Parque Genovés and the Alameda Apodaca

These are two gardens in a row on the bay side of the old town, and together they are the softest set in Cádiz. The Parque Genovés is formal: an avenue of conifers clipped into cones and arches, dragon trees, a pond with a grotto and a small waterfall. The Alameda Apodaca next to it is looser — enormous ficus trees with roots over the paths, tiled benches, wrought-iron balustrades and the bay right there.

The pairing is the point. The Genovés gives green architecture and repetition; the Alameda gives shade, texture and a horizon. Between them you can shoot a full session inside ten minutes' walking, which matters with small children.

Light is easy here: the canopy diffuses it for most of the day, and the Alameda faces north-west over the bay, so the last hour of sun comes off the water and through the ficus branches. On the coldest bright days of winter this is the warmest corner of the city.

Both are free, though the Genovés closes at night on seasonal hours — check them. This is also the fallback when the levante is blowing: the trees and the bay side of the peninsula take the edge off a wind that makes the ocean front impossible.