Today we are going to Jerez de la Frontera – a beautiful city in the south of Spain and I will show you my top 7 list of things to see and do in Jerez. As always, you can find our YouTube video at the end of the post. Check it out!
You don’t need a car in Jerez and all the places shown below are walkable and close to the center of Jerez.
Jerez is a very old city, in the south of Spain, belonging to the Andalucia region. It’s around 90 km south of Seville. Jerez is renowned for its rich cultural heritage and world-class sherry wine production. The city’s historic charm is evident in its well-preserved medieval architecture, including the impressive Alcázar fortress and the Gothic-style cathedral.
Jerez is also a hub for flamenco music and dance, fascinating visitors with passionate performances. The city’s horseback tradition shines through the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art, where visitors witness skillful horsemanship. Beyond its cultural charm, Jerez is at the heart of the “Sherry Triangle,” producing the globally acclaimed Jerez-Xérès-Sherry wine.
Jerez blends tradition, history, and gastronomy, making it a great destination to visit.
On an early Thursday morning in February, we took off from Barcelona towards Jerez. Jerez (XRY) has it’s own airport but limited departures per day. Seville (SVQ) is a good option if you can’t find a flight directly to Jerez.
1. Visit a local Tabanco
We will go straight to the first thing to do in Jerez, which is to visit a local Tabanco for tapas. We choose Tabanco Plateros which had really good reviews online.
The menu was extensive. We tried some local tapas and wine. Smoked tuna, Payoyo cheese, stuffed mini-peppers and almonds which are all local and delicious. A local guitarist dropped and played some a traditional songs. The bill came to 22 euros, very affordable for high quality tapas, I believe.
2. Alcazar of Jerez
The Alcazar is a historic fortress in the heart of Jerez. Dating back to the 11th century, it’s a former Moorish Alcazar, featuring intricate Islamic architecture, stunning gardens, and towering walls that whisper tales of bygone eras. Once a residence for Muslim rulers, it later underwent Christian modifications, blending styles seamlessly. The entrance fee is €5 per person.
You can climb the Octogonal Tower which is contructed in Almohad style. From the top you’ll have a great view over the Alcazar and the city of Jerez.
There is plenty to see at the Alcazar, including ancient architecture, an olive press and an old mosque. Strolling around the mosque, was this incredible peacock. What a proud bird.
You can also enter the magnificent Baroque palace – known as the Villavicencio Palace. Full of impressive rooms and details. On the top floor in an old pharmacy.
3. Royal Andalucian School of Equestrian Art
The Royal Andalucian School of Equestrian Art is one of the “Big Four”, the most prestigious classical riding academies in the world.
Tickets starts from 8 euros for a short tour. But to see the stables and tack room you need to go for the full tour which costs 13 euros. Unfortunately we were not allowed to film in the stables and tack room but it was well worth the extra 5 euros.
4. Mercado Central de Abastos
The building is neoclassical in style and was completed in 1885. It’s divided into three main areas: meat, fish and fruits/vegetables. The Market has four cold rooms in the basements, where the merchants’ perishable products can be preserved. Remember, it’s not a museum so buy something to support the local sellers.
We bought some tasty local Payoyo cheese to bring home. Outside the market is Plaza de Abastos where more food-stalls are present.
5. Tio Pepe Winery
Tio Pepe is located next to the Cathedral of Jerez and offers tours in Spanish, English and also German. We went for the Spanish tour and the tickets were 30 EUR each including tasting two wines. Jerez is most famous for its Sherry wine and the most famous brand is undoubtedly Tio Pepe which means Uncle Pepe, named after one of the founders uncle.
The company behind Tio Pepe is Gonzalez y Byass. Manuel Maria Gonzalez Angel founded the winery in 1835 and early on he met the English wine merchant Robert Blake Byass. In 1855, Mr Byass got appointment exclusive agent for England and this was the beginning of a great success. By 1856 Gonzalez Byass was the leading export company and maintained that position for 20 years.
Sherry is one of the most diverse varieties of wines and within this one category we find a large number of different styles of wine. First of all, Sherry is fortified wine which can be divided into dry wines (Fino, Manzanilla, Amontillado, Oloroso and Palo cortado) and sweeter wines (Medium, Cream, Moscatel and Pedro Ximénez).
The range of Sherries offer an impressive range of colours, aromas and flavours.
We got an extensive tour of the facilities, got to see all the black oak barrels, where the sherry wine is aged. There was a flamenco exhibition going on and some flamenco girls in traditional dresses showed up.
Then we walked to another storage room where a lot of famous peopled had signed different barrels. Paco de Lucia, Steven Spielberg and Ayrton Senna was some of them. There was also the royal casks that belongs to the Spanish royal family.
Lastly we went for the tasting where we tried the two types of sherry. One very (significantly) dry and one sweet.
6. Abaceria Cruz Vieja
We went for food at a great place called Abaceria Cruz Vieja. It’s located very close to the statue of the famous actor, singer and flamenco dancer Lola Flores. She was born in Jerez and is considered the “biggest exporter of Andalusian culture to date”.
At Abaceria Cruz Vieja we had some great chickpeas with prawns, smoked tuna together with creme sherry wine, which is the dark-golden sweet dessert wine style sherry. They have great reviews and certainly lived up to the expectations. The place was full of locals.
7. See a Flamenco Show
Lastly, we want to see a local flamenco show tonight. The place to go to is called Tabanco El Pasaje. They offer flamenco shows every night at 7pm and 9pm. Rather than just showing up, be sure to book a table for the best view. For €30 each, you get to see the show from the first row and you can spend this money towards your food bill.
You can also watch the show for free from the bar area, but it can get very crowded unfortunately. The food here was also great so I would highly recommend it. We tried the Tostas – Cheese and caramelized onion, jamon iberico and more. Very tasty!
Jerez is a great place to visit and there is plenty of things to see and do. I would really recommend a visit.
See our YouTube video for more information:
