13 Small Towns in Spain That Will Make You Forget About the Big Cities
While no visit to Spain is complete without seeing Barcelona and Madrid, you’ll want to make time to discover the small towns in Spain, too. Not only are these places often as vibrant and as picturesque as their big-city counterparts. They’re also portals into Spain’s sacred traditions—from siestas to sobremesas—giving visitors a primer on the country’s easygoing, pleasure-filled way of life. There's a tapestry of cultures, cuisines, landscapes, even languages to discover if you just veer off the path, carve out some time in your itinerary, and explore.
For true immersion, we recommend treating these small towns not as pit stops, but as destinations in themselves. But if that option isn't available to you, each of these charming hamlets will provide more than enough to do as a day-trip or as a multi-stop road trip to all 13. From a hilltop village on Mallorca to a port town wedged between a boat-dotted bay and rugged mountain peaks, here are 13 small towns in Spain to add to your list.
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Artur Debat/GettyBetancuria, Fuerteventura
The windswept island of Fuerteventura is blessed with natural scenery, including the biggest and best beaches in the Canaries. When it comes to man-made beauty, however, the award goes to the colonial town of Betancuria, in the center-west of the island. Founded in 1402 by the archipelago’s conquistador, the French explorer Jean de Béthencourt, the island’s former capital is a collection of historic whitewashed buildings that pop against the undulating hills and arid cactus-covered mountains. Strolling the cobbled streets is like stepping back in time, and there are plenty of scenic lookouts like the Mirador de Guise y Ayose where you can take in the scenery. Be sure to tour the Iglesia de Santa María, the oldest church in the Canaries, which has a carved wooden ceiling and a beautiful baroque altar.
Magdalena Juillard/GettyCadaqués, Catalonia
Located about 21 miles south of the French border, the picturesque port is wedged between a boat-dotted bay and rugged mountain peaks. Over the years, Cadaqués has played host to some of the world’s most famous artists—among them: David Hockney, Marcel Duchamp, Henri Matisse, Picasso, and former resident Salvador Dalí—infusing the town with an artistic spirit that can still be felt today. Visitors can tour the Dalí House-Museum, where the Surrealist painter lived and worked from 1930 to 1982, and enjoy a breezy lunch at L’Hostal, where walls are adorned with framed photos of Duchamp and Keith Richards.
Sphraner/GettyRonda, Andalusia
Part of the joy of traveling around Andalusia is the seemingly endless supply of pueblos blancos ("white towns," named for the uniform color of the houses). While there are many that exhibit the Moorish architecture and labyrinthine streets that make the region so popular among tourists, there's something extra special about Ronda—it's location. Set high in the mountains, on the edge of a 400-foot cliff, the views of the valley below are stunning and the three bridges that span the canyon are mind-boggling feats of engineering.
GettyÁvila, Castile-León
A popular site for Catholic pilgrims due to its association with the famed mystic St. Teresa of Ávila, the city has a remarkably preserved Old Town that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Ávila is just 70 miles away from Madrid, which makes it ideal for a day trip (there are frequent trains between the cities), but once you see the way the city walls are lit up at night in an ethereal glow, behold the castle-like Gothic cathedral, or taste the famous yemas de Santa Teresa—small pastries made from egg yolk—we'd wager you'll want to stick around for a night or two.
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Pavel Matejka/EyeEm/GetttyDeià, Mallorca
Ask anyone who’s been to Mallorca, and they’ll tell you that this hilltop village ranks among the island’s most scenic spots. Tucked in a steep valley at the foot of the Teix mountain, a 40-minute drive northwest from Palma, Deià has long been a magnet for famous artists and writers including novelist Robert Graves and theater impresario Andrew Lloyd Webber, who has written several Broadway musicals there. After exploring the village’s small boutiques and fabulous restaurants, including the Michelin-starred Es Racó d’Es Teix, make your way down to the small pebbled Cala Deià beach to lounge in the sun and grab a tinto de verano at the pair of seaside bars. It’s worth spending the night at the celebrity-favorite La Residencia, a Belmond Hotel, set on 35 acres of lush grounds.
