Go back a few years and Murcia had the reputation of a bit of a backwater, a sleepy little city in Spain’s agricultural heartland. Definitely off the beaten track for tourism.

But these days, it’s been transformed. It’s a much more vibrant place. For a start, it’s now Spain’s seventh biggest city, some way ahead of its more glamorous neighbour Alicante to the north.

We started coming to Murcia because our son went to uni here. And there’s no doubt that all those thousands of students do give the city a younger vibe.

Murcia still has an historic old town, compact enough to make it a good place for a city break. Just don’t do it in the height of summer! In August, the city is a ghost town as everyone flees the relentless heat.

So when it cools down a bit, these are my top ten places to see in and around Murcia.

The cathedral

The glory of Murcia cathedral is its spectacular baroque facade, towering more than 50 metres above the Plaza de Cardenal Belluga and smothered in statues of saints and angels.

The cathedral interior doesn’t quite measure up to the over-the-top splendour of the outside, but is still worth a visit, especially for a guided tour of the belltower – it’s the second highest in Spain, apparently (La Giralda in Sevilla is the number one).

Almost a hundred metres up in the sky you get unrivalled panoramas of Murcia city, especially the old town.

Civil War hangover

Plenty of Murcianos have a bit of a beef with the cathedral these days. Why does it allow a tribute to the leader of Spain’s Civil War fascists to adorn the cathedral wall, right next to the public entrance?

It says “José Antonio Primo de Rivera. Presente! (Here!)”.

Quick bit of history – Primo de Rivera was the leader of Spain’s fascist party in the run-up to the Civil War. He’d been actively fomenting the idea of armed rebellion against the democratically elected government. Unfortunately for him, when the war started, he found himself in the Republican city of Alicante, where he was tried and shot.

OK, so the slogan has been on the cathedral wall for 80+ years. But now, it is actually illegal. Under La Ley de la Memoria Democrática (Law of Democratic Memory) all these fascist and Franco-era memorials should have been removed. And in most places across Spain, to be fair, they have been.

But Murcia Cathedral and its bishop don’t seem to be in any hurry. Maybe not too surprising, given that the Catholic church thought Franco was a bit of a hero. See this article here.

Political controversy over. Head over to the Bishops’ Palace (Palacio del Obispo) just across the plaza. The external frescoes are striking and the internal patio is worth a look too. And if you bump into the bishop while you’re there, tell him to shift the Primo de Rivera slogan!

Real Casino de Murcia

The Real Casino de Murcia is frankly fabulous! Head up the steps from the street into the Patio Arabe and it’s like walking into a little piece of the Alhambra! No coincidence there – the decor was inspired by the door to the Patio de Embajadores (the Ambassadors’ Entrance) in the Alhambra itself.

35,000 sheets of gold leaf went into the decoration of the Patio Arabe. An inscription in Arabic ‘Nothing greater than Allah’ runs round the interior of the space. Click through the gallery below for some highlights.

Traditional casinos in Spain are a world away from the Las Vegas version. Most of them started life in the 19th century as places where the wealthier citizens came to socialise and do business, a kind of upmarket gentlemans’ club.

The Real Casino de Murcia is still a private club, but anyone can buy a ticket and look around the ground floor. Not a roulette wheel in sight!

The place got a major facelift in the early 2000s. The result was so successful that King Juan Carlos gave it the title of ‘Real’ (Royal).

Highlights are the splendid Salon de Baile (Ballroom), the Tocador (Ladies Room) and the Patio Azul (Blue Patio). Check out the photo gallery below for some more highlights, starting with the rather fabulous balllroom.

Rio Segura & El Sardinero

The Rio Segura flows through the heart of Murcia. The old city was built around it. It’s not exactly the Blue Danube – more a muddy brown colour – but it is the focal point of the town.

Stroll aross the Puento Viejo (Old Bridge), also known as the Puento de Los Peligros (the Bridge of Dangers). That’s because La Virgen de Los Peligros (dangers) has a shrine on the far side.

You’ll notice a very large bronze sardine spouting water, smack in the middle of the river. What’s that about?

Fascinating fact!

The statue commemorates Murcia’s biggest fiesta of the year, El Entierro de la Sardina (the Burial of the Sardine) Yes, really!

The fiesta began life in 1851, so the story goes, when a bunch of students who’d had a drink or two (what a surprise!) after the carnival parade, walked through the streets of Murcia with a coffin containing a sardine. They then proceeded to burn it. Maybe as a protest at the Catholic church’s ban on eating meat during Lent – they were fed up with having to eat fish instead.

