Visiting Peñíscola Castle

Wrapping up a month-long stay in Valencia, Spain’s third largest city on the southeastern coast, I was up for one last day trip. Working remotely has allowed me to spend a month at a time in various European cities, while making the most of the weekends with trips around the countryside to explore so much of Spain.

On a sunny day, with the blue skies dotted with white fluffy clouds, I hopped on the train bound for Barcelona, jumping off just before the half-way point at Benicarlo, from where I took the bus to Peñíscola, a little castle jutting into the sea. It very much reminded me of Mont Saint-Michel in northern France.

Peñíscola is very touristy; think souvenir shop-lined boardwalks and restaurants packed with foreigners, but the little mound itself is quaint to wander.

The main attraction here is of course the Peñíscola Castle itself, which sits atop the mound and has historically played host to the Order of the Knights Templar and even though it was never considered completed, apparently withstood sieges and battles aplenty. The ticket to the castle ($5 per adult at the time of writing) also includes access to the little El parc d'artilleria garden below the castle from which you can get pretty views out over the ocean.