Beautiful Bocairent: 10 top things to do in Bocairent, Spain

Hidden in the mountains of the Valencia Region, Bocairent is a village known for its cave houses carved into the rock, quiet streets, and views over the surrounding landscape. And there are many unique things to do in Bocairent despite its size.

We came to Bocairent for its famous caves, but stayed for its charm and picturesque views. You can visit Bocairent in about 3 to 4 hours, but it’s the kind of place where you might want to take your time. We actually came here three times, haha.

In this blog post, I’ll share all the best places to visit in Bocairent, from Covetes dels Moros and the underground Sant Blai Cave to the scenic hilltop Ermita del Sant Crist, overlooking the village, so you can make the most of your visit. Enjoy!

A few things to know about Bocairent

With a population of around 4,000 people, Bocairent is a mountain village in the Valencia Region. Its historic old town has been around for centuries and is built right into the rock, which is what makes it so unique.

Bocairent has roots going back to the Muslim period in the Iberian Peninsula, and later became part of Christian Spain during the Reconquista in the 13th century. You can still see this mix of history today as you walk through the narrow streets and old stone buildings.

The most famous attraction in Bocairent is its cave houses, Covetes dels Moros, which are a set of small caves with windows carved into a cliff. If you’re looking for hidden gems in the Valencia Region, Bocairent is the destination you are looking for!

So, what are the best things to do in Bocairent?

1. Pass through the beautiful L’Arc de Bocairent

The best way to start your visit to Bocairent is by walking up into the historic center. Since the old town sits on a hill, you’ll naturally make your way uphill as you go, passing along stone houses, through narrow alleys, and… beautiful L’Arc de Bocairent.

L’Arc de Bocairent is one of the main entrances into the older part of the village, or the medieval quarter. This beautiful 16th-century gateway actually serves as an aqueduct, carrying water into the houses of the old town, which is why it is also called Arco del Agua.

The beautiful stone arch leads you straight into the Plaça de l’Ajuntament. The square is a good place to pause for a moment before continuing your walk – you’ll find the town hall here, along with a few cafes and shops, as well as the Bocairent Church.

Location: L’Arc de Bocairent

2. See the Little Sistine Chapel & climb the tower of Bocairent Church

Since you are here in Plaça de l’Ajuntament, the next stop is just a short uphill walk through the charming old town to the main church, the Parish Church of the Assumption of Our Lady.

I love visiting centuries-old churches, because I like how moody they are, and I also love the architecture – people did things in a different way back then!

However, this church is absolutely worth a visit, even if you are not into old churches. Want to know why? Ok, read along!

The church was built back in the 16th century over what is believed to have been part of the old castle, reusing its stones, and today it shows a mix of Gothic, Baroque, and later Neoclassical elements as it was rebuilt and expanded over time.

Inside the main highlight is what people often call the “Little Sistine Chapel”. The ceiling and walls here are full of gorgeous frescoes, and I was honestly a little stunned by how a church in such a small town can hide this much beauty.

The rest of the church is simpler, but still very beautiful and richly decorated, compared to other churches in the area.

And then there’s the bell tower – the highest point in Bocairent! Entrance to the church also includes the climb up to the tower (the climb is a bit narrow and steep, but very manageable), so I highly recommend doing that.

From the top, you get wide views over the entire old town, the surrounding hills, and the rocky landscape that Bocairent is known for. I especially liked the view of the Ermita del Santo Cristo chapel sitting atop a nearby hill and the zigzag path leading up to it.

We even had a guide in the tower telling us all sorts of interesting facts about the church (although, in Spanish, haha!). A short visit to the church, the chapel, and the bell tower is definitely one of the best things to do in Bocairent! I really enjoyed it!

Location: Parròquia Assumpció de Nostra Senyora de Bocairent

3. Explore the mysterious Moorish Caves

From the old town, you can follow Carrer Ruta de les Covetes street that will take you straight to the most famous attraction in Bocairent – the Moorish caves, known as Covetes dels Moros.

These man-made caves are carved straight into a vertical cliff face – you’ll see around dozens of square-shaped window-like openings scattered around the cliffside.

It is believed the caves date back to the Moorish period, around the 10th century, and they were likely used as storage spaces (although their exact purpose is still a bit of a mystery).

Now, you need to know a couple of things about these caves before you show up there.

You can only access them during a guided tour, which takes place at certain hours. When we visited, they only did 3 tours a day, so we were lucky to get a place. The tour lasts 1 hour.

Secondly, the tour is not for everyone. There are not those kinds of caves where you can just walk inside. Instead, you will be crawling, bending over, sitting on your butt, and squatting. There is no place to stand or walk.

