10 Things to Do in Cádiz with Kids

Cadiz is one of the favourite destinations for tourists travelling to Andalusia and is also an ideal place to visit with the family and children, as it offers family-friendly beaches, water parks for young and old, exhibitions of all kinds and a wide variety of attractions for children.

To the list of the best things to see and do in Cádiz with children, you can also add ice skating, a dolphin and whale watching excursion in the Strait of Gibraltar, a visit to an amusement park or a trip to a youth fair. There are also many Christmas activities for the whole family during the Cádiz winter and excursions to enjoy in the summer.

If you plan to visit Cádiz in the summer, don't miss the beaches of Cádiz, which are some of the best on the Andalusian coast. If you are visiting the city with children, I recommend:

• La Caleta, located in an area close to the historic centre. It is ideal for visiting with children because it has warm waters and is surrounded by restaurants and other leisure activities. It is also one of the most popular beaches with visitors and one of the largest in Cadiz, so you will never be short of a place to put your parasol, although it can get very crowded during the summer.
• Sanlúcar de Barrameda, ideal if you prefer beaches with fewer tourists. It is a seaside resort near Jerez de la Frontera that also stands out as the epicentre of local activities. If you visit Cadiz in August, you can attend the Sanlúcar Horse Races, a traditional event that has been held in the city for over 100 years.
• Playa de la Calzada and Playa de las Piletas, located in Sanlúcar, are notable for being quiet areas for swimming.
• Bolonia Beach, located in Conil de la Frontera, Zahara de los Atunes and Tarifa, has been voted one of the most beautiful beaches in Spain for several years running.

The little ones will have a great time if you book an equestrian show in Jerez, an event that will allow you to enjoy a unique experience at the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art.

Lasting approximately three and a half hours, this option offers not only a show of horses dancing to the rhythm of Spanish music, but also the opportunity to explore the city of Jerez with a professional guide.

The guide will take you to discover the city's most emblematic monuments, such as the Alcázar de Jerez, the Church of San Miguel and the Plaza del Arenal. At the end of the tour, you will enjoy the equestrian show, whose choreography will be accompanied by riders dressed in 18th-century style. An unforgettable memory for both children and adults.

The Children's City Park, located halfway between Cadiz and Jerez de la Frontera, is not an amusement park or a theme park, but a fictional village built to scale for children, where the whole family can enjoy play and leisure areas, shows and a long list of activities.

In this park, children can learn about life in society and visit banks, public squares and do adult activities. They can also use the zip lines, water areas, areas for riding bicycles and tricycles, and skating areas.

In addition, there are restaurants and bars for lunch. If you plan to visit Cadiz in December, you can also enjoy Christmas activities. During the summer, the park also offers a summer film series and camps for children's groups, including craft, balloon modelling, and painting workshops. You can learn more about this park by booking a guided tour of Jerez.

Useful information

• Price**...** Admission to the park starts at approximately €9 per person.
• Opening hours**...** Monday to Saturday, from 8 a.m. to midnight. The park is closed on Sundays and is only available for private events.
• Where... Arcos de la Frontera s/n, Jerez de la Frontera.

If your travel itinerary includes a visit to Cádiz in October, you can opt for a dolphin and whale watching excursion in the Strait of Gibraltar, an experience that children will love and that will allow you to discover the beauty and history of the strait.

The boats for whale watching excursions in the Strait of Gibraltar depart from the beaches of Tarifa during the mating and migration season of whales and dolphins, and during these tours you can also enjoy the experience of sailing between two continents. In addition, on clear days you can also see the Rock of Gibraltar and the African coast of Morocco from the boat.

You can also go on whale watching excursions if you decide to visit Cadiz in January, although it is a cold and rainy time of year, which makes sailing difficult. However, on mild days you can discover the marine species that permanently inhabit the Strait area. And if it is not the right time of year, you can book a private boat trip around Cadiz.

If you are planning to visit Cadiz in December or during Christmas with children, there are many things you can do to enjoy the festive atmosphere, including visiting the Playmobil Expoclick fair, visiting the Christmas market in Plaza de San Antonio and visiting Juvelandia. Book the Cadiz tourist bus and choose the one that best suits your preferences. Here is some more information:

• The Playmobil Expoclick fair in Chiclana is an exhibition of dioramas and giant plastic figures that has become a tradition for the whole family. This event takes place every year from the last days of November until Three Kings Day, and each edition has a different theme, which may consist of recreations of famous series and films such as The Walking Dead and Star Wars, making it one of the favourite activities for children.
• The Christmas market in Plaza de San Antonio is one of the most traditional in Cadiz and is the hub for some of the most important activities during Christmas. There you can browse the stalls, buy gifts and Christmas decorations, enjoy winter cuisine and see the 12-metre Christmas tree that becomes the main attraction in Cadiz's old town every year.
• Juvelandia, in Jerez de la Frontera, is a children's and youth leisure fair that takes place every year in González Hontoria Park and combines play centres, sports competitions, inflatable games, circus performances and children's music shows. This fair will also allow you to visit Jerez, which is one of the best activities to do from Cadiz.

