Banos del Alcazar Califal de Cordoba
Banos del Alcazar Califal de Cordoba
Banos del Alcazar Califal de Cordoba
3.5
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3.5
193 reviews
Excellent
29
Very good
57
Average
70
Poor
25
Terrible
12
Dimitris L
Sydney, Australia50,924 contributions
June 2019
We were glad we visited Banos del Alcazar Califal de Cordoba. This 10th century construction had been lost for ages until their discovery in 1903. However they were again somehow buried away until finally they were rediscovered in the 1960s! There is not a great deal surviving but the remains, along with video on site, give it a new lease of life and provide the visitor with a fair idea of their usefulness and how they worked. Definitely worth visiting.
Written 24 May 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
efustok
Houston, TX1,314 contributions
June 2023 • Family
Dear readers, this is easily missed when visiting Cordoba...we just happened to be curious enough to see what was below. It is not clear that there is this amazing museum beneath our feet. It is across from the the Alcazar, and you take the ramp down to the entrance. Start with a brief history of the hammam's of Andalusia, then walk around recreations, and actual parts that still exists from the time the aristocrats would come bathe. My kids really enjoyed it, because it is very interactive. We enjoyed the different rooms you walk through and get a feel what it must have been like to come take your bath and relax. Don't miss it, it is a fun experience.
Written 20 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
HilaryJA
Sevenoaks, UK31 contributions
Feb 2024 • Couples
Interesting small museum about the ancient baths. It is located very close to the Alcazar de los Cristianos. We found that the advertised opening hours were not accurate but spotted it was open when we were passing and managed to squeeze in a brief visit before our tour of the Alcazar
Written 7 March 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Giulia P
75 contributions
July 2019 • Couples
Unfortunately, not much has survived of these Arab baths. However, they are still worth a visit and there is a very interesting video at the entrance which explains the history of the baths and shows what they looked like and what each room was for. As you walk around, the best feature is the ceiling which can still be seen in some rooms and which has star shaped holes where the sun light filters in.
Written 24 July 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Flaunce
Goose Creek, SC41 contributions
Mar 2017 • Couples
Sorry, not much to see, a real ruins. Disappointing given the many other Cordobese attractions nearby... token fee, not worth it.
Written 9 March 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jorge A
Faro, Portugal466 contributions
Sept 2015 • Friends
The "Caliphate Baths" are Arab baths of Cordova, whose remains were found accidentally in 1903 in the "Campo Santo of the Martyrs", which months later were buried. It is part of the historic center of Cordoba which was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1994.
On October 26, 2006, after two years of reforms for their adequacy, the Caliphate Baths opened to the public as a museum. The tour runs through a series of rooms that includes a reception area, old clothes, an Andalusian garden, a lounge Taifa, the Almohad bathroom and service area.
These baths or hammam, contiguous to the late Umayyad Alcázar, have been possibly be the most important of the city. Made under the Caliphate of Al-Hakam II for the enjoyment of the caliph and his court, form a set of stays with ashlar walls. Replicate the inherited order of the Roman baths of cold, warm and hot, in different rooms closed with vaults (where the characteristic star skylights appear), supported by ultra semicircular arches on capitals and marble columns rooms.
On October 26, 2006, after two years of reforms for their adequacy, the Caliphate Baths opened to the public as a museum. The tour runs through a series of rooms that includes a reception area, old clothes, an Andalusian garden, a lounge Taifa, the Almohad bathroom and service area.
These baths or hammam, contiguous to the late Umayyad Alcázar, have been possibly be the most important of the city. Made under the Caliphate of Al-Hakam II for the enjoyment of the caliph and his court, form a set of stays with ashlar walls. Replicate the inherited order of the Roman baths of cold, warm and hot, in different rooms closed with vaults (where the characteristic star skylights appear), supported by ultra semicircular arches on capitals and marble columns rooms.
Written 19 July 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jbg74
Saint Paul, MN1,098 contributions
Nov 2018 • Friends
The baths are one of the only remaining parts of the original Muslim Alcazar. There wasn't much to the museum and I would not recommend spending time here if you are only doing a day trip but if you are here for a few nights it has some historical significance and was somewhat interesting. Go to the Mezquita, the Alcazar, the Synagogue, and wander around the old city before considering coming here. It only takes less than 30 minutes. Most of the information and the audio is in Spanish. There is some English translation on the information on the walls.
Written 23 November 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Alex W
Singapore, Singapore1,426 contributions
Feb 2018 • Solo
This is not worth even its cheapish 2.50 euros admission. Very little has been preserved, and in some of the rooms, too much has been reconstructed -- so you wonder how faithful the reconstruction is given that they started with just a heap of bricks and a vague outline of a bath. The curation tells you almost nothing, and is a little too glossy. It’s not a large space either and in 10 - 15 minutes, you've seen all there is to see.
