I never heard of Caceres until about a year ago. We were traveling in Spain (Santa De Compostela) and I heard a British travel advertisement for a beautiful small walled Spanish city that wasn’t overrun with tourists. I asked a few other travel friends and no one seemed to know much about it. Now I love traveling in Spain (check out some of my other blogs and you will see why). So, we put this this on our list for a future visit.
We had a few extra days in Portugal before a Transatlantic Cruise, so we thought we would go check the city out.
Caceres is west of Lisbon about halfway to Madrid. There is no direct rail connection from Lisbon, but there was daily bus service. You can also get to Caceres from Madrid or Seville vis bus or train.
Flexibus has daily service with a pickup directly at the Lisbon Airport. Our red-eye flight arrived around 1000 in the morning, which was perfect for a 1230 bus.
The bus took 4 hours but it was cheap (about $25 each) and it was located right outside the rental car counters/Metro station at the airport. It would be good to mention that most of the Flexibus buses depart from the train station (Lisbon Oriente) which requires an Uber or Metro ride from the airport. While we were sitting on a wall waiting for our bus, a family came over and joined us. I asked them if they were waiting for the bus and they confirmed that they were. I asked where they were going and they said Fatima…that is North of Lisbon. I asked about the time of her bus and she said 1230….same time as ours. That was odd since there was only one Flexibus parking spot. She showed me her ticket and asked if she was in the correct spot. I confirmed that she was not and that she needed to head over to the Metro Station. I pointed her in the direction to get Metro tickets or an Uber.
When the bus arrived at about 1215, we were the only passengers and the bus left early. Our first stop was Lisbon Oriente (Train Station) and we saw the passengers boarding the bus to Fatima along with fire or six other busses. Reva commented that she hoped they made it and she was glad that I had researched the bus system (ahead of time)! Flexibus is one of many direct bus services in Europe. They are quick, comfortable and a great option to flying.
We arrived in Caceres around 1750 (1 hour time change) and grabbed a taxi to the hotel. The taxi was in a pedestrian area by the Plaza Mayor and the old walled city.
The visitor center was located on the Plaza Mayor and was open well into the evening. One surprise with Caceres was the lack of English spoken. In almost all European cities, enough English was spoken to get by just fine. Here was an exception. Almost no one spoke English but everyone was quite friendly. Here the vast majority of the tourists were Spanish.
The old city didn’t disappoint. The streets were all cobblestone and the city was surrounded by a wall. Unfortunately, much of the walls were not accessible. There were no shops inside the old city, just small squares, gardens and towers. It was very pleasant to stroll around.
Just outside the old town was a large pedestrian area full of restaurants, bars, and stores. Everything you would expect in a European city.
One of the reasons to visit Caceres was to avoid tourist crowds and to enjoy some of the GOT filming locations. The City didn’t disappoint and we had a few relaxing days just poking around and exploring the area,
On the last day, we stumbled into the modern art museum. Spain likes its modern art and the museum was fun and free! Another nice visit.
Our time went quick here and catching the bus to Lisbon was easy. We were traveling on a Spanish Holiday and the bus was packed. The four hour ride was pleasant enough and we checked into our Lisbon hotel around 8:00 ready to start our next adventure.
If you have time and are looking for something a little different, Caseres is worth a visit. Two nights here is sufficient. For me, however, Girona Spain is still my favorite small Spanish City.
