Girona · ES
Girona: Old Town & Call Highlights
From the painted houses over the Onyar to the great Gothic cathedral, the ancient Jewish quarter and the walls of the old town.
What's the walk about?
Welcome to Girona, one of the most beautiful and best-preserved old cities in Catalonia, in the northeast of Spain. Famous for the row of brightly painted houses that hang over its river, for a Gothic cathedral with the widest nave in the world, and for one of the finest surviving Jewish quarters in all of Europe, Girona packs two thousand years of history into a compact, walkable old town of golden stone, steep stairways and ancient walls. Its atmospheric lanes have even starred in Game of Thrones. On this gentle loop we take in the river views, the great cathedral, a basilica and ancient baths, a Romanesque monastery, the city walls, and the magical maze of the old Jewish Call. Let this golden Catalan city enchant you.
What you'll see
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1
Pont de Pedra
Bridge
The main stone bridge over the river Onyar, offering the classic, postcard view of Girona's famous row of brightly painted houses rising straight from the water.
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2
Rambla de la Llibertat
Boulevard
The arcaded main promenade of the old town, a lively, tree-shaded avenue of cafes, shops and medieval porticoes running beside the river, the social heart of Girona.
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3
Pont de les Peixateries Velles
Bridge
A distinctive red iron footbridge across the Onyar, built in 1877 by the engineering workshop of Gustave Eiffel, offering a close-up view of the painted riverfront houses.
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4
Casa Masó
Historic House
The only one of the painted Onyar houses open to visitors, the birthplace and home of the Catalan architect Rafael Masó, with an elegant white facade and rooms overlooking the river.
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5
Catedral de Girona
Cathedral
Girona's mighty cathedral, approached up a dramatic Baroque staircase of ninety steps, famous for having the widest Gothic nave in the world and for starring in Game of Thrones.
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6
Basílica de Sant Feliu
Basilica
A grand Gothic basilica beside the cathedral, its tall bell tower famously truncated by a lightning strike, holding ancient Roman sarcophagi and the relics of the city's patron saints.
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7
Banys Àrabs
Historic Baths
A beautifully preserved medieval bathhouse in the Romanesque style, built in the twelfth century, its elegant central pool chamber crowned by a lantern dome on slender columns.
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8
Monestir de Sant Pere de Galligants
Monastery
A beautiful twelfth-century Romanesque Benedictine monastery, with a serene cloister and a fine rose window, now home to the archaeology museum of Catalonia.
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9
Passeig de la Muralla
City Walls
A walk along the top of Girona's ancient city walls, with towers, gardens and sweeping panoramic views over the rooftops of the old town, the cathedral and the mountains beyond.
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10
El Call
Neighbourhood
One of the best-preserved Jewish quarters in Europe, a magical labyrinth of narrow, steep, stone-stepped lanes, home to a great medieval Jewish community until the expulsion of 1492.
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