Logbook · 8 places

What to see and do in Chulilla

What to see and do in Chulilla (Los Serranos, Valencia): 8 places across monuments, nature, activities and curiosities, with a photo and a Google Maps location.

1 Villages · 1 Monuments · 2 Nature · 1 Activities · 2 Historical milestones · 1 Food and drink

How far each place is from the centre of Chulilla

Castle of Chulilla 150 m

Towns near Chulilla

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What to see in Calles 10 km · 2 places
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Spain › Valencian Community › Valencia › Los Serranos › Chulilla

What to see and do in Chulilla

Chulilla
Village
Chulilla is a municipality of Los Serranos, in the province of Valencia, wedged into a canyon carved by the Turia river, 60 kilometers from the provincial capital, with 710 inhabitants (INE 2025) and a legally recognized linguistic predominance of Spanish. The village sits on the slope of a promontory dominated by an Arab castle that still has towers and walls, while toward the river an impregnable canyon opens up, next to the Salto de Chulilla, 160 meters deep, sculpted by the erosion of the Turia on the limestone terrain. Its settlement dates back to the first millennium BC, with Bronze Age remains at the Monte del Castillo and nearby hunting rock art; during Romanization, the Monte del Castillo remained a hillfort, with a cistern from that period.
Castle of Chulilla
Monument
The castle of Chulilla, also called castillo Relámpago (Lightning Castle), crowns the hill that dominates the town and is the embryonic nucleus of the settlement: a Roman-era cistern survives, and under Muslim rule it was one of the most important castles in the region, together with that of Alpuente, tasked with controlling the routes through the valley and giving shelter to the nearby alquerías (hamlets). After the Reconquest and its incorporation into the Crown of Aragon, it was remodelled in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, and used as a seigneurial residence and later as a prison for clergymen. In the Carlist Wars of the 19th century it served the Carlist troops three times, and the final siege by the government army began its ruin. It preserves an outer wall, a barbican tower, a circular bastion, corner towers and four cisterns.
Charco Azul de Chulilla
Nature
The Charco Azul de Chulilla, also called the azud del Salto, is a pool of turquoise water set into the Salto de Chulilla, the gorge that the Turia river has carved as it passes through the municipality, 160 metres deep and barely 10 metres wide. It originated from an old weir (azud) that regulated the river's water for the valley's irrigation system, from which it takes its popular name. Today it is one of the best-known spots for swimming and hiking along the Turia canyon.
Festivities of Chulilla
Activity
Chulilla celebrates its patronal festival on 15 August, with the Virgen de los Ángeles brought from her hermitage, and the festival of the Santísimo Cristo in September.
Gorges of the Turia River in Los Serranos
Nature
Stretches of the río Turia hemmed in by narrow gorges of great scenic value as it passes through the comarca of Los Serranos. In Chulilla, the river's erosion of a limestone plateau has cut a gorge and the so-called Salto de Chulilla, 160 metres deep and only 10 metres wide, a canyon so narrow that it makes the Arab castle overlooking the town from its promontory impregnable. The cliffs are home to diurnal and nocturnal birds of prey, and their slopes are shared by partridges, rabbits, hares, foxes, badgers, stone martens, genets and wild boar, while barbel and trout live in the waters of the Turia. The vegetation combines Aleppo pine forests with Mediterranean scrubland.
The handover of Chulilla castle to the Church of Segorbe
Historical milestone
Abu Zayd, the former Almohad governor of Valencia converted to Christianity, ceded the fortress above the Turia canyon to the Church of Segorbe; in 1274 the barony of the bishop of Valencia was constituted.
The settlement charter of Chulilla
Historical milestone
After the place was abandoned by its Muslim residents following the revolts of 1331, Peter IV granted a settlement charter to settle a hundred Christian settlers in the district.
The mistela of Chulilla
Food and drink
A sweet muscat wine obtained by fortifying the must, drunk as a dessert and at the village festivities; the district was also known for its rancio wines made in the old way.