Costa Tropical de Granada

Dropping down through the mountains from Granada or continuing west from Almeria, you pick up the N340 coast road near Salobreña. A short detour from the highway brings you to this unspoiled village whose near perpendicular streets and old white houses perch on a steep hill beneath a Moorish fortress. Salobreña is picturesque in a totally natural way, providing a sample of the Andalusia pueblo atmosphere. Salobreña's 5 km of beach hosts a variety of bars and restaurants.



Perhaps Salobreña's best feature is its location - situated on the edge of the sea and yet within easy access to many points of interest in southern Spain. Many tourists (native and otherwise) chose Salobreña due to its ability to offer a sea-side resort combined with day trips to exotic and fun-filled locales such as: the Alhambra palace in Granada, the caves in Nerja, the water park in Almuñecar and the many mountain villages such as Las Alpujarras and Frigiliana. The road from Motril to Malaga passes through the former heart of the empire of sugar barons who brought prosperity to Malaga province in the 19th century. Today, the traditional cane fields are giving way to lychees, limes, mangoes, paw-paws and olive groves. Dark green avocado groves line your route on the descent into Almuñecar, a fishing village since Phoenician times, 3000 years ago. The Phoenicians called it Sexi; the Moors built a castle here, where the kings of Granada once kept their treasures; and today it's a popular resort. Between Almuñecar and Nerja, giant cliffs and dramatic seascapes provide the best scenery on this eastern stretch of the Costa. Above the village of Maro, 4 km (2 Miles) before Nerja, signs point to the entrance of the Cuevas de Nerja. These huge Paleolithic caves, thought to be between 12 000 and 20 000 years old, were discovered in 1959 by children playing on the hillside. Over the past 30 years, thousands of tourists have tramped through the floodlit caverns furnished with spires and turrets created by centuries of dripping water. One suspended pinnacle, 200 feet long, claims the title of the world's largest stalactite. In summer these awesome subterranean chambers provide an impressive setting for concert and ballet performances. Nerja - (pronounced neer-ha) its name comes from the Moorish word narixa, meaning abundant springs - is a rapidly developing resort. Happily, the high rises have been kept at bay and much of Nerja's growth has been confined to urbanizaciones ("village" developments"). The old village of Nerja is clustered on top of a headland above several small beaches and rock coves that offer reasonable bathing despite the grey grit sand. In high season Nerja's beaches are busy with sun worshipping Europeans, but throughout the year, wandering the narrow whitewashed streets and courtyards of the old town is enjoyable. Nerja's highlight is the Balcon de Europa, a lookout high above the sea on a promontory just off the central square. It was King Alfonso XII who dubbed it the Balcony of Europe when he paused here in 1885 to admire the view.