Jose Manuel Peral Urbina/GettySan Vicente de la Barquera, Cantabria
With its snow-capped mountain backdrop and lush rolling green hills, San Vicente de la Barquera isn’t what most tourists imagine when they picture a Spanish coastal town. But what the maritime settlement lacks in palm trees it more than makes up for in its rich history, medieval architecture, and wild, unspoiled beaches. Must-sees include the Puente de la Maza bridge, which was built in the 15th century and spans more than a half-mile, and the majestic sand dunes and the windy beaches of the Oyambre Natural Park. Tourism to San Vicente is largely local, which only adds to the charm.
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Nicolas Herrero Folley/GettyCudillero, Asturias
Unlike the single-hue towns that dot Spain's countryside, this fishing village on the Bay of Biscay explodes with multi-colored pastels—each house taking on an identity of its own with an overall effect that is nothing short of mesmerizing. You can wile away hours with a cold caña or two watching the activity on the small, but active, dock—or set out for day trips to nearby beaches.
GettyCuenca, Castile-La Mancha
Another beautiful Spanish town with centuries-old history at every turn; another Old City declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Over time, the town has adapted to its remarkable setting, atop a pair of deep river gorges. The result? The famous "hanging houses"—multi-story homes built literally over the edge of the cliffs, with balconies that extend over nothing, hanging on for dear life. While the architectural wonders are not as common as they once were, one of them is now home to the world-class Museum of Abstract Art.
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Alf/GettyAlbarracín, Aragon
Pink, orange, and red houses fill this isolated mountain town, set in a rocky valley on a bend of the Guadalaviar River. After it was all but destroyed in the Spanish Civil War, the government restored houses and streets not in some bland mid-20th century style, but instead taking cues from its Medieval roots and its history as the long-time seat (1012 to 1104) of a powerful Berber family following the Moorish occupation of the Iberian Peninsula. The foundations of the castle where the al Banu Razin family set up its court still remain, and the walls that protected the old Moorish city have been restored over time.
Sergio Formoso/GettyPeñíscola, Castellón
France has Mont Saint-Michel. Italy has the Castello Aragonese d’Ischia. Spain has Peñíscola, a fortified town that rises dramatically from the sea, just off the country’s east coast. Housed within its fortified walls is a 14th-century castle and former papal residence that was built by the Knights Templar on the foundations of a Moorish citadel. The castle occupies the town’s highest perch, offering breathtaking views of Castellón’s coastline and the Serra d’Irta mountains. After you’ve strolled the atmospheric streets, looking out for the spots where “Game of Thrones” and other Hollywood series were filmed, roll out your towel on the beach that runs perpendicular to Peñíscola. The sandy stretch provides a different perspective of the medieval fort town.
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Chiquizafra/GettyZafra, Extremadura
Zafra is sometimes referred to as "the little Seville," and it's easy to see why: gleaming white houses, Moorish architectural influence in every cobblestone and archway, and a giant castle that you can stay in make this town in southern Extremadura worth more than just a stop-over on your way to larger nearby cities like Cáceres.
Jon Chica Parada/GettyLekeitio, Basque Country
A sprawling Gothic basilica is the centerpiece of this fairy tale Basque fishing village, but it's really only the beginning of a long list of things to see, do, and eat (hello, pintxos). For starters, there's a pair of gorgeous beaches right in town. From the longer Karraspio Beach, at low tide you can walk—yes, walk—across a sandbar to the nearby San Nicolás Island. Hike to the top of the small island for panoramic views of Lekeitio and the rugged Basque coastline.
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GettyCombarro, Galicia
Galicia is special—and the gallegos who call this northwestern corner of the country home will be the first to tell you that… in Galician. (A majority of locals consider the language, closer to Portuguese than Castilian Spanish, their native tongue.) Combarro, a small coastal village along the Ría de Pontevedra estuary, captures all the singularity of the region in the unassuming seaside restaurants serving the daily catch, narrow winding streets, and most of all the traditional hórreos—stone granaries—that line the waterfront.
