Badajoz

How long to stay?

An afternoon is enough, but arrive the day before. Badajoz is a big city of around 150,000 people, and the most important sights lie close together: the cathedral on the Plaza de España, the Plaza Alta, the Alcazaba on the hill and the Puerta de Palmas by the river. You can do all of that on foot in an afternoon. If you arrive in the morning and want to set off straight away, you have 21.7 kilometres ahead of you and no time for the city. So come a day early, sleep in and start the next morning. The Archaeological Museum in the Alcazaba is closed on Mondays; it's better to plan your afternoon for Tuesday to Sunday.

Badajoz in Ninja numbers

• 74.6 kilometres is the distance from here to Estremoz according to Camino Ninja, where your route flows into the Via Nascente. From Badajoz it is 398.2 kilometres to Trancoso, where the Via Nascente ends.
• 21.7 kilometres to Elvas, and according to the Camino Ninja town chain there is not a single place in between. You carry your water and food from the very start.
• 1 hour is the border's gift to you. Spain is an hour ahead of Portugal. If you set off from Badajoz at eight o'clock, it is only seven in Elvas.
• 582 metres is the length of the Puente de Palmas, the first bridge Badajoz had over the Guadiana. It is your first big step.
• 6,541 metres is the length of the city walls of Badajoz with their bastions, ditches and outworks (as of June 2026). One of the bastions is called the Bastión de Santiago.

Arriving: in a city on the river that looks to Portugal

Badajoz lies on the left bank of the Guadiana, at about 185 metres above sea level, very close to the Portuguese border. It is 227 kilometres to Lisbon and 406 to Madrid. Badajoz is a provincial capital, not a small town. The old town with the cathedral and the Plaza Alta lies by the river around the hill of the Alcazaba, and that is where you will spend your afternoon.

That Badajoz is a pilgrim place at all is something new. In January 2022 the city decided to join the Caminos de Santiago: a route was to lead from Mérida, a stop on the Vía de la Plata, via Badajoz to Elvas, connecting the Vía de la Plata with the Portuguese route that starts in Tavira. That is today's Via Nascente. The route was to go through the old town, past the cathedral and over the Puente de Palmas to the border. This is exactly how the Camino Ninja track begins too: at the cathedral, then through the Puerta de Palmas and over the river.

In brief: a border fortress since 875

Badajoz is a Muslim foundation. Around 875 Ibn Marwan, a nobleman who had been driven out of Mérida, built a walled city here, Batalyaws. In the 11th century it was the capital of one of the largest taifa kingdoms of al-Andalus. In 1169 the Almohads extended the castle down towards the river, so that the water supply would be secure even during a siege. On 19 March 1230 King Alfonso IX of León conquered the city.

After that, Badajoz became a fortress against Portugal for centuries. In 1336 Portuguese troops besieged the city, in the Restoration War from 1640 Portugal attacked again, and in 1658 work began on a large outwork in front of the bridge. In 1801 the Peace of Badajoz between Spain and Portugal was signed here. Eleven years later came the night that is considered the worst of the whole war against Napoleon: in April 1812 Wellington's troops stormed Badajoz, which was held by the French, lost around 5,000 men in doing so, and then plundered the city. And in August 1936, in the Spanish Civil War, Franco's troops shot hundreds of Republicans in the bullring after taking the city.

The counterpart: why Badajoz looks towards Elvas

Badajoz and Elvas are two fortresses that were built to watch each other. As you walk through the Alcazaba, you pass a gate that bears the name of the neighbouring town: the Puerta de Yelves, also called the Puerta de los Carros. Yelves is the old Spanish name for Elvas. The walls you see in Badajoz were built above all against the town you are walking to tomorrow, and the walls of Elvas against Badajoz.

In the winter of 1658 to 1659 the Spanish army pitched camp on the border river Caia and besieged Elvas. After the defeat on 14 January 1659 the remains of the army withdrew here. Today the border is open, and you cross it on foot without anyone stopping you. The only thing that changes sharply is the clock.

