What you can see on the Peñíscola webcams
Both cameras are on Playa Norte and both look south towards the old town. One, high up on a hotel, takes in the whole sweep of the beach: the sea on the left, the sand and the dunes in the middle, the promenade and apartment blocks on the right, and the castle rock at the end. The other, nearer street level and further north, looks across the palm-lined promenade to the sea, with the rock small on the horizon. Both stream live video, and each also has its 24-hour time-lapse.
Peñíscola beach webcam: North Beach and the castle
High up on the Gran Hotel Peñíscola, on the seafront of Playa Norte, this camera looks south down the length of the beach to the old town on its rocky headland, with the castle on top. On the left is the sea; in the middle the wide sand, the boardwalks over the dunes and the palm-lined promenade; on the right the hotels and apartment blocks of the beach front.
It is the classic view of Peñíscola, and a useful one: the long sweep of sand shows how busy the beach is, the line of the shore shows the size of the waves, and in the morning the sun rises over the sea on the left of the picture. It streams live video around the clock.
Peñíscola seafront promenade
From the Tamarindos holiday apartments, further north along Playa Norte than the town itself, this camera looks across the seafront promenade towards the castle rock, which appears small on the horizon to the right. In the foreground are the red paving, the benches and the tall palms of the promenade, then a strip of dunes and the sea beyond.
It is closer to street level than the other Peñíscola camera, so it shows the life of the seafront rather than the whole beach: people walking and cycling, cars on the service road, and whether the palms are bending in the wind. It is live video.
The castle of the Papa Luna
The present castle was built by the Knights Templar between 1294 and 1307. From 1415 until his death in 1423 it was the refuge of Pedro de Luna, Benedict XIII, the last of the Avignon popes, who held out here after the rest of Christendom had abandoned him. In 1960 the town played medieval Valencia in the film El Cid, and more recently it was a filming location for Game of Thrones. Below the walls, the Bufador is a cave through which the sea bursts in spray on rough days.
When to watch Peñíscola
The beach faces east and the cameras look south along it, so the sun rises on the left of the picture over the sea. Mainland Spain is one hour ahead of the UK. Late afternoon light turns the castle walls golden. In August the town opens its festival of early and baroque music with fireworks over the sea.
Around Peñíscola
The Serra d'Irta natural park, south of the town, protects one of the last undeveloped stretches of this coast, with paths and coves. Benicarló and its harbour adjoin Playa Norte to the north.
Visiting Peñíscola
Peñíscola is about 90 miles (145 km) north of Valencia, off the AP-7 motorway; Castellón airport is the nearest. The old town is steep and largely pedestrian, so park below the walls and walk up.
