Cabo de Gata; one of the main Capes or Peninsular demarking the Spanish Mediterranean coastline. As all shipping has to navigate around this point it has been important since Phoenician tines.
Legend has it that sailors mistook the sound of monk seals for mermaids on this headland so they called it the Arrecife de las Sirenas (the Reef of the Mermaids). From the hills of San Miguel and Vela Blanca, where there is an 18th-century watchtower, are some of the park's most magnificent panoramic views. You can see as far as North Africa on clear days, as well as the Salinas and along t
For such an arid area, Cabo de Gata has a surprising array of plants, with some 1,000 species recorded here. Xerophytic plants, some of them endemic, characterise much of this semi-desert area.
Starting from the village of San Miguel, look out on the left for the salt pans Salinas de Acosta, a vast 4km-long wetland created by a lagoon with blindingly white mounds of salt heaped up. Here you can see the ruins of an old village; the size of the church gives an idea of how important the salt industry must have been. Salt has been extracted from here for centuries since Phoenician times.
Only 15km northeast of Almeria city is this largely barren and rugged 8,500ha mountain range, designated a protected natural area in 1989. Riven by deep gullies, particularly on its southern slopes, it rises to 1,387m at its highest point of the Colativí peak.
Sandwiched between the mountains of the Sierra Nevada, Gador, Filabres and Alhamilla is one of the most dramatic landscapes in Spain, the desolate Desierto de Tabernas. The only semi-desert in Europe; there is a surreal, lunar quality about its wierdly eroded ravines, dry river beds and barren slopes apparently devoid of vegetation, bleached by the sun and occasionally singed with ochre hues.
Designated a natural park in 1987, the Sierra María-Los Vélez occupies the eastern end of the Cordillera Subbética in the north of Almeria province. It covers 22,670ha, a landscape of impressive contrasts, with its arid, moon-like plains overlooked by the Sierra's rocky summits, which are white with snow in winter, and the dry, barren south-facing slopes compared to its densely wooded north-facing ones.
Covering 45,663ha in the southeastern corner of Spain, Cabo de Gata-Níjar is Andalucia's largest coastal protected area, a wild and isolated landscape with some of Europe's most original geological features. The eponymous mountain range is Spain's largest volcanic rock formation with sharp peaks and crags in ochre-hues.
Spain's modern, extensive, efficient railway system makes travelling by train in Andalucia a delight. Thanks to excellent infrastructure, comfortable trains and reliable service, more and more travellers are choosing this relaxing, ecologically-friendly form of transport in order to get the best out of their time in Andalucia.
This Costa is made up of the coastline of Almería province. The coastline is home to thousands of plastic greenhouses however there are also beautiful wildlife reserves lining the coast and of course, kilometers of beaches to attract sun seekers.
Almanzora area is in Almeria province and is made up of 27 municipalities. It is located in the northeast of the province between the areas of Los Vélez and the Sierra de los Fibrales. One of its most well-known towns is Macael, where the marble quarries are located, the material with which important monuments were built.
This Almeria part of the Alpujarras is less well known than the Granada Alpujarras to the west. Both parts share the same characteristics and historical origins. They are the sheltered southern facing slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain range.
The city of Almería is Andalucia's most eastern capital. Years ago, it was not as well known by tourists as other capitals like Malaga, Sevillle, or Granada. However, that has changed drastically in the last while with its growth as a major holiday area.
Festivals in Taberno: Cabalgata de Reyes Magos, Día de la Candelaria, Día de Andalucía, Semana Santa, La Ventolera, San José, Fiesta de Santopétar, Baile de las Animas.
Festivals in Suflí: Cabalgata de Reyes Magos, Día de la Candelaria, Día de Andalucia, Semana Santa, San Marcos, Cruces de Mayo, San Luis Gonzaga and San Roque.
Festivals in Somontín: Cabalgata de Reyes Magos, Fiestas de San Sebastián, Día de Andalucía, El Judas, Semana Santa, San Marcos, San Juan, La Ascención, Virgen del Rosario, Virgen del Pilar and Santa Lucía.
The origin of Somontín dates back to the Roman era (second century AD), although evidence suggests that the original nucleus of the village was situated south of the current enclave. The village is likely to have been a place of importance since Emperor Marco Aurelio gave it authorization to coin money.