Welcome
Enter Torre Tavira. The best views of Cádiz. Step into the 18th century, the city’s golden age, thanks to Cádiz’s trade with the Indies. Climb one of its 134 watchtowers — Torre Tavira, the highest point in Cádiz’s old town — home to a pioneering attraction in Spain: the Camera Obscura.
Come and see it all from TORRE TAVIRA.
At the Torre Tavira reception, there are three areas:
- Tourist information point, where visitors can obtain opening hours and brochures about the different attractions available in the province, city maps, activities to enjoy, schedules, and more.
- A small Cádiz souvenir shop where visitors can find a wide range of products.
- The ticket sales and customer service area, where the visit is explained in detail, including all information about the activities at the tower, the time of the Camera Obscura session, and the duration of the visit to the different rooms.
Our staff will be delighted to assist you with anything you may need.
Lieutenant Frigate Officer Antonio Tavira himself must have climbed these very stairs many times. In total, there are three different floors with easy-to-climb stair sections, where you can take a short rest before enjoying the Camera Obscura experience and its unbeatable viewpoint.
Desde hace ya más de diez años la Torre Tavira está luchando por un proyecto de accesibilidad, cuya pieza principal es un ascensor. Lamentablemente, la Comisión de Patrimonio de la Delegación de Cultura de la Junta de Andalucía, ha denegado esta propuesta alegando «contaminación visual», pero este rechazo no nos desanima y seguiremos luchando por lo que nos parece justo, ya que consideramos que el Patrimonio debe ser accesible a toda la población. Por eso, en 2013 lanzamos la campaña de sensibilización «101 maneras de subir a la Torre Tavira sin ascensor», que contó con un gran éxito por parte del público gaditano. Así mismo en 2015 presentamos un nuevo proyecto de accesibilidad con un ascensor por el interior de la Torre y actualmente permanecemos a la espera del veredicto por parte de la Comisión Provincial de Patrimonio y por parte del Ayuntamiento de Cádiz, propietario del edificio.
The first exhibition room is thematic and features informational panels that address different topics related to the history and evolution of the Camera Obscura.
The information in this first room focuses mainly on the operation of a Camera Obscura, its history throughout the centuries, and other Camerae Obscurae installed in Spain and around the world.
This room features a screen that continuously shows interesting reports about Cádiz, as well as a children’s area, where kids can draw and enjoy activities related to Torre Tavira.
The second exhibition room, from which magnificent panoramic views can be enjoyed, is dedicated to 18th- and 19th-century Cádiz. Two of the most important centuries in modern Cádiz history, when the Casa de Contratación de Indias was established in Cádiz, thanks to the development of Cádiz’s trade.
In this room, we find panels describing the Port of Cádiz and its intense traffic along the commercial routes with America; the merchants’ houses with their watchtowers; how Torre Tavira was designated the official watchtower of the Port of Cádiz in 1778, as it is the highest point in the old town; and an introduction to Don Antonio Tavira, its first watchman.
We can also find an interesting panel that shows the urban development of the city from its foundation to the present day.
A panel about the Cádiz Cortes of 1812 explains the history of Spain’s first Constitution.
The Camera Obscura is a pioneering attraction in Spain. It is based on an optical effect through which the scenes taking place outside the tower at that very moment are reflected onto a white concave screen, shaped like a table.
The Camera Obscura operates in sessions with limited capacity so that everyone can sit comfortably around the screen. Currently, and due to COVID-19, capacity is limited to 12 people. A guide explains the city’s monuments and history while the optical instrument rotates 360°, offering a unique tour of the entire city of Cádiz.
Each session lasts approximately 15–20 minutes, with sessions in different languages taking place every half hour, continuously throughout the day.
It is the highest area of the tower, from where the entire city of Cádiz and its bay.
In the lookout point, positioned like a periscope, is the tube containing the optical system of the Camera Obscura which allows us to see the projection of the entire panoramic view of Cádiz.
