The busy cosmopolitan city of Jerez is the largest in the Cadiz province in terms of population with 185,000 inhabitants. It is an important business centre rich in history and tradition. Famous for its sherry, Jerez has been exporting wine to England as early as the 16th century and many people became rich from the sherry industry. Consequently, many of these "sherry magnates" moved to Jerez and even today, the city has a reputation of being the home of the "señorito" or "toff", a legacy of the time when the rich of Jerez copied the social mannerisms of the English aristocracy.
Today, the town is a mixture of modern, ugly development, spacious and attractive residential districts and an attractive, shabby old quarter. It is also the home of one of Andalucía's oldest gypsy quarters. In the old quarter and the gypsy quarter, a maze of narrow streets and old squares meander around notable churches and renaissance palaces. There are many important and interesting sites in Jerez including the Watch Museum where there is a display of some of the oldest time pieces in Europe and an Archaeological Museum. Famous Andalucían horses were bred here traditionally, which led to the establishment of the Royal Andalucían School of Equestrian Art, where you can see the skill and beauty of the Andalucían horseriding tradition. The large gypsy population means that the town is an important centre for flamenco and the tradition of flamenco art is kept alive at The Andalucian Flamenco Foundation. There is a Speed Circuit in the town where world championships in motor racing are held. In the area surrounding Jerez, there are mountain ranches where bulls are raised and amateur bullfights can be seen using young bulls.
Jerez's airport serves the surrounding region and is located 4km north of the town. Jerez is well connected by road and rail to Cadiz, 25km to the south and to Seville, 85km north.
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