Thirdly, you need proper attire to join the tour, like closed footwear, covered knees, and comfortable clothes. And it’s best if you are not claustrophobic! 😉

However, if you get to join a tour, it will be one of the most adventurous and memorable experiences you can have in the Valencian Community.

These ancient Moorish caves are unique because the chambers carved into the rock are connected from the inside.

So you will be crawling through a labyrinth of chambers through small openings, all while listening to the guide telling you stories about the cave dwellings and Bocairent history.

Read more about the visit to the Moorish Caves here.

Tip! If you feel like this activity is not suitable for you, but you still want to know more about the ancient caves, check out the nearby museum, Covetes del Colomer, where you can watch videos and see photos of the interior of the caves.

Location: Les Covetes dels Moros

4. Peek inside the ice cave Cava de Sant Blai

After exploring the Moorish caves (well, we actually visited this place before the Moorish caves), I recommend a visit to another iconic nearby spot in Bocairent – the Sant Blai Cave.

To be honest, it is not really a cave – it’s a huge, man-made cistern carved into the rock, which dates back to the 18th century. Its main purpose? To store ice, so this is essentially an ice cave.

Turns out, back in the day, before the fridge freezers were invented, it was a whole lucrative business – to collect snow, compress it into ice, and conserve it in layers inside the cistern, and then sell it far and wide.

You can enter the snow pit through a narrow opening at the bottom. Once you get to the main vault, you will see how it worked. It’s a large, 11-meter-deep circular space carved into the rock, where the snow would be packed down and preserved.

There are also stairs leading up to the ceiling – you can climb them if you want to see how it looks from above. The cistern is actually bigger than you might expect!

It’s not a long stop, but it’s one of those places that helps you understand how people lived here centuries ago. And honestly, it’s pretty cool to think that this quiet spot was once part of a whole system for storing and distributing ice. I enjoyed it!

Tip! This ice cave has an entrance fee. If you are planning to drive around the area, there are other ice caves you can visit for free, like Cava Gran d’Agres in the Serra de Mariola mountains, a short drive from Bocairent!

Location: Sant Blai Cave

5. Walk over to the picture-perfect Bocairent Viewpoint

I think we’ve had enough of caves for a while, so it’s time for a nice walk to the other side of the village to see Bocairent’s most beautiful feature – the postcard-perfect view from the side!

The first stop is the Mirador de Darrere la Vila, or the Bocairent Viewpoint. You can get there by walking Carrer Mossen Hilario road, then crossing the medieval bridge across the Clariano River, and then looking back at the village.

From here, you get that picture-perfect view of the Pont darrere la Vila medieval bridge and the whole Bocairent old town stacked up on the rock, with the iconic bell tower standing tall high above the rest of the rooftops.

If you’ve come so far, you must make your way to another beautiful Bocairent viewpoint a little further – Mirador del Cementeri, right next to the entrance to the town’s cemetery, which gives you a wider angle over the town and the surrounding landscape.

Hunting the best postcard view of Bocairent was one of my favorite things to do in Bocairent!

Location: Mirador de Darrere la Vila – Mirador del Cementeri

6. Shop for local products in gourmet stores

After all the walking and sightseeing, do not leave this picturesque town without trying or buying something local. One of the best places to do that is 53 Covetes Mercacentro Gourmet.

This small shop is all about regional products, and it’s the perfect place to go if you want to try local delicacies and buy artisan products to take home with you.

They stock things like honey, cheeses, wines, jams, preserves, salsas, beer, olive oil, and all kinds of artisan treats, most of them made in or around Bocairent and the Sierra de Mariola Natural Park.

We ended up picking up quite a few things here – orange blossom honey, sheep cream cheese, a bottle of white wine from Bocairent, onion marmalade… and caramelized almonds for my husband (which didn’t last very long, hehe).

Besides, they also made us a small tasting platter to try different products, which made us buy some things we never thought we needed (like sheep cheese cream?!). But it’s always nice when you can actually taste things before buying!

If you can, I highly recommend stopping by this (or another) gourmet shop in Bocairent. Although we’ve left the village, I still have the taste of it at home as I’m writing this. And I much prefer picking edible souvenirs, instead of magnets or postcards.

Location: Productos de Bocairent

7. Stop by Bocairent’s unique bullring, Plaza de Toros

As you keep exploring the old town, make your way over to one of the most unusual spots in Bocairent – the Plaça de Bous de Bocairent. What’s so unusual about it?

Well, this is not your typical bullring. Instead of being built as a separate structure from scratch, it was carved directly out of a large rock!

Yep, it used to be a big piece of rock, and now it is a stone amphitheatre made for bullfights. This 19th-century bullring in Bocairent is also the oldest bullring in the Valencian Community.

