Owners Mariá Ruiz and her son Rodrigo built the hotel as a labour of love. It stands on the site of what archaeologists claim was a Moorish settlement, hard by a Roman road into mountain badlands first inhabited as long ago as the Neolithic period. The hotel lounge actually sprouts from the sand and limestone bedrock, where the Ruizes have excavated and restored a prehistoric floor. The décor reflects the hotel's history; there are Romanesque columns, rustic floors and glazed azulejo tiles; and in each room, perhaps a little heretically, a shower in the shape of a mihrab, the prayer niche of a mosque.

The history lesson more or less ends there, although the hotel is decorated with the antiques, paintings and books Maria has collected over the years. Her taste also informs the discreet classical music and jazz that can be switched on or off around the house using the surprisingly hi-tech system that powers this sybaritic retreat.

La Cazalla is a place for couples or self sufficient friends; beyond boules, cards and board games, there is little to do here apart from walk, bird-watch (there are binoculars in every room) or curl up with a book. The rooms are large and comfortable, as are the king-size beds. The best room, the Los Girasoles suite, has its own terrace garden and a "Moorish" power shower you could hold a party in.

Rodrigo is a fine chef and prepares dinner from whatever the markets and garden yield each day. A typical meal starts with foie gras, goats cheese, apple and dates, followed by a main course of bacaläo (cod), espuma of potato (a fine mousse with pesto) and braised peppers, and a fresh variation on tiramisu; vegetarian and other dietary requirements can be accommodated. Candelit dinners are served on the terrace and accompanied with local wines.

The jungley grounds conceal a 12th century Moorish water cistern fed by mountain streams in which guests can cool off, but the hotel has recently unveiled a slender, modern pool with waterfall and gardens whose elegant proportions recall the water courses of Granada´s Generlife. Beyond these landscaped nooks, there are walks along the Roman road and up into the wilds. The one possible downside - it is 3km uphill to the nearest bar and restaurant, 5km to the closest shop (in Ronda) and the hotel is quiet enough to qualify as a Zen monastery - is in fact what most visitors would consider the upside.