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Wise Pilgrim APPMerida was the capital of Lusitania — Rome's most important city in western Iberia — and the Romans left more here than anywhere else in Spain. The entire archaeological ensemble is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and you need at least half a day to see it properly.
To see most of what Merida has to offer, step off the camino after it crosses the Puente Romano. Immediately after the bridge, looming on your right, is the Alcazaba — a 9th-century Islamic fortress built with reused Roman and Visigothic stone (paid). Continue up Calle Cava to the far end and turn left to find the Co-Catedral Metropolitana de Santa Maria la Mayor, unassuming from the outside.
From there, head up Calle Romero Leal to the Templo de Diana (free) — the best-preserved Roman temple in Spain, its survival owed to being incorporated into a Renaissance palace. The Portico del Foro Municipal is 100 m further.
Keep going until you reach Calle Jose Melida and turn right toward the spectacular Teatro Romano and Anfiteatro. The theatre was built in 16-15 BC, promoted by Agrippa. It seats 6,000 and is still in active use — the Festival Internacional de Teatro Clasico de Merida has been running since 1933, with Greek and Roman plays performed under the stars every July and August. The amphitheatre next door held 15,000 for gladiatorial games.
Directly opposite the entrance is the Museo Nacional de Arte Romano, designed by Rafael Moneo. The building itself would be worth the visit even without the collection.
The Acueducto de Los Milagros is the last major site, on the camino as it leaves the city heading north. All services available.
Emerita Augusta was founded in 25 BC by Emperor Augustus to settle veterans of the Cantabrian Wars. It quickly became the capital of Lusitania and one of the most important cities in the western Roman Empire. The Via de la Plata connected it to Asturica Augusta (Astorga) in the north, originally a military and trade road used to transport gold from the northern mines.
After Rome, the Visigoths made Merida an important seat. The Moors took it in 713, and the Alcazaba was built on Roman foundations. Alfonso IX reconquered it in 1230. The city then entered a long decline — its Roman infrastructure slowly crumbling, its population shrinking — until systematic archaeological work began in the 19th century. The UNESCO designation in 1993 recognized one of the largest and most extensive Roman archaeological sites in Europe.
The camino does not make any real entrance into the oldest parts of Mérida and with the exception of the Alcazaba (the castle at the end of the bridge) and the Acueducto de Los Milagros it avoids passing any of the most significant buildings in the city.
From the shadow of the aqueduct, the camino proceeds northward to a set of roundabouts. At the first roundabout it bears left, and at the second roundabout, it does the same to follow along with the Avenida del Lago to Proserpina.
