If you asked us where the longest street with arcades in Europe is and we had not documented ourselves, we would probably answer that in Paris or Prague. However, it is in Madrid. This is the Calle Mayor of Alcalá de Henares, 396 meters long and a whopping 242 arcades along the entire street.
This World Heritage city of Madrid has a main artery that was built in the Middle Ages, although its original layout is built on an old Roman road. The Main Street crossed the old Jewish quarter, but little by little it added arches, changing the wooden columns for stone ones and, finally, it became the longest in all of Europe, with a small nuance, the longest of a residential nature.
In Bologna there is an even larger one called the Portico of San Luca, but it is an architectural complex of an ecclesiastical nature, a path between monasteries and chapels to safeguard pilgrims. However, Calle Mayor has been shaped and expanded as times have progressed, to facilitate the residential and daily life of Alcalá.
For this reason, its stone and wood porches are an amalgamation of different years and styles, which have been superimposed as the town grew and different cultures coexisted. Medieval, Renaissance and modern details intermingle in this monumental 15th century street with a charming aesthetic inequality.
This continuous portico houses seven centuries of urban history. In 1986 it was declared pedestrian, to encourage commercial activity regardless of the rain or the scorching sun, allowing visitors to walk the length and breadth of its bookstores, bars, cafes and charming shops without worrying about cars. Did you know this gem that is hidden in the heart of Spain?
