Xàtiva – Castles and hills

Castell de Xàtiva

We headed south out of Valencia to Xàtiva (sha-tea-va) on a train this past week. Xàtiva is about 45 miles southwest of Valencia, about 45 minutes by train. This is a place that has a history. It’s mentioned in Roman poetry in the first century BC, so it’s been around for a long time.

Taking the train

First, we had to catch a train. You’d think this was easy, but for regional trains, you buy your ticket the same day from a machine in the station. That went pretty good, given that we’d made a practice run of buying the tickets the day before… that was an adventure in itself. But, in the end, we had it all figured out. We bought our ticket and were directed to track 7 and there was out train! We’re starting to feel like veteran international travelers.

Tourist Information

We got off the train and walked into the town to the local tourist information office. We came to Xativa to see the town and specifically to see the twin fortresses and walls that defended the city during Roman times and into the middle ages. The folks in the tourist office spoke English very well and provided lots of information on the castles and the town itself. For expediency, we took a taxi to the castle, and we were glad we did. Whoa!

That would have been one heck of a hike up to the top. I’m guessing there’s at least 400′ elevation change to the summit from the town. It’s no wonder they built up there. Once we got into the site we had a hardy hike to the top of one fortification and then to the other.

The Castle

The castle at Xativa runs east and west on a significant ridge just south of the city. The western site is higher and more significant, but both have a strategic view of the town and surrounding area. There are walls along the east side of the ridge and additional walls heading north from the two ‘castles’ or towers. I would not want to be an invader when these were in use. We headed to the west end first.

We definitely got our workout in as we hiked up and down the hills between the two ends. About 400 meters (1300′) from end to end – there’s about 150′ of elevation change that goes up and down several times. All three of us were snapping pictures along the way. Inside the walls are fountains, stairs, and trees. This is a beautiful site that’s well maintained and there’s a restaurant at the ticket office where you can get lunch or just a drink.

About a third of the way to the western tower there’s a nice fountain with a set of cannon overlooking the approaches. These were obviously added in the middle ages.

Looking back at the lower tower

Looking north from above the fountain plaza

We wound around to the western end of the ramparts facing the city. That was a pretty easy trek once we took a rest at the fountains. Then we headed up a stony path to the watchtower at the western end of the tower. That was an up and down adventure. Once we were there, we hung out a while to rest and have a snack. The view is awesome from that end as it looks out over the town of Xativa. Once we were rested we headed down and prepared to tackle the other tower.

Eastern Tower

First, we had to get there. We were already tired from the first hike we’d just finished. There was actually some debate as to heading to lunch or taking a stab at the east tower. Heck, we’re most likely not going to be back here again, so up we headed. Again it was arduous, but we made it. The view back to the distant western tower was worth the treck.

You can see more of our pictures here.