Zaragoza

Country: Spain · 693,091 inhabitants

Attractions

Wikivoyage

Zaragoza is the capital and largest city of Aragon in Spain, and one of Spain's five largest cities, but it is one of the least known outside of Spain. Founded on the river Ebro during the Roman Empire as Cesaraugusta, Zaragoza now holds a large cultural and architectural heritage attesting to 2,000 years of affluence and importance. The city is best known for its Basilica del Pilar, built to venerate the apparition of the Virgin Mary to Saint James in very early Christian times, which became a major marker of cultural identity for Christian Spain. The city was again put on the global map by the 2008 Expo, which left it with a whole new modern part developed further for various purposes after the exhibition closed.

Zaragoza sits between Madrid and Barcelona on a high-speed railway line. It enjoys relative affluence, yet it is still often overlooked by tourists so prices, such as for accommodation, remain much lower than in either of Spain's most famous cities. It's a great stop along your way, or even a destination in its own right.

Wikipedia

Zaragoza (Spanish: [θaɾaˈɣoθa] ), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( SARR-ə-GOSS-ə), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the Huerva and the Gállego, roughly in the centre of both Aragon and the Ebro basin.

In the 1st century BCE, Romans founded the colony of Caesaraugusta over the Sedetani settlement of Salduie. The city was the capital of the Upper March of Al-Andalus under Umayyad rule, later thriving as a capital of a rump state ruled by the Banu Hud, the taifa of Zaragoza. It swiftly became the political and spiritual centre of the Kingdom of Aragon after the 1118 Christian conquest, and its inhabitants managed to preserve and consolidate initially granted privileges over the course of the Late Middle Ages.

As of 2025, Zaragoza had a population of 699,007 inhabitants, making it the fourth most populous in Spain, on a land area of 973.78 square kilometres (375.98 square miles) and is the centre of a metropolitan area of around 0.76 million. The municipality is home to more than 50 percent of the Aragonese population. The city lies at an elevation of about 208 metres (682 feet) above sea level.

Zaragoza hosted Expo 2008 in mid-2008, a world's fair on water and sustainable development. It was also a candidate for the European Capital of Culture in 2012.

The city is famous for its folklore, local cuisine, and landmarks such as the Basílica del Pilar, La Seo Cathedral and the Aljafería Palace. Together with La Seo and the Aljafería, several other buildings form part of the Mudéjar Architecture of Aragon which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Fiestas del Pilar are among the most celebrated festivals in Spain.