The walls that encircle Pamplona's old town are among the best-preserved Renaissance defensive works in Spain. Built and expanded between the 16th and 19th centuries, they form a continuous circuit of star-shaped bastions, curtain walls, and earthworks running for roughly five kilometres. The whole circuit is walkable, most of it on a promenade above the city with views across the Arga valley and north toward the Pyrenees.
The Taconera section in the northwest is particularly good: the moats here have been turned into gardens with deer, peacocks, and dwarf goats, and the walk passes the Puerta de Francia, one of the old city gates. On the north side, the Caballo Blanco bastion offers the best panoramic view over the river and the green hills beyond.