Priego de Cordoba

Priego grew rich on silk in the eighteenth century, and the money went into churches: the Asuncion with a sagrario chapel of white stucco so elaborate it is considered one of the finest baroque interiors in Spain, San Francisco, La Aurora, and half a dozen more, all within a compact centre. The Fuente del Rey, laid out in the same period, is a monumental fountain with 139 spouts feeding three basins around a sculpture of Neptune. The Barrio de la Villa behind is the old Moorish quarter, a maze of whitewashed lanes hung with flowers ending at the Balcon del Adarve, a promenade along the cliff edge with a view over the olive country. The town is a centre for protected olive oil production.

What you actually see

• The Asuncion sagrario - a white stucco baroque chapel of exceptional quality.
• The Fuente del Rey - a fountain of 139 spouts with a Neptune group.
• The Barrio de la Villa - a whitewashed Moorish quarter of narrow lanes.
• The Balcon del Adarve - a cliff-edge promenade over the olive hills.

When to go

Spring and autumn; Priego sits inland and is very hot in summer. The churches keep long midday closures and open on limited schedules, so a visit needs planning around them.

Honest expectations

Church opening hours are short and irregular, and several charge separately. The town is off the main tourist routes and English is less spoken than on the coast. Parking near the centre is limited.

Nearby

Zuheros and the Subbetica hills lie northwest; Cordoba is a hundred kilometres north.