Cuenca (Cuenca) - the capital of the Spanish province of the same name in the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. One of the most picturesque and hospitable towns in the area, it is located at an altitude of 956 m above sea level between the mountains, whose passes are in the south, west and east of the city. Nearby are the rivers Jucar and Huecar.
Best hotels 5 *. Famous resorts. Personal excursions.
Madrid, Barcelona, Marbella, Costa del Sol, Canary.
Rent of aircraft and helicopters. Service class VIP.
СОДИС - 25 years in the tourist market.
How to get there
There is no airport in Cuenca itself, so the flight should be made to the nearest Madrid international airport. The flight from Moscow to Madrid is carried out by three airlines - Aeroflot, Transaero and Iberia. Tickets cost from € 350 round-trip.
Cuenca is located on the Madrid-Valencia railway line. To Valencia per day there are 5 trains (journey time 3, 5 hours), to Madrid - 4 (2, 5 hours on the road). The cost of one-way ticket is approximately € 12, 5.
Also from Madrid to Cuenca you can get by bus AVANZA from Autostation station Auto-Res. Travel time is the same as for the railway, ticket prices are around € 10-12.
Search for air tickets to Madrid (nearest airport to Cuenca)
Climate
The climate here is typical Mediterranean-continental with cold winters (average temperature is +5 - 10 ° C) and in hot summer (+25 - 30 ° C). The water temperature in the holiday season rises to +29 ° C, and in winter it seldom falls below +13 ° C. "High season" falls on June-September
Entertainment, excursions and attractions Kouenki
The city is divided into two districts: "new" and "old". The old town is saturated with the spirit of the Middle Ages since the central square of the Plaza da Mayor and the Gothic cathedral of Catedral de Santa María y San Julián de Cuenca 12-15th centuries. the buildings. It is believed that this is the first cathedral built in Spain. In addition, before the Catholic church in this very place was an Arab mosque. Today in the cathedral there is the art museum of Tesoro-Catedralicio where you can admire the paintings of El Greco
Getting acquainted with the historical sights of Cuenca, the Gothic church of San Miguel. It is noteworthy for its Arabian motifs in architecture, which is quite untypical for Catholicism. You can walk to the church along Obispo-Valero Street, leading from Plaza de Mayor.
The watchtower of Manyana (Torre de Mangana) is also in the Old Town. This is the little thing that remains of the ruined fortress wall erected by the Moors. Once the tower was a sentinel fortification, now it has an observation deck with a magnificent view of the city.
Museums of the city
Continuing to get acquainted with the history and culture of Cuenca, do not ignore the Diazano Museum, most of the exposition is devoted to religious themes, and the Museum of Science, now located in the ancient convent .The exposition uses the latest technology, making it equally interesting for young tourists and their parents .Especially popular among visitors of all ages is the "time machine" model .In addition, lovers of history will be curious to visit the Museum of History, from the exposition of which you can learn everything about the controversial and strange fate of the city .
Hanging houses of Cuenca
Truly the symbol of Cuenca became famous Casas Colgadas - "Hanging houses", located on the southern side of the Gothic cathedral .Like the swallow's nests, they are built right on the cliff, above the breakwater of the Wakar River .This monument of architecture is only a small part of the buildings that used to be typical for Kuenki .In our time, the House of the Mermaid (Casa de la Sirena) and the Royal Houses (Casas de Rey) .The exact date of occurrence of buildings is for certain unknown - it is believed that the houses were caught in the 15th century .Since that time, they have been completed several times, and the latest changes are dated to the 20s of the last century .At this time, the houses were still inhabited, now they house a restaurant and a museum of abstract art, where the works of many famous artists-abstractors are presented: Eduardo Chilida, Anthony Tapes et al .
- Go up to the monument of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and look around the whole city.
- Think about the eternal, strolling through the park of St. Julian.
- Challenge yourself and overcome on foot (in extreme cases on a bicycle) 14 km of Route-Tourist route.
- To get lost in the labyrinth of narrow streets, whimsically winding and then leading uphill, then leading steeply down.
- From numerous observation platforms to admire the views of the gorge and the surrounding area.
- Drink water from the spring at the Hermitage of Nuestra Senora de las Angustias at the foot of the mountain.
Other attractions
Among the new attractions is a monument to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which was built in the middle of the 20th century on the hill of Cerro del Socorro. It is one of the highest points of Cuenca, with a beautiful view of the city.
In addition, in Cuenca there are picturesque ruins of an ancient Arab fortress, in which, at the end of the 16th century, was the Holy Inquisition, which in the 19th century was destroyed by French soldiers. Until now, only one tower, two blocks of stones and an arch that has served as an entrance and exit from the Old City have survived.
For unhurried walks, St. Julian's Park, the oldest park of Cuenca, laid in the early 20th century on lands donated by Gregorio Fernandez de la Cuba, is perfect. It is notable for the fact that there is absolutely no grass here, only squares with trees, bushes and paths strewn with sand.
Neighborhoods of Cuenca
No less good for walks is the limestone massif of Ciudad Encantada (20 square kilometers of picturesque rocks and karst caves), the waterfalls of the sources of the Cuervo and Tahoe rivers, falling from moss-covered cliffs, as well as the picturesque slopes of the Serrania de Cuenca mountain range (838 meters high ). To these natural attractions is a fourteen-kilometer tourist trail Ruta-Tourist, which runs around the gorge of Cuenca. It is quite difficult to move on foot, so usually either bicycle or car excursions are conducted here.
In the vicinity you can see the castle Belmonte (XIV-XV centuries) near the homonymous village, Segobride - Roman ruins of the II century BC. e., and the town of El-Tobosso, the "motherland" of the heroine of Cervantes Dulcinea of Tobos. There is even a museum dedicated to the fictional, but from this no less famous "compatriot", as well as the museum of its creator.
Developments
In addition to typical Spanish holidays such as "Holy Week" or "Parade of Figures", in Cuenca celebrate the day of St. Mateo (Fiestas de San-Mateo), the patron saint of the city. It is celebrated from the 18th to the 21st of September - at this time noisy masquerades are held in the streets, everyone is treated with fruit wine for free, and the traditional run of the bulls is held on the main square. Photo of Cuenca (8)