BAEZA is tiny, compact and provincial, with a perpetual Sunday air about it. This beautiful town has around 16,000 inhabitants and is located in the municipality of Jaen in the province of Andalucia in Southern Spain.

The transport links are excellent to and from the city with regualr rail links from Madrid, Malaga, Sevilla and all the other major cities in the area.

At its heart are the Plaza Mayor - in fact comprised of two linked plazas, the Plaza de la Constitucíon at the southern end with a garden, and the smaller Plaza de España to the north - and paseo , flanked by cafés and very much the hub of the town's limited animation.

The Plaza de Leones , an appealing cobbled square enclosed by Renaissance buildings, stands slightly back at the far end. Here, on a rounded balcony, the first Mass of the Reconquest is reputed to have been celebrated; the mansion beneath it houses the turismo ( Mon-Fri 9am-2.30pm, Sat 10am-1pm; tel 953 740 444 ), where you can pick up a map ( which conveniently incorporates an Úbeda town map as well) and English-language walking-tour brochure of the town. There are no charges to enter any of Baeza's monuments but you may offer the guardian a small propina (tip).

Finest of Baeza's mansions is the Palacio de Jabalquinto (patio open Tues-Sun 10am-1pm & 4-6pm), now a seminary, with an elaborate "Isabelline" front (showing marked Moorish influence in its stalactite decoration). Close by, the sixteenth-century Catedral (daily 10am-1pm & 5.15-7pm), like many of Baeza and Úbeda's churches, has brilliant painted rejas (iron screens) created in the sixteenth century by Maestro Bartolomé, the Spanish master of this craft. In the cloister, part of the old mosque has been uncovered, but the cathedral's real novelty is a huge silver custodia - cunningly hidden behind a painting of St Peter which whirls aside for a 100ptas coin (which they may eventually get around to converting to take euros).

There are some good walks around town: wandering up through the Puerta de Jaén on the Plaza de los Leones and along the Paseo Murallas/Paseo de Don Antonio Machado takes you round the edge of Baeza with good views over the surrounding plains. You can cut back to the Plaza Mayor via the network of narrow stone-walled alleys - with the occasional arch - that lie behind the cathedral.

Videos of Baeza - Jaen
Google Map of Baeza

Accommodation is adequate but mostly upmarket: for budget options try the Hostal El Patio , Calle Conde Ramones 13, near the Plaza de Leones, an old Renaissance mansion set around an enclosed courtyard with a wood-beamed dining hall; or the Hostal Comercio , a main road at the end of the central square, at no. 21 - both have some rooms with bath. Best of the central pricier places is Hotel Baeza Monumental a brand new hotal located near the Puera de Ubeda. Good bets for food and drink include the ancient Cafetería Mercantil , on the Plaza de España, which besides being the best place for a lazy terrace breakfast offers decent tapas and raciones later in the day. Nearby, Casa Lucas , Plaza España 13, is a local favourite for more tapas and economical platos combinados . For a bit more style try the pleasant terrace of the mid-priced Restaurante Sali around the corner at Calle Benavides 9 with a view of Baeza's magnificent sixteenth-century ayuntamiento . Casa Pedro at no. 3 on the same street is another possibility, with a menú for around ( Euros12.

The nearest train station is Linares-Baeza 14km from Baeza and served by frequent trains from Sevilla, Córdoba and Granada (there is a connecting bus for most trains, except on Sundays where a taxi ride would be the better option. Most bus connections are via Ubeda.