Castillo de Biar

The Castillo de Biar sits on a rocky outcrop 750 metres above sea level, above the town of Biar, at the point where the Alt Vinalopó comarca meets the edge of the Castilian plateau. Its origins date to the mid-12th century, when the area lay within al-Andalus, and its position allowed it to watch over the natural route between the interior of the peninsula and the coastal lands of Alicante. The complex was declared a national monument in 1931.

Keep and walls

The most recognisable structure is the square-plan keep, around 19 metres tall and built in masonry and rammed earth. Inside, it preserves a ribbed vault of Almohad origin, thought to be among the oldest of its kind still standing in Spain; the Castillo de Villena, not far away, holds a comparable example. A double line of walls surrounds the keep, with four towers on the outer face and three more inside, added during later Christian-era enlargements that followed the 13th-century conquest.

Visiting and the views

The climb starts on foot from the old town, passing the Iglesia de la Asunción, whose bell tower sits lower on the hillside than the castle itself. From the top of the walls, the view opens over the Vinalopó valley, with the medieval aqueduct visible on the flat ground below. The path has some steep stretches, so sturdy footwear helps, and the middle of the day in summer is not the most comfortable time to climb.

The castle is one stop on the Ruta de los Castillos del Vinalopó, a route linking the fortresses of Villena with others in the comarca and tracing the defensive line that once separated the kingdoms of Castile and Aragón for centuries.