From the cathedral to the river: what to see

The old town is compact. If you start at the cathedral, the Plaza Alta, the Alcazaba and the Puerta de Palmas are each only a few streets away, and you will pass the Puerta de Palmas the next morning anyway.

• Catedral de San Juan Bautista: Building began in the 13th century after the conquest of 1230, and according to one source it was converted from a mosque. From outside it looks like a castle, with battlements and a square tower 41 metres high, built in 1542. It was built this way because the city was at war so often. Inside it has three naves with late Gothic vaults. For you it is the starting point: this is where the way to Elvas and on to Santiago begins. The cathedral stands on the Plaza de España. Entry with bell tower and audio guide can be reserved through a booking portal; we did not find opening hours or Mass times.
• Plaza Alta: The square lies above the old Muslim market and was the centre of the city for centuries. It has been rebuilt several times since the 15th century, and its wine-red and white facades with geometric patterns and brick arches show Mudéjar, Renaissance and Baroque influences. After decades of decay it has been restored. Right next to it, at Plaza de San José 18, there is a tourist information office in the Casas Mudéjares; the walk along the walls of the Alcazaba starts from there.
• Alcazaba and Torre de Espantaperros: The castle on the hill covers almost eight hectares. Most of the surviving wall dates from the Almohad period in the 12th century. After 1230 the military orders of Santiago and Alcántara settled here, so the order of the apostle you are walking to had its seat in this castle. The octagonal Espantaperros tower, built around 1170, is the city's landmark. The walk along the wall is free and signposted with boards and QR codes. The city opens the tower itself only at certain times, for example on the holiday weekend in October 2026.
• Museo Arqueológico Provincial: The museum is in the Alcazaba, in a 16th-century palace of the Suárez de Figueroa family. It shows more than 20,000 pieces from the province, from prehistory through the Romans to the Muslim period, including Bronze Age warrior stelae, one of the most complete collections on the Iberian Peninsula. Open Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 3pm, and free for EU citizens. A good place for a hot midday.
• Puerta de Palmas and Puente de Palmas: The city gate with its two round towers was the main gate of Badajoz and at the same time a triumphal arch for Emperor Charles V, whose coat of arms stands out on the outside. An inscription bears the year 1551. On the inside there is a chapel of Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles, and prisoners were held in the towers. Behind it begins the 582-metre bridge over the Guadiana. Today the gate stands in the middle of a roundabout. In the morning you walk through it and over the bridge, and with that you have left Badajoz.

Food and drink

Typical of Badajoz and Extremadura are migas, toasted breadcrumbs, and caldereta, a stew. Keep the clock in mind: in Spain people eat late, and tomorrow evening in Portugal it is an hour earlier.

Honestly

• The cathedral doesn't make it easy for you. We found fixed opening and Mass times nowhere, not even on the tourism portal. Ask at the tourist information office before you end up in front of a locked door in the evening.
• The first stage has no village. According to Camino Ninja there is no place between Badajoz and Elvas. We have not found out where you can get water on the way. Take enough with you.
• The towers are mostly closed. The city opens the Torre de Espantaperros and the towers of the Puerta de Palmas only from time to time. Expect to see them from the outside.
• The history is not all glory. 1812 and 1936 are two of the darkest dates in Spanish history, and both belong to Badajoz. If you know that, you look at the walls differently.

Ninja tips

• Turn your clock back in your head. Spain is an hour ahead of Portugal. If you want to get something done in Elvas at a particular time, count in Portuguese time.
• Start at the cathedral. The Camino Ninja track begins at the Plaza de España. From there it is only minutes to the Puerta de Palmas.
• Walk along the Alcazaba wall. The walk is free, and from above you can see the Guadiana and the bridge you cross tomorrow. It is best to start at the tourist information office on the Plaza de San José.
• Save the museum for midday. The Archaeological Museum is open from 9am to 3pm, so exactly in the hot hours. After that the evening is free.
• Ask for the stamp. We have not found a fixed stamping place for the pilgrim passport. Try the cathedral or the tourist information office.