The story goes that there was a textile crisis in the town centuries ago, and entrepreneurs feared that their workers would leave to work in other places if they didn’t offer them something, so they simply decided to do something random – make a bullring!

So that’s what they did – local workers carved the circular bullring with all its seating area directly into the rock. Pretty impressive! And bullfights take place there still to this day.

We went on a guided tour inside this bullring, but there is also a special ‘viewpoint’ where you can access the bullring from above and see it without paying the entrance fee (but you can’t walk around).

If you are short on time and don’t want to do a tour, then I recommend just walking over to the open gate next to the street and checking out the bullring from above from the viewpoint.

You can clearly see how all the seating area used to be one big rock!

It is much smaller than the big bullrings you might have seen in cities, but that’s exactly what makes it feel more authentic and local. Honestly, I didn’t expect to find something like this in a small village like Bocairent.

Location: Plaça de Bous

8. Hike up to Ermita de Santo Cristo for the views

If you still have some energy left, this is your sign to do one more climb – up to the Ermita del Santo Cristo, the small hilltop sanctuary you’ve probably seen multiple times from different places around Bocairent.

Getting here is an experience.

If you start from the old town in Plaça de l’Ajuntament, it will be a 1.3-kilometer hike up to the very top of the hill. It’s a bit of a walk, but not too difficult – just take it slow and enjoy the views along the way.

The chapel itself dates back to the 16th century and has long been an important religious symbol for the town. Many local festivals and cultural events take place here.

It’s a small, simple building, but the location is what really makes it special. Once you get up there, you’ll understand why this spot is worth it.

As we hiked up the hill, I kept looking back at the village – from this path, you can get some of the best views of Bocairent village!

Once you get to the top, you get wide, open views over the village, the surrounding valley, and the rocky landscape that makes this area so unique.

It’s a completely different perspective compared to the viewpoints closer to the village. I’m not so sure which view I liked best – from the Bocairent Viewpoints or from the chapel hill?

A visit to the chapel is not a must-do for everyone, but if you enjoy viewpoints and enjoy physical activities, this is easily one of the most rewarding things to do in Bocairent. I loved this hike!

Location: Ermita del Santo Cristo

9. Go underground at Monasterio Rupestre de Bocairent

Before you leave Bocairent, there’s one more place that’s a bit different from everything else in town – the Monasterio Rupestre de Bocairent.

At first glance, it looks like a normal historic monastery. But what makes this place special is what’s hidden underneath. Beneath the current building, there’s an underground convent carved directly into the rock.

It was built back in the 16th century by excavating it into the hillside. Sounds familiar? A group of nuns arrived here later that year and started living in what were basically cave-like cells.

When you go inside today, you can actually see parts of this original rock-carved convent. It’s surprisingly well preserved. There’s also a small underground church.

Later on, the cave convent was sealed, and a new structure was built above it, which eventually became the monastery you see today. But knowing what’s hidden below completely changes how you experience the place.

It’s definitely one of the most unique spots in Bocairent! When we visited, it was only open on Sundays, so take that into account when you plan a visit to Bocairent.

Location: Monestir de Bocairent

10. Go on a hike in Serra de Mariola

Bocairent sits next to the Serra de Mariola Natural Park, one of the most beautiful natural areas in the region, filled with nature trails, springs, and historical ice caves.

One of the best ways to enjoy the surrounding mountains is by going on a hike.

Once I did my research, I knew immediately that I wanted to do the Barranc del Cint hike, despite the trailhead being located in another town, Alcoy, on the other side of the mountain range.

The Serra de Mariola is known for its dramatic rocky cliffs, deep ravines, and wide open views. But Barranc del Cint is especially popular for its tall limestone walls and birdlife – vultures!

There are a few different variations you can do, ranging from short walks to longer hikes, depending on how much time and energy you have.

You can also walk a couple of hundred meters inside the ravine just to have a look and then hike back.

We decided to do a 6.5-kilometer route through the ravine and then up along the edge of the cliffs back to the trailhead, but we parked our car closer – at the side of the road right by the entrance to the ravine.

Please note that there is a small section that has restricted access in specific months of the year.

If you’re visiting Bocairent and have a car, this is an easy add-on to your itinerary. The gorge, the clifftop views, and the vultures were all there for us to enjoy!

Location: Barranc del Cint

Happy exploring!

We really enjoyed exploring Bocairent. It’s one of those villages that might look small at first, but once you start walking around, there’s actually so much to see.

From the narrow streets of the old town and the rock-carved Moorish caves to the historic church and viewpoints, there’s a really interesting mix of history and unique places here.

I hope this guide helps you plan your visit and discover some of the best things to do in Bocairent. It is definitely a place worth adding to your itinerary if you’re exploring inland Valencia!

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