In 2015, Vilafames joined two other Castellon towns on the official list of “Spain’s Most Beautiful Towns” and deserves to be on that list and one can appreciate this as you start to approach the town.

The town seems to delicately climb its way up the hill on which it is perched.

Vilafames feels like a boutique town with a lovely character which blends the old with the new and has a population of around 2000 inhabitants. Despite this history, culture and stunning views across the countryside the town was very quiet for a Saturday afternoon and we appeared to be the only tourists around.

On the ascent through the town is a massive rock. It’s known locally as “the large rock” and it is estimated to weigh 2163 tons and has a volume of 832 cubic metres. Its sits precariuosly at an angle of 34 degress.

As legend has it, the inhabitants feared that they might be crushed by this massive rock, so they wanted to drag it to the plain. A long rope was tied around the rock, and then the residents began pulling hard. When you see the rock, you won’t be surprised to hear that the rope broke, and the impressive rock didn’t move. The locals all fell onto the ground and got their “culitos” (backsides in Spanish) dirty, and this earned them the nickname of – culrojos – red bottoms.

The remains of the Vilafames castle, perched on top of the hill at 390 metres above sea level, are most likely from the 14th century. At this time Vilafames was annexed to the order of Santa Maria de Montesa, but during the centuries that followed, circumstances and different uses of the castle dictated that it underwent many changes. One example was during the Carlist Wars, in the 19th century, when the castle was adapted to keep up with new war techniques. The circular central tower was built, which is one of a handful of examples to be found within the Valencia community of Carlist architecture.

Construction of the Vilafames Parish Church of the Assumption began in 1594 and it was initially dedicated to the Nativity of the Virgin. The architect Martin Garcia de Mendoza, who was the master of the Cathedral in Tortosa, designed the floor. Juan Palacios was in charge of the work being carried out.

On our way back to Benicassim, we spotted that London was directly overhead, in a manner of speak.

Later in the evening we headed into Benicassim for dinner at La Guindilla. This restaurant was a fine choice by Paul and Andrea – the food was superb and I would highly recommend the 25 Euro Tapas set menu – inclusive of drinks, desert and coffee.