Villanueva de las Torres

The town extends out into a gorge to the left bank of the Río Fardes. It used to be called Villanueva de Don Diego, probably because in the 17^th century it belonged to Don Diego Torres.

The main attraction here is the Balneario de Alicún de las Torres, located on the estate in which the Río Gor and the Río Fardes meet, at an altitude of 700-800 metres. Its medicinal waters were officially declared for public use on 31^st March 1870.

There are also a number of archaeological sites in this town, including Haza del Toril that dates back to the Neolithic and Bronze periods. The Baños de Alicún site dates back to the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic times, and it is here that dolmens, flint pieces, arrowheads, knives, ceramic fragments, glass and human remains have been discovered.

The archaeological sites that have been excavated in this area show that human settlers have lived in Villanueva de las Torres since prehistoric times. Of all the cultures that have subsequently come to the area, it was the Arabs that left most traces behind. There is even written evidence that the thermal waters were used as baths at this time. The town suffered from the many attacks of the Christian troops who were camped in Cazorla during the Nasrid period, and later went into decline after the Reconquista and the expulsion of the Moors.

It became a municipality fairly recently. This town has a lot of potential as a tourist destination because of its spa and its many cave dwellings that have been turned into tourist accommodation.

The local cuisine uses many locally grown almonds, olives and fruit. You should try the Papas a lo pobre, Ajoblanco, Conejo en fritada, Pipirrana, the traditional bean and chickpea soup, Gachas and the Migas.