Location is about 50 – 100 metres North of the entrance to the Alcazar. Look for a low, modern structure with steps going underground.
Location is about 50 – 100 metres North of the entrance to the Alcazar. Look for a low, modern structure with steps going underground.
Written 21 March 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
geert c
Deinze, Belgium302 contributions
Oct 2017 • Couples
in half an hour you get an impression of how the old baths / hammam of the arabs were. For ages it was covered but now it is restored in its original splendor (as far as possible).
Written 28 October 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JLeeHazlett
Fairbanks, AK85 contributions
Mar 2016 • Couples
These baths could be such an amazing piece of history to visit. As it is, though, it feels like someone said 'let's make a museum' without first understanding the little touches that make a museum great. I really hope that someone with the museum checks these reviews and will consider some of my concerns/suggestions.
-There's no map to carry with you, or at least there weren't any when I visited. This seems trivial since this is a relatively small space, but you go through enough different rooms that it would have been enlightening to have a visual guide to where you were. This would also be a great place to put more information about the baths/rooms and what went on in each.
-I found the signage to be mediocre at best. There was some, and it was in both Spanish and English, but it was sporadic and often badly placed. In a couple of instances the signs were located in a place/height that made it impossible for more than one person at a time to view them. There were other places or heights nearby where the information would have been accessible to more eyes at once. I would also have liked to have a LOT more information on what specifically occurred in the (mostly empty) rooms I was walking through. I understand the desire to keep the walls of the baths as uncovered as possible, so more signage probably isn't the answer, but there are other options like a carry-along map or an audioguide. And while there is a video at the beginning of the exhibit, it's difficult for many people to watch at once and also asks that you hold everything it says in your head and assign it to the proper (unlabeled) room when you get there.
-There are two separate paths that branch off from the entrance. At their ends these two paths should connect (there is literally an empty doorway between the ends of the paths that was roped off to keep people from going through it). As it is you have to backtrack along each path, first to get to the other half, then to exit. In certain narrow areas this causes traffic issues, and it certainly distracts from any enjoyment of what you're seeing. The flow would be much better if they made the path a loop. In one end, out the other and out the door.
-There are a lot of bare walls and empty niches throughout the museum. It would add a lot to the experience if a few carefully curated exhibits were added. I'm not suggesting signs so much as examples (whether antique or reproduced) of the sorts of jugs, towels, and other bathing equipment that were historically used in bath houses like this one. These items wouldn't take up much space, would add a lot of interest and reality to the exhibit.
I realize that none of what I've suggested could be done for free (except maybe moving that rope barricade for better traffic flow), but honestly I'd pay more than the current 2.50 Euros entry fee if this museum was as great as it could so easily be.
-There's no map to carry with you, or at least there weren't any when I visited. This seems trivial since this is a relatively small space, but you go through enough different rooms that it would have been enlightening to have a visual guide to where you were. This would also be a great place to put more information about the baths/rooms and what went on in each.
-I found the signage to be mediocre at best. There was some, and it was in both Spanish and English, but it was sporadic and often badly placed. In a couple of instances the signs were located in a place/height that made it impossible for more than one person at a time to view them. There were other places or heights nearby where the information would have been accessible to more eyes at once. I would also have liked to have a LOT more information on what specifically occurred in the (mostly empty) rooms I was walking through. I understand the desire to keep the walls of the baths as uncovered as possible, so more signage probably isn't the answer, but there are other options like a carry-along map or an audioguide. And while there is a video at the beginning of the exhibit, it's difficult for many people to watch at once and also asks that you hold everything it says in your head and assign it to the proper (unlabeled) room when you get there.
-There are two separate paths that branch off from the entrance. At their ends these two paths should connect (there is literally an empty doorway between the ends of the paths that was roped off to keep people from going through it). As it is you have to backtrack along each path, first to get to the other half, then to exit. In certain narrow areas this causes traffic issues, and it certainly distracts from any enjoyment of what you're seeing. The flow would be much better if they made the path a loop. In one end, out the other and out the door.
-There are a lot of bare walls and empty niches throughout the museum. It would add a lot to the experience if a few carefully curated exhibits were added. I'm not suggesting signs so much as examples (whether antique or reproduced) of the sorts of jugs, towels, and other bathing equipment that were historically used in bath houses like this one. These items wouldn't take up much space, would add a lot of interest and reality to the exhibit.
I realize that none of what I've suggested could be done for free (except maybe moving that rope barricade for better traffic flow), but honestly I'd pay more than the current 2.50 Euros entry fee if this museum was as great as it could so easily be.
Written 21 June 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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