We stayed in Cadiz during our 2-week Andalusia road trip in March 2024. We spent one full day here (two nights). While we felt this was enough time to see the city, you could arguably stay an extra day if you wanted to explore more outside of the city center or have some more time with beaches.
There is a map of all our suggestions at the end of this post. If you want to check out where we ate during our 2 weeks, our gluten free guide for Andalusia is here. If you don’t want a pre-planned itinerary, but just want guidance of what to do (including extra things we didn’t get to), where to stay, and day trip suggestions, check out our Cadiz city guide.
Here is what we did during our 1 days (2 nights) in Cadiz:
Day 0: Arrive in Cadiz
Day 1: Parque Genoves, Castillo de Santa Catalina, Castillo de San Sebastian, La Vina, Torre Tvira, Mercado Central, Catedral de la Santa Cruz
Day 2: Chato Beach, depart Cadiz
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DETAILS:
DAY 0:
Today you will arrive in Cadiz, where you will spend 2 nights (one full day). You will spend two nights in Cadiz. We stayed at Hotel Argantonio, which was a steal of a deal. A note that they only have a couple parking spaces, and you must book in advance, otherwise you’ll pay a ridiculous amount for public parking. A note that if you’re looking for something closer to the beach rather than downtown, family stayed at Hipotels Playa la Barosa and loved it!
Check Hotel Availability:
After checking into your accommodations, explore the area you’re staying in. Prepare for a long day of walking tomorrow!
DAY 1:
It’s time to explore Cadiz! We did a sort of loop counterclockwise around the main downtown area. You could arguably start from any point and complete the loop. Start at Monumento a la Constitution de 1812 which is a monument in a large park alongside the water. From here, make your way to Parque Genoves, a well-manicured park with a waterfall and open air café. They were doing some park maintenance and replanting while we visited, so it didn’t have as many plants and bushes as I think they usually have. We did grab a coffee a the open air café, which was a great spot to people watch.
Once you’re done with your parks, you’ll be making your way to two different castles. First up is Castillo de Santa Catalina, which you can enter for free and they often host art exhibits. There are great views of the coastline and water from atop the walls. Leaving the first castle, follow the promenade that borders Playa de La Caleta towards your second castle, Castillo de San Sebastian. This is the castle you can see in the distance that is at the end of the spit into the water. We unfortunately couldn’t visit the second castle due to extreme winds.
After your castles, you’ll explore the fisherman’s quarter of the city: La Vina. It is bound to be busy with people going about their daily lives, deliveries being made, and people going between the various markets and stores. Continue through the La Vina neighbourhood to the Torre Tavira. If you want, you can get tickets to go up the tower for sprawling views of the city.
Continue towards Mercado Central, which is a traditional market with many types of vendors. If you’re too late in the day, however, many of the stalls may be closed. We went at about 1:30pm and approximately 75% of the stalls were empty and shut down for the day. If the market is something you’re super interested in, you may want to rearrange today’s itinerary to put the market at the beginning of the day.
Once you’re done at the market, make your way to Catedral de Cadiz which you can also get tickets to enter if you’d like, either directly or by booking a tour. Next up is the main Plaza de San Juan de Dios, which was getting ready for Semana Santa while we were there.
Beyond the Plaza de San Juan de Dios you’ll enter the neighbourhood of El Populo. This is the old town of Cadiz with lots of cute shops and cafes. Spend time wandering in and out of the narrow cobblestone streets, visiting the boutiques, and maybe grabbing coffee or tapas on a patio to people watch.
DAY 2:
Today you’ll depart Cadiz. If you have time before you leave the area, check out Chato Beach, which is a outside of the main old town area. Then it’s time to say goodbye to Cadiz, and continue on to wherever your travels take you next.
A reminder that if you’re looking for when to visit, where to stay, or extra things to do – check out our Cadiz Travel Guide!
MAP of our Cadiz Itinerary
HOW TO USE THE MAP: Click on the Wanderlog logo in the bottom right corner to open the full-size map up in a new tab. There, you can choose to just look at one type of activity at a time or see all the activities on the map at once (click the 3 squares in the top right to choose). You can also export the map to Google Maps, share the map with others, or save the map.
Helpful Planning Tips
I rely on these tools when planning my trips:
- Get Your Guide – book tickets to experiences such as a walking tour, catamaran cruise, or a tapas and wine tour
- Airalo eSIM – get Spanish data instantly on arrival, without roaming charges
- Stay22 – compare hotels across Cadiz at a glance
- Wanderlog – keep track of your trip details, organize your itinerary, and map out your stops
