Town Hall / Ayuntamiento, Cadiz

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Our ferry had docked and we were wandering around in old downtown Cadiz by about 11:30 AM on a Wednesday with Christmas Eve in the offing. The streets of the city were well decked out with garlands of various types as the locals joined us to take in these scenes of Cadiz. It was not long before we stumbled upon one of the city's most popular spots - the palm tree-lined San Juan de Dios Square with its many small shops and cafes.

Also located there is the impressive Ayuntamiento (City Council Building), built in the Neo-Classical style in 1799 and shown in the 2nd photo. Just a few steps further on we came across the well-decorated private mansion of the Miranda family (3rd photo), known as their 'country house', and built in the same architectural style at about the same time (1795).

Sue really enjoyed seeing live Poinsettia trees growing in the downtown area (4th photo) and our unplanned walking tour was great fun as we went through various ancient gates (5th photo) into narrow alleys that led who knew where. One thing about a city built on a spit of land is that it is quite difficult to get really lost! I liked that because I had already been lost enough times on this trip!

The Town Hall which stands facing the port across the square of San Juan De Dios was built in two stages, the first being in 1799 and the second in 1861.
The Bells of the Town Hall play Fallas music called 'The three cornered hat' every hour.
The square in front is actually land reclaimed from the sea. The square has been called a Royal Square ad it was also used for a parade ground and market.

One of Cadiz's prettiest squares located across from the port. It is a great place to sit out and have a drink or grab something to eat. Head off down one of the little streets behind the town hall to discover the charm of Cadiz's old heart.

The Town Hall is located here (Ayuntamiento) which is a pretty building which you can go in if you like.

You can find this square just in front of the port.

This is the second from last bus stop if you are arriving from the new town. You can also get Taxi's from here.

The Town hall of Cadiz is located just off of the harbour. This tip is more to ground you so that if you do become lost, nearly impossible, someone can point you towards the town hall. The most striking feature of this plaza is the orange trees growing out of the pavement.

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Many cities take pride in "ornamenting" their environs and Cadiz is no exception. From the Town Hall to the statues hiding in small corners of buildings, to the complete facade of a building you will see those little extras that make a city interesting. From the statues of its honored heros (like the statue honoring Simon Bolivar) to the painting of the streets (so that tourists can walk and learn of the city) Cadiz does give a good example of this.

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This place is huge as it is a central plaza in Cadiz, it has lots of cafes around, many shops and the main government building designed in Neo-classical features around 1800 according to Lonely Planet.

There was a noisy bunch of protesters there when we visited. They told us they were fed up with being unemployed for a long time and was trying to get the attention of the local officials. There were actually more policemen and cars that the protesters!

Town hall of Cadiz just in front of the port and the Palacio de Congresos (well a few years ago I would have said the Fabrica de tabaco, now is the Palacio de consgresos as the other one has been demolish)


Justo enfrente del Puerto y cerca de la estaci?n de trenes. Llevaba mucho tiempo sin ir y he descubierto que la Antigua Fabrica de tabaco ahora es Palacio de congresos, no es que fuera un edificio incre?ble, pero podr?an haberlo conservado en vez de derribarlo para hacer un edificio moderno, en fin sobre opiniones.... lol

From here, take the side street at the right (always looking at the Town hall) to go to the cathedral