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Almuñécar and La Herradura are located on Spain’s Costa Tropical in the province of Granada. This attractive stretch of mountainous Mediterranean coastline lies between the more populated Costa del Sol, to the west, and the Costa de Almería, to the east.

Opening Hours

First thing you’ll notice is that opening hours are very different in Andalucia to most of the rest of Europe. Most businesses close for lunch between 14.00-16.00 hr as a minimum, longer in summer, and many places, especially tourist shops, may be seen open until midnight at the height of the season. In winter, many places are closed Saturdays after midday but open in summer. On Sundays everything closes except souvenir shops although there’s always somewhere to buy a loaf of bread and a few essentials.

National holidays are treated like a Sunday and if the holiday falls close to a weekend then often it is treated as an extended weekend or puente (literally, bridge) which is normally three or four days long. Most tourist-orientated shops in Almuñécar and La Herradura, however, stay open on holidays if they can.

Local fiestas will normally see some essential shops open, at least in the morning. During the town’s main annual holiday in the second week of August, many places close early at lunchtimes and in the evening.

Payments

It is best to plan on doing your daily shopping with cash although the larger food stores and clothing shops accept credit cards. Obviously shops that deal in high value goods will normally accept card payment but many of the smaller shops may not. Be sure to check first. If you need cash you’ll find a number of cashpoints around, nearly always attached to a bank.

Banks

There are plenty of banks in the area though most are concentrated in Almuñécar on the seafront (Paseo del Altillo) and round the corner in the Avenida Andalucia. There are three in La Herradura, also on the beach. Some are called Cajas de Ahorros (Savings Banks) but essentially they can provide the same foreign exchange and transfer services as a normal bank.

Banks actually work less hours in summer than in winter, closing on Saturdays throughout the season – just when everyone wants to change their money. Very thoughtful. Fortunately there are numerous cashpoint machines which accept all the usual cards. Most terminals are multi-language. See table above for bank opening hours..

International bank-to-bank money transfers to Almuñécar are usually quick using the SWIFT method, but even so they should be followed up if the credit is not confirmed within 3 days. Be sure to notify the bank before the money is changed to euros if it is to be used as part of a notarised payment (for a property purchase, for example).

Post Office

Principal post office for the whole municipality is in Almuñécar (Calle Tetuan in the P4 area, infront of the sports stadium). The office provides all normal postal services including a poste restante if you ever need a temporary address. (The full address would be: Poste Restante, Oficina de Correos, Almuñécar 18690, Granada, Spain.) Post boxes can be rented on an annual basis by applying in the office. There may or may not be a waiting list. See table above for opening times of the Almuñécar office.

La Herradura’s postal services are limited to a small sub-office at the end of the municipal market, open 9.00-12.00 (Mon-Fri) and 9.00-11.30 (Saturdays)

Pharmacy/ Chemist

There is always a duty chemist available 24hrs for emergency prescriptions, working on a weekly rota basis between pharmacies in the area. The one on current duty for the week is indicated by the entrances to all the other pharmacies. You may have to ring a bell to get someone out of bed, but you will always get served. Chemists are marked by a green cross on a white background.

Markets

The Municipal Market (Avenida de la Cala) sells all the basics – Meat, fish, fruit & vegetables, bread, health foods, herbs, flowers and an assortment of Municipal Market local goodies from mountain honey to pickled olives. It opens six days a week from 9.00-14.00 hrs.

There is a weekly market – Mercadillo – held on Fridays in the fairground (beside the arch at the entrance to town) which hosts about 150 stalls offering everything from Moroccan carpets.to discount socks. Quality, like prices, is pretty cheap but there are still some good bargains to be had. Stalls start to open from 9.00 hr onwards, closing around 13.30/ 14.00 hr. Go early to miss the crowds (and heat) in high season.

During most of the year there is a handicraft market held daily in the Plaza de Abderramán, below the cross. Out of season can be very quiet but it gets really busy during the high season when stalls often stay open into the early hours. This is a great place to buy souvenirs, jewelry and small presents.

Wines and Spirits

You’ll find a wide range of wines and spirits sold in most food shops, restaurants and bars in the area. You can also buy local wines from the barrel in a couple of bodegas.

Gifts and Souvenirs

Ceramics made in Almuñécar There are dozens of shops, stalls and holes-in-the-wall where you can find almost any type of trinket or handicraft jewellery from the weird to the wonderful. In summer, the streets are packed with stalls until the early hours and the artesan’s market is especially busy.

Gibraltar

One of the most fun and interesting day trips we took while staying at the house was to Gibraltar, about 2.5 hours drive. There is a lot to do, and it’s a relief to get back into an English speaking area for a day! The main attraction of course are the Barbary macaques that live on a reserve at the top of the island. The reserve is accessible by road and cable car, and interacting with these mischievous creatures is sure to be the highlight of your day. There is also a great downtown area with many unique shops and a variety of dining options.

http://www.gibraltar.com/sightseeing/the-upper-rock-nature-reserve-gibraltar.html

Local Excursions

As a small taste of what you can find inland, we recommend a trip along Almuñécar’s fertile Tropical Valley. Starting in the rich fruit orchards that line the banks of the Rio Verde, this route can be followed high into the hills passing through the villages of Jete and Otívar, and ending up in the small but attractive village of Lentegí in the Sierra Chaparral. Following the road even further towards Granada, then down into the steep valley, you can visit the delightful Junta de los Rios. Waterfalls, rock pools and some magnificent scenery greet the visitor in this protected natural area.

If you follow the Rio Seco instead of the Rio Verde, you will find a whole new countryside leading up to the Peña Escrita park, high in the hills that form the northern border of the municipality. Hiking, horse-riding and magnificent views await the visitor.

