5 free plans to enjoy in Cordoba

If you’re planning a trip to Cordoba and your budget is limited, you’re in luck. The city of the Mosque is one of the best cities in Andalusia for those who want to travel and save at the same time. In this post we tell you some of the best things you can do for free in Cordoba. 

Book a free tour

It is the best way to get in touch with the city when you arrive, it will help you to situate yourself in space and time and you will surely learn a lot about the history of the city and its monuments, in addition they are usually comfortable walks with pleasant information. Making the reservation is free but you know that at the end you can pay the guide according to your satisfaction with the tour. 

Visit the Mosque

The main monument of the city and the most important visit you can do when you come to Cordoba can be free. However, you will have to get up a little early. The first hour of the opening of the building the entrance is free for all the visitors. You’ll have to do the visit on your own, but it’s a good way to save a few euros. But not only the Mosque-Cathedral can be free… Find out about the times of the free museum passes and you will be able to visit them without spending a single euro.

Walking around the city

One of the best things you can do in Cordoba is always free. Put on some comfortable shoes and get lost in the streets of Cordoba. The Jewish quarter is a good place to start: your steps will guide you through one of the most charming quarters of Andalusia, where the city’s Jewish community lived in the past. Let yourself be surprised by the cobbled streets and the buildings and squares that open up on your way: the Zoco, the Synagogue, the Plaza Maimónides… Get lost in the Hoguera street, the Puerta de la Luna and discover why the Calleja del Pañuelo was chosen as one of the most beautiful streets in Spain.

When you have finished walking around the Jewish quarter, you can head for the Alcázar Viejo neighbourhood: San Basilio. There, in the tranquillity of its streets, you are sure to find an open door to see one of the courtyards that will be presented to the Festival in May, which is already on the World Heritage list. 

Entering the churches

Cordoba is dotted with churches and convents which are freely accessible. Inside you will find hidden jewels, Romanesque paintings in the apses, altars that are examples of the best Andalusian Baroque, ancient Arab minarets that have now become bell towers and a thousand other surprises. If you stroll through the neighbourhoods of San Lorenzo, San Agustín or Santa Marina you will find not only exquisite Baroque art but also the “Fernandine churches”, the oldest in Cordoba, ordered to be built by Ferdinand III after the capture of the city in 1236, reusing the mosques that existed in the city.

Watch a movie

Classic films, documentaries and films from all over the world meet daily at the Filmoteca de Andalucía, a stone’s throw from the Mosque. Watching them is almost free (the entrance fee is less than one euro). In addition, the Filmoteca is located inside a 16th century palace declared a cultural asset in a charming Jewish square. 

Enjoy the festivities of Cordoba

The Andalusian life is in the street. The Andalusians enjoy being in company and in the open air, so it will not surprise you that our festivals and traditions are open and free for everyone who wants to enjoy them. To see for yourself, all you have to do is come to Cordoba in spring. We begin at Easter, when the locals and all visitors gather to see the brotherhoods and sisterhoods in the streets as they go from their home quarters to the Cathedral, and then back again. Days are made night in the street until Easter Sunday. During the Cata (the Wine Tasting) all the wineries of the Montilla-Moriles denomination meet at the Diputación. Entrance is not entirely free, but it is very cheap and in return you can try the wines you choose.

Good barter, no? During the Cruces de Mayo all the squares in the centre are dressed with flowers and music and you can dance and eat like any other Cordovan. We arrive at the Festival de los Patios, declared Intangible Heritage of Humanity. For two weeks the owners of the patios open their houses for everyone to visit and get to know our way of life which goes back to the Roman and Arabic houses. Of course, it is free. And almost without time to recover, the fair arrives. The booths are public and open. To enjoy the week of the fair you just have to want to, go to the Arenal and try to dance some sevillanas. If you do it wrong, don’t worry, it’s also free and I’m sure there’s someone who will offer to teach you. 

To learn more about guided visits in Cordoba, click on the link down below:

• Guided Tours in Cordoba
• Guided Tour Alcazar of the Christian Monarchs
• Guided Tour  Mosque-Cathedral
• Guided Tour Medina Azahara
• Guided Tour Patios of Cordoba