Practical tips for pilgrims

• Tourist information: According to the Extremadura tourism portal, the Oficina de Turismo is open daily, including public holidays, from 10am to 2pm, and in the afternoon from 5pm to 7:30pm in winter and from 5:30pm to 8pm in summer. Telephone +34 924 22 49 81.
• Cash: Badajoz is a big city. Withdraw what you need for the first few days here, because beyond Elvas the places get small.
• Cathedral: Tickets with tower and audio guide (in Spanish, English and Portuguese) can be booked online.

Onward: over the Guadiana into Portugal

The first stage is 21.7 kilometres long and takes you out of Spain. From the cathedral you walk through the Puerta de Palmas and over the Puente de Palmas to the right bank of the Guadiana, then west towards the border. According to Camino Ninja there is no place on the way. Elvas lies at 337 metres, around 150 metres higher than Badajoz, so you climb gently towards the end.

From Elvas the route continues through Casas Novas and Ciladas to Vila Viçosa, Borba and Estremoz. There it flows into the Via Nascente, which comes from Tavira on the Algarve and leads to Trancoso. Camino Ninja describes this young route together with Turismo do Alentejo e Ribatejo, the region's tourism authority.

What awaits you tomorrow

Elvas, the Portuguese answer to Badajoz. Since 2012 the garrison town with its fortresses has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its system of bastions and dry ditches is considered the largest in the world. There the clocks run an hour behind, and you finally see from the inside the town that looked across at Badajoz for so long.

Deep dive: Two fortresses, one river

A short read, in case you want to learn more about Badajoz. About three minutes' reading.

A city of clay and walls

When you stand at the cathedral of Badajoz, you are standing in a city that was born as a fortress. Around the year 875 Ibn Marwan, a Muslim nobleman who had been driven out of Mérida, built a walled city on this hill by the Guadiana. It was called Batalyaws. In the eleventh century it was the capital of a kingdom of its own, one of the great taifas of al-Andalus. In the twelfth century the Almohads strengthened the castle and drew their walls down to the river, so that the city had water even when the enemy stood at the gates. On 19 March 1230 King Alfonso the Ninth of León took Badajoz. After that the knights of the Order of Santiago and the Order of Alcántara moved into the castle.

An enemy within sight

With the Christian conquest Badajoz gained a new neighbour and a new enemy: Portugal. In 1336 a Portuguese army besieged the city. From 1640, when Portugal broke away from the Spanish crown, both sides armed themselves. In the Alcazaba guns were set up, in front of the bridge a large outwork was built, and on the other side of the border bastion after bastion grew up in Elvas. In the winter of 1658 a Spanish army set out from here to besiege Elvas, and in January 1659 the remains of that army came back defeated. In this way the two cities built each other.

The worst night

Badajoz has lived through several sieges in its history. One has stayed in Europe's memory. From 16 March to 6 April 1812, in the war against Napoleon, Wellington's troops besieged the city, which was held by the French. In the assault the British lost around 5,000 men. What happened afterwards is called by historians the worst night of the whole war: the soldiers plundered the city they were meant to liberate, and between 200 and 300 civilians were killed or injured. In August 1936, in the Spanish Civil War, the horror repeated itself in another form. After Franco's troops took the city, hundreds of Republicans were shot in the bullring.

The border that is open

As this text was written, in the autumn of 2026, none of this can be felt any more on the way to Elvas. The border is open, the fortresses are monuments, and in 2022 Badajoz decided to join the Caminos de Santiago as a pilgrim city. The city wanted to connect the Vía de la Plata, which runs north from Seville, with the Portuguese route that begins in Tavira on the Algarve. The route was to lead through the old town, past the cathedral and through the Puerta de Palmas to the river.

What Badajoz gives you

You begin your journey in a city that spent centuries looking at the other side, with cannons and mistrust. Tomorrow you walk over there, on foot and without a passport, and at the border you even get an hour as a gift. A beginning needs to say no more than that: where walls once stood against each other, a path now leads through.