Medieval Walls of Avila, Ávila, Spain

The city walls of Avila were built in the 11th century to protect the citizens from the Moors. They have been well maintained throughout the centuries and are now a major tourist attraction as well as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visitors can walk around about half of the length of the walls.

The layout of the city is an even quadrilateral with a perimeter of 2,516 m. Its walls, which consist in part of stones already used in earlier constructions, have an average thickness of 3 m. Access to the city is afforded by nine gates of different periods; twin 20 m high towers, linked by a semi-circular arch, flank the oldest ones, Puerta de San Vicente and Puerta del Alcázar.

User Reviews

Nilton Cáceres (14 months ago)
An interesting, amazing place near Madrid to see the city wall of Ávila. It's an amazing conserved wall from medieval times.

Jonathan Finn (2 years ago)
Audioguide works from your phone, but as you won't find half the numbers, you will miss half the tour. It really cannot be so difficult for the authorities to buy and fit some numbers. It's a shame they are so dismissive of their visitors.

David L. Brooks (2 years ago)
Seeing the ancient city walls of Avila immediately puts one back in time 500 years.

Anna P. (2 years ago)
Impressive. So well kept. Beautiful views.

La Belgique insolite (2 years ago)
Impressive wall around the city of Ávila! Really enjoyed walking around it.

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A collection of landscapes by 19th century artists Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, Barthélemy Menn and others are on display in the castle.

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