What you can see on the Albarracín webcam
The camera is fixed to the iron balcony of the town hall, beside its flags, and looks across the cobbled square to the arcades and the tall stone and plastered houses on the far side, with lanes climbing away between them. It shows whether the square is quiet or full: in the early morning delivery vans unload, later guided groups gather below the balcony and café tables spread across the cobbles. The same view is replayed as a time-lapse of the last 24 hours.
Albarracín's square, live from the town hall balcony
The town council's live camera is fixed to the balcony of the town hall, with its flags on the right of the frame, and looks down on the cobbled Plaza Mayor. On the left run the arcades below the town hall; opposite stand old houses of stone and plaster with iron balconies, and narrow lanes lead off uphill.
The square is the meeting point of the town, so the camera follows the rhythm of the day: vans unloading early in the morning, guided groups gathering below the balcony and, later, tables set out on the cobbles. It is live video, the best way to see how busy Albarracín is before you arrive.
A town on a rock
Albarracín takes its name from the Banu Razin, a Berber family who ruled a small Muslim kingdom, or taifa, from here in the 11th century. From 1167 it was an independent lordship for more than a century, before it passed to the Crown of Aragon. Its walls climb the ridge behind the town, its cathedral was built between 1572 and 1600, and the town has been a national monument since 1961. On the river side, houses with wooden balconies hang over the gorge of the Guadalaviar.
When to watch Albarracín
Albarracín is one hour ahead of the UK and Ireland. It lies high in the Sierra de Albarracín, so winter mornings are cold and summer evenings pleasantly cool. The square is at its liveliest from late morning, when visitors arrive from Teruel and further afield; early in the day it belongs to the people who live here.
Around Albarracín
Just outside the town, the pine woods of the Pinares de Rodeno, a protected landscape, are scattered with red sandstone boulders that draw climbers, and with rock shelters holding prehistoric paintings. Teruel, with its Mudéjar towers, is about 18 miles (30 km) to the east as the crow flies.
Getting to Albarracín
Valencia airport, with flights from the UK and Ireland, is the nearest, about 80 miles (130 km) away as the crow flies; Madrid is further. The lanes of the old town are steep and narrow, so visitors leave the car below and walk up.
