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Parador de Jaén
A historical viewpoint over the capital of olive oil
At the top of the hill of Santa Catalina, next to the castle of the same name, stands the Parador de Jaén, crowning the city and offering visitors a spectacular view of the mountains of the Sierra Morena and Sierra Mágina.
A starting point and destination for discovering all the charms of the Andalusian Renaissance, the Parador de Jaén stands out for its façade of huge stone walls and impressive interior vaults. There you’ll fund a traditional look that combines sober defensive architecture with regional craftsmanship that will take you to another age.
The Parador de Jaén stands next to the archaeological complex on the hill of Santa Catalina, the origins of which go back to the Phoenicians and where the remains of a large 8th c. Moorish castle can be seen.
The castle’s strategic location has always made it important as a defensive outpost. During the Peninsular War it was used as a bulwark for Napoleon’s troops, which provoked the interest of a later French leader, Charles de Gaulle, who came to the castle in 1970 to study documentation on the war.