History · All year round
Roman Spain: ruins and monuments
Theatres still in use, an aqueduct standing in the middle of a city, walls you can walk all the way round and cities excavated by the sea: Hispania was one of Rome's most important provinces, and Spain has some of the finest Roman remains outside Italy.
Updated 20 October 2026 · How we make our guides
Great sites
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SpainMérida
Augusta Emerita: the theatre and amphitheatre, the bridge over the Guadiana and the National Museum of Roman Art, a World Heritage Site.
What to see in Mérida -
SpainTarragona
Tarraco: the amphitheatre facing the sea, the circus, the walls and the Les Ferreres aqueduct on the outskirts.
What to see in Tarragona -
SpainItálica
The first Roman city in Hispania, with one of the largest amphitheatres in the Empire and houses with mosaics, next to Seville.
What to see in Itálica -
SpainEmpúries
A Greek city and a Roman one side by side, at the edge of the beach on the Costa Brava.
What to see in Empúries
Monuments still standing
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SpainSegovia
The aqueduct, with more than 160 granite arches laid without mortar, runs right through the city.
What to see in Segovia -
SpainLugo
The only Roman wall in the world still standing in its entirety, with a wall walk that goes all the way round the city.
What to see in Lugo -
SpainCórdoba
The Roman bridge over the Guadalquivir and the columns of the Roman temple, right in the centre.
What to see in Córdoba -
SpainMedinaceli
The three-arched Roman gateway that greets you at the top of the hill.
What to see in Medinaceli
Theatres by the sea and gold mines
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SpainCartagena
The Roman theatre, discovered beneath the old town in the late 20th century, with a museum by Rafael Moneo.
What to see in Cartagena -
SpainSagunto
A restored Roman theatre at the foot of the castle, above the city that held out against Hannibal.
What to see in Sagunto -
SpainTarifa
Baelo Claudia, a Roman fish-salting town on Bolonia beach, with its forum, theatre and factories facing the sea.
What to see in Tarifa -
SpainLas Médulas
The red landscape left by the largest open-cast gold mines in the Roman Empire, a World Heritage Site.
What to see in Las Médulas
Frequently asked questions
Where can you see Roman ruins in Spain?
Mérida, Tarragona, Itálica and Empúries are the great sites; the Segovia aqueduct, the walls of Lugo and the bridge in Córdoba are still standing, and there are theatres in Cartagena and Sagunto.
What is the most important Roman city in Spain?
Mérida, ancient Augusta Emerita, capital of Lusitania, has the most complete set of remains, with a theatre, amphitheatre, bridges, temples and a great museum.
When is the best time to visit?
Spring and autumn: almost all the sites are in the open air, and in summer the heat is fierce in Mérida, Itálica and Córdoba.
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Reviewed 20 October 2026. Dates and seasonal warnings: the same data the Bagintravel app uses. Sources and method.
Cover photo: Lmbuga (Luis Miguel Bugallo Sánchez) (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikimedia Commons.