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Ronda perches upon a sheer outcrop that is split by a precipitous cleft, El Tajo, 100 m (330 ft) deep . The spectacular 18th-century Puente Nuevo bridge links the old city, La Ciudad, with the commercial district.

A visit to the gardens of this 18th-century mansion , built on the foundations of a Moorish palace, will provide wonderful views.

Another 18th-century mansion sports an ornate façade with a carved stone portal. The upper section is adorned with four squat figures that may represent South American Indians.

The Puente Viejo (Old Bridge) dates from 1616 and is thought to be a rebuilding of a Roman span, though some say its pedigree is Moorish, like the Puente de San Miguel. Both cross the gorge at the upstream end of the Río Guadalevín.

These wonderfully preserved Moorish baths date from the 1200s or early 1300s. The multiple barrel vaulting pierced with star-shaped lunettes is typical of such structures, but the beautifully designed octagonal brick columns supporting horseshoe arches are highly original.

This graceful 14th-century tower is all that remains of a Nasrid mosque.

For some 1,000 years, the Sierras were the haunt of bands of rebels and outlaws. The museum chronicles the history of such notorious brigands.

Much of this church incorporates a 13th-century mosque, notably the base of the Mudéjar belfry .

One of Ronda’s most beautiful palaces dates from 1314. Some of the original poly-chrome mosaic work and a magnificent Mudéjar ceiling can still be seen, but the rest was altered by the Christian overlords. Part of the palace is now the city’s archaeological museum.

Inaugurated in 1785, Ronda’s bullring was constructed in limestone in an elegant double-tiered sweep; it is the widest in the world and one of the oldest in Spain. Since Ronda is the birthplace of the sport, this is the spiritual home of the tradition. It also houses a museum about the bullfight.