Jaca, Spain

From the early Aragonese capital and stronghold of JACA, the kingdom was recaptured from the Moors. While its traffic-choked suburbs are unpromising, the old centre, however, is a lot more characterful, flanked by a huge star-shaped citadel, and endowed with a landmark Romanesque cathedral. After a spell in the mountains, JACA's relatively "big town" feel and facilities may be an equal attraction to any monuments. It's enlivened by the cadets of the mountain-warfare battalion based here, as well as a summer English-language university. The battle of Las Tiendas in 758, when Moorish armies were repulsed in large part by women, is still commemorated on the first Friday in May, in a mock all-women battle between "Christians" and "Muslims".

The northeast side of Jaca's old quarter, beyond the cathedral and south of the bus station, is a little frowsy, and shelters most of the budget accommodation and rowdier bars; the southwestern district, abutting either side of Avenida Regimiento de Galicia, is smarter, with sidewalk cafés, more touristy restaurants and banks.

Jaca is an ancient town, founded by the Romans and occupied continuously since. It had a very brief period of Moorish rule after being captured around 716, but the Christians soon reconquered the town and held it, save for a few years, from then on. Jaca's greatest period, however, came after 1035, when Ramiro I, son of Sancho of Navarre, established a court here and presided over the first parliament on record.