Back on the coast and heading west from Almuñécar, you will find the Nerja Caves. This huge cave system boasts the largest stalactic pillar in the world and is as impressive as it is beautifully lit. From there it’s a short hop to Nerja town on the coast or to the popular white village of Frigilana in the hills.

Travelling east from Almuñécar, its a short drive to Salobreña with its sugar-cube old town topped by Moorish fortifications.

Further Inland

Without some form of limitation we could go on forever. Inland is a very big place! So, to start with, we’ve only listed the principal inland attractions that can be visited comfortably on a day’s excursion.

The Alpujarras are the series of mountain foothills that lie between the Sierra Nevada and the sea. Steep valleys, ancient villages and spectacular views greet the visitor.

Granada city, last capital of the Moorish kings, is the most popular excursion destination from the coast and highly recommended, if only for its delightful Alhambra Palace, although there’s enough to keep anyone busy there for a few days.

A short drive from the city, close to the highest peaks in the Sierra Nevada mountains, lies the popular ski resort of Solynieve. This is Europes’s most southerly ski station and site of the 1996 World Ski Championships.

Almuñécar’s historical importance as a strategic centre and busy trading port during more than 2500 years is reflected in an impressive collection of monuments dating from the Phoenician, Roman and Moorish eras, most of which can be visited.

Sightseeing in La Herradura, on the other hand, is more about spectacular countryside than historical monuments. This picturesque horseshoe bay offers some of the finest panoramas and inland sceneries of the area.

Principal Monuments and Sights

The most noticeable to all who enter the town is the sturdy Moorish Castle. Though built on Roman foundations, what remains is mostly from the Arab and Christian eras. It contains an interesting museum as well as offers excellent views of the beach and town.

Not far from the castle is the small but impressive Archaeological Museum. This is located in what were the cellars of a Roman construction, now known as the Cave of the Seven Palaces. Here you’ll find some interesting finds from the area including a beautiful 3500 year old Egyptian vase.

Standing in the shadows of the castle is the peaceful Majuelo Park. Its shady botanical gardens offer welcome respite from the summer heat and a colourful display of exotic flora. In the centre of the park you can see remains of the Roman fish-salting pits which were originally established even earlier during Phoenician times.

To feed the town and flourishing salting industry with water, the Romans built a magnificent aqueduct 7 kms long, much of which still stands and can be visited. Recent finds in the new Plaza Mayor indicate that this water channel also fed a complex of hot baths which are only partially excavated and still under archaeological investigation.

Archaeologists have also excavated a delightful little bridge of Roman origin on the outskirts of town. About 40 mins walk from the town centre, this gem of a construction is still in excellent condition and also worth a visit.

When you’ve seen enough historical sites, next stop should be the Loro Sexi bird park and cactus gardens. This is a great outing for all the family, especially the kids. Colourful and noisy, but fun.

Scattered around Almuñécar and La Herradura you will see various statues and monuments, some very modern and others more traditional in style. Most commemorate important historical characters or past events.

And last, but not least, we should mention the number of old watchtowers and coastal defences that you’re bound to see dotted along the coast on all the most prominent headlands. These are simple reminders that not so long ago visitors weren’t so warmly welcomed here.

The following is a list of the most important or interesting beaches along the coast, starting from the east.

Playa de Cabria

Access from main road (N340) down riverbed or from the coastal paseo via Taramay. Small but popular beach with good eating facilities. From here you can walk east around the headland to a smaller cove.

Playa El Pozuelo

Small beach shaded by eucalyptus grove. This can be quite busy since it’s close to a large hotel. There are a couple of places on the beach to eat and reasonable parking for most of the year.

Playa El Tesorillo

This gem of a beach, reflected in its name (Tesorillo means The Little Treasure), is tiny but enchanting. Fine sand inlet bordered by rocks and serviced by two good beach bars. Very popular even during the summer evenings.

Playa Puerta del Mar

This is Almuñécar’s main beach, which runs from the aquapark, past the mouth of the Rio Verde and as far as the castle and Cross which lie roughly in the centre of town. Broken only by clusters of colourful fishing boats and a few palm trees, this spacious beach is very popular during the high season. Most town services are only a short walk away.

Playa San Cristóbal

On the western side of Almuñécar, the long shingle beach of San Cristóbal and its wide promenade front an assortment of hotels and apartment blocks, ending in the crowd of boats and nets that constitute a large part of the local fishing fleet. There are plenty of beachbars and restaurants to choose from and some seasonal watersports.

Playa de Cotobro

Charming bay lying just around the headland with a small sand and shingle beach and one restaurant. From here it’s possible to walk around the rocks to the next beach, the Playa del Muerto.

Playa del Muerto

Accessible on foot from the Playa de Cotobro, this mixture of secluded shingle coves and rocks is officially recognised as a nudist bathing area. There are no services.

Playa de La Herradura

Arguably this is the best and prettiest beach in the area, running the full 2 km width of the magnificent horseshoe bay that gives the village of La Herradura its name. Mostly fine sand, there’s room for all and even in summer it’s never really crowded. A string of beachbars, restaurants and shops service most of the beach and there’s plenty of watersports to choose from.

Bedrooms

Three generously sized bedrooms. Two master bedrooms on the lower level and one bedroom located on the main level.

The Master bedrooms feature gorgeous views of the sea, a king-sized bed and private full bath.

The bedroom shown above has an attached sunroom that leads up to the patio and more stunning views of the beaches of Almunecar.

Kitchen

Creating meals from the house is a delight in this fully equipped modern kitchen.

Although Almuñécar offers a wonderful selection of restaurants the local daily market offers fresh ingredients making cooking from ‘home’ a treat.

Views

Pictured here is one of the stunning views of the Mediterranean from the terrace. Off to left you can see all the way down the beaches of Almunecar.