century a Renaissance nave was set into the middle of the prayer hall. Visitors see the rows of double arches, the mihrab of al-Hakam II and the Patio de los Naranjos.

The Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos is a fortified palace beside the Guadalquivir, built from 1328 for Alfonso XI of Castile on the site of the Umayyad alcázar. Isabella I and Ferdinand II used it as one of their main residences. Visitors walk its towers and walls, the rooms around its courtyards and the terraced gardens with long pools and fountains.

The Roman Bridge crosses the Guadalquivir below the Mosque-Cathedral, running from the Puerta del Puente gate to the Calahorra Tower. First built in Roman times, it was largely rebuilt by the Umayyads in the 8th century and now has 16 arches over about 247 m. A 17th-century statue of the Archangel Raphael stands midway, and it has been closed to traffic since 2004.

The Royal Stables of Córdoba were founded in 1567 by Philip II next to the Alcázar to breed the horses from which the Andalusian breed descends. Sandstone columns carry the cross vaults of the long stable hall. Since 2010 the company Córdoba Ecuestre has staged equestrian shows in the arena here, and the city handed it the building for 75 years in 2026.

The Calahorra Tower is a fortified gate of Islamic origin guarding the southern end of the Roman Bridge, enlarged in the 14th century under Henry II of Castile with a second tower and a moat. Since 1987 it has housed the Museo Vivo de al-Andalus, whose eight rooms present the culture of al-Andalus; the visit ends on the roof terrace above the river.

Madinat al-Zahra is the ruined palace-city that Abd al-Rahman III, the first caliph of al-Andalus, built from the late 930s on the hills west of Córdoba as the seat of his government. It was sacked in 1010–1013 and abandoned. About 10 of its 112 hectares have been excavated, including the main palaces; a site museum opened in 2009.