If you plan to visit Cadiz in winter with children, you can visit Plaza de San Antonio, which during the Christmas season becomes the landmark of the old town and one of the stops if you book the guided tour of Cadiz.

There you can visit the Christmas Market and the 12-metre-high tree, as well as the ice skating rink, which is suitable for adults and children. The ice rink in Plaza de San Antonio is open from the beginning of December until Three Kings Day, and admission is free. You can bring your own skates or rent a pair at the Christmas Market stalls.

To get to the historic quarter, you can take public transport or the Cadiz tourist bus, which stops at the square. The Christmas Train, the Christmas story stall and the Professional Craft Fair are other children's attractions you can find in Plaza de San Antonio.

Useful information

• Price... Admission to the ice rink is free.
• When**...** From the first week of December until Three Kings Day.
• Where**...** Plaza de San Antonio, Cadiz.

The Puppet Museum in Cádiz is one of the favourite activities for children. Located at the old entrance to the city of Puerta de Tierra, it houses exhibitions with information and history about the world of puppets and puppeteers, as well as 500 objects representing what was for years one of the city's main industries. Bear in mind that Cadiz was renowned for the manufacture of puppets and ventriloquist's dummies.

The museum also offers interactive activities for children and tours that review the most significant historical events in Spain and Cadiz through puppet shows in small theatres where children can also play characters and recreate their own stories.

Admission to the Cádiz Puppet Museum is free, and you can also attend performances at the Tía Norica Puppet Theatre, which is renowned for its musical shows for children and comedy monologues. Be sure to visit, for example, after enjoying a bike tour of Cádiz.

Useful information

• Price**...** Admission to the museum is free.
• Opening hours**...** Tuesday to Sunday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Where... Puertas de Tierra, Bóvedas de Santa Elena, Cádiz.

Cadiz in summer is known for its beaches, warm climate and the many summer attractions the city has to offer. One of these is visiting one of Cadiz's water parks, an option that becomes even more appealing if you are planning to visit the city with children. The most popular are:

• Aqualand, located in El Puerto de Santa María, offers visitors giant slides, wave pools, playgrounds and water games. There is also an area with restaurants and drinks.
• Bahía Park is located in Algeciras and is a water park with slides, five pools, trampolines and rest areas for all ages, with restaurants and bars.

Bear in mind that water parks are usually open during the high season, between June and August, which are the hottest months in the city. To ensure you get a place, you can book your tickets in advance online, especially as the city receives the highest number of tourists during the summer season.

Genovés Park is one of the most emblematic sites in Cadiz and a visit here is one of the best things to see and do in Cadiz. It is also sure to be one of the points of interest if you book a guided tour of Cadiz. It is the most representative green space in the old town. Located by the sea, it has a wide variety of local shrubs and trees, monuments, palm trees, a grotto with a pond and a children's area with games.

The grotto is also a favourite spot for children because the area includes a waterfall that flows into a pond inhabited by a large number of ducks and surrounded by giant dinosaur sculptures. There is also an area where you can buy food and drinks.

Genovés Park also has attractions for adults, as you can visit the Santa Bárbara viewpoint, a place from which you can contemplate the immensity of the bay and also enjoy views of the park and much of the historic centre. Entry to the park is free.

Useful information

• Price**...** Admission to the park is free.
• Opening hours**...** The park is open every day from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Where... Av. Dr. Gómez Ulla s/n, Cádiz.

During the summer, Puerto de Santa María offers one of the most eclectic experiences in Cadiz with its medieval market, a fair where you can discover the city's past during the Middle Ages. The programme includes dance shows, medieval food and craft stalls, and children's activities.

If you plan to visit the medieval market with children, you can attend the circus shows and the performance of the jesters, among other typical characters from the Middle Ages. The medieval market is held every year in June in the Plaza del Castillo, which adds to the atmosphere of the period.

El Puerto de Santa María is located very close to Jerez de la Frontera and the beaches of Levante and Valdelagrana, so you can make the most of your visit by also visiting these nearby places, especially if you are planning a short stay in the city and want to save time. If that is the case, here is a list of things to see and do to discover Cadiz in 3 days.

Details of interest

• Price**...** Admission to the market is free.
• When... Every year during the month of June.
• Where... Plaza del Castillo, El Puerto de Santa María.

The patron saint festivities of the Virgen del Rosario are celebrated in a special way in Los Barrios, a town in the interior of the province of Cádiz. There, the Town Council organises a charity amusement park named after the Virgin, with the aim of collecting donations.

The Los Barrios amusement park has children's games, food stalls, a roller coaster and a bumper car track for adults and children, making it suitable for the whole family. It also has an initiative whereby the attractions operate without music or sound effects for two hours a day so that children with autism can attend.

The park is open during the local festivities, which are held every year during the second week of October. However, Los Barrios is just over 100 kilometres from the city of Cadiz, so it may be an inconvenient trip if you are planning a short stay in the city. If that is the case, here is a list of the best activities you can do in Cadiz in two days.

Useful information

• Price... Admission to the park is free and each attraction has an approximate initial cost of €3.
• When**...** During the second week of October.
• Where**...** In Los Barrios, Cadiz.