These days, La Fiesta del Entierro is a big deal. Tens of thousands of people descend on the city for the celebrations, which end with the burning of a papier-mâché sardine. More here.

It’s the culmination of a solid week of partying just after Easter, which includes the Bando de la Huerta fiesta and Batalla de las Flores (Battle of the Flowers). A real contrast to the seriously religious celebration of Semana Santa (Easter) itself.

Walk upstream to the modern Pasarela de Malecon, a beautifully-designed suspension bridge, supported by thick cables from a single mast in the middle of the river. Murcia’s duck population inhabits the waterfall below.

Plaza de las Flores

Murcia’s most famous square, in the heart of the old town, is crammed with bars and tapas places. Originally, the city’s meat market was here and the flower sellers set up their stalls around the market. At the end of the 19th century the meat market was demolished, but the flower sellers stayed on.

La niña de la Flores, (the Flower girl) by sculptor José Fuentes Aynar.

Jardines de la Floridablanca

Cross the river on the Puente Viejo and take a five minute stroll to the Floridablanca Gardens. It’s the first public park ever created in Spain and is a cool green oasis in the Barrio del Carmen, especially in the heat of summer. Rather a romantic name too!

Mercado de Verónicas

I’m a sucker for a stroll around a Spanish market. The food always looks amazing and the place is full of life. El Mercado de Véronicas has fish and meat downstairs (the best bit) and fruit & veg upstairs.

Next door there’s a restored section of the walls of the Muslim city of Mursiya. There’s a walk (tap here) that will take you round more remains of the Arab settlement.

Plaza Santo Domingo

One of Murcia’s most elegant squares, dominated by a huge ficus tree, a sculpture with hundreds of flower pots and some rather grand buildings.

Stop here for a drink before heading onwards to…

Teatro Romea

The handsome theatre building dominates the square of the same name – it’s named after Julián Romea, an actor born in Murcia and one of the city’s most famous sons.

Castillo & Cristo de Monteagudo

The next two sights are a few kilometres out of town, but you can see both from inside the city. They’re real landmarks.

The Castillo de Monteagudo, with a Rio de Janeiro-style Christ statue on top, is pretty much unmissable. It sits on a crag rising almost 500 feet from the surrounding plain, five kilometres outside Murcia.

It’s was originally a Muslim castle, built in the 1100s, and the Christ statue is a much more recent addition. Actually, there have been two – the first one went up in 1926, but it got demolished during the Civil War. The current version was built in the 1950s.

Unfortunately, you can’t climb up to the castle/statue, but there is a visitor centre at its foot. Which doesn’t really give you much info about the Christ statue!

Santuario de la Fuensanta

This church and monastery is up in the green hills just to the south of Murcia, with wonderful views over the city and surrounding plains.

Inside the church is La Virgen del la Fuensanta, the patron saint of Murcia. Fuensanta gets its name from a natural spring nearby which was reputed to have healing powers. Fuente (fountain) + santa (holy) = Fuensanta!

We ate here!

Murcia is a pretty good place to eat – it was voted Spanish Capital de Gastronomía in 2021. Here are a few great places we’ve tried.

Cafe-Bar Verónicas. A tiny place turning out top quality tapas right next to the Verónicas market. The ensaladilla rusa is one of the best I’ve tasted. There’s plenty of imagination on their other dishes too.

Inside, it’s usually standing room only, or there are tables outside. Run by chef Samuel Ruiz, it featured in the British TV food series “James Martin’s Spanish Adventure’. Deservedly so. Open Spanish lunchtime only (1100-1600)

Pura Cepa, Plaza Cristo del Rescate. A modern Spanish restaurant serving imaginative small dishes with a great wine list to match. Eat in the bar, outside in the square or inside the restaurant.

La Pequeña Taberna: quality fish and meat dishes in Plaza San Juan.

Try these Murcian tapas:

Marinera (tuna and potato mayonnaise salad, with an anchovy on top and an oval breadstick underneath), pasteles de carne (a kind of Murcian version of empanada, made with puff pastry) or ensalada Murciana (tomato, onions, tuna, olives, hard-boiled eggs).

Try also zarangollo, a dish of scrambled eggs with finely chopped courgettes, onion, and maybe potato.

We stayed here:

Hotel Zenit, just round the corner from Mercado de Verónicas and Plaza de las Flores. There’s reasonably priced underground parking nearby.

Try Cartagena!

The port city of Cartagena is half an hour down the road. If you like history with your holiday, it has more Roman remains than you can shake a stick at. Plus a beautiful harbour and a collection of Art Nouveau buildings. Check out my post here.

My top ten things to do and see in Alicante

© Guy Pelham