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Coastal Andalucía - advice needed

We're planning on doing a driving trip for 12 days in August, along the coast of Andalucía. We've already visited a lot of Andalucían interior towns, such as Ronda, Granada, Córdoba and Sevilla, so this time want to stay along the coast. We're flying into Almería, and out of Sevilla 12 days later.

We have an 11 year old boy, and want a decent amount of activity like swimming, kayaking, snorkeling, hiking. We like exploring old towns and trying the local foods, but also want to have some relaxing beach days. We're not totally tourism averse, but would like to find some places that aren't flooded with vacationers. We live in Spain and speak decent Spanish, so not concerned about language barriers.

As I've been researching, I'm having trouble choosing which towns to visit. There are so many that look interesting and beautiful! The list of cities still on my list are, roughly east to west: San José Cabo de Gata, Salobrena, Nerja, Frigiliana, Comares, Málaga, El Chorro, Mijas, Marbella, Estepona, Gibralter, Tarifa, Valdevoqueros, Bolonia, Vejer de la Frontera, Cadíz, Jerez, Arcos de la Fontera.

From this list, are there any must-see towns missing, or are any of those listed that should be skipped?

Should we allocate time equally among the following sections, or spend more time in one of them than the others?

  1. San José > Nerja: San José Cabo de Gata, Almería, Alpujarras, Salobrena, Nerja
  2. Nerja > Gibralter: Frigiliana, Comares, Málaga, El Chorro, Mijas, Marbella, Estepona, Gibralter
  3. Gibralter > Sevilla: Tarifa, Valdevoqueros, Bolonia, Vejer de la Frontera, Cadíz, Jerez, Arcos de la Fontera

Gracias!

Posted by
6790 posts

We loved Arcos de la Fontera, and it was one of the highlights of a trip that had some amazing places. Of course, you don't want to try and drive up to the upper town - park in a lot below and get a ride up. Highly recommend staying overnight up in the high town, as it empties out and is delightful after/before the day-trippers are there. There are other "pueblos blancos" nearby that are worth at least a short stop, too.

Can't help you with the others, except to state what I'm sure is already obvious: you're talking about going along the "costa de turismo" including some of the most touristy spots in Spain - I'd guess Malaga, Marbella and others nearby. Cruise ship ports and magnets for casual holiday-seekers, not to mention all the ex-pat Brits who seem to have established a string of entirely British enclaves. Not my cup of tea, but obviously popular with many folks.

Good luck.

Posted by
7160 posts

Seems you could get great advice from the locals. It says you’re in Valencia, so I don’t understand why you just don’t drive the entire trip. I also don’t understand why you want to drive and visit places near the Costa del Sol and Costa de la Luz during the higher tourist season. Mojacar, west of Almeria, has a nice beach as does Salobrena. Rota, near Cadiz and Jerez is a nice town and beach, but terribly busy that time of year so accommodations may be hard to come by. West of Tarifa is Punta Paloma beach that is popular with wind surfers. The beach right at La Linea (where you cross into Gibraltar) is also decent. Not along the coast, but closer to the white towns is Cueva de la Pileta and its prehistoric cave paintings. I haven’t been there in years, but it still has tours. As David stated, Arcos is a nice town. If your car isn’t large you can drive to the top, as there is a parking lot by the church, but the road is really narrow with a couple 90degree turns on the way down.

Posted by
18 posts

@David - thanks for the confirmation on Arcos de la Fontera.

@jaimeelsabio - Driving all the way from Valencia would take time away from our vacation in Andalucía, and the cost to fly was about the same as driving. And yes, I realize there are other months with less tourists and better weather, but we're not afraid of the heat. I mentioned that we're interested in finding quieter off the beaten path towns to visit. We travel during school breaks, so trying to make the best of having to do so in August. Thank you for your suggestions.

Anyone else have feedback for us?

Posted by
45 posts

Mojacar is to the east of Almeria, not the west, and is definitely worth a visit.. Then Cabo de Gata, salobrena, Almunecar, La Herradura, Malaga, Marbella, and Estepona. Nerja has a sewage problem. Gibraltar, if you must - might be interesting for an 11 yr old but will take hours to get both in and out. Tarifa, Bolonia, Cadiz, and Rota. Of course, in August the whole coast will be unpleasantly crowded, but you already know that. Good luck !

Posted by
18 posts

Hello @Bedar, and thanks for the reply.

What do you mean by, "Nerja has a sewage problem." Do you mean in general in the town, or are you talking about the water quality at the sea? Please elaborate.

Posted by
45 posts

Yes, Nerja has not completed its sewage treatment plant, and the waste goes out to sea.

Posted by
18 posts

@Bedar Yuck, that's nasty. Is there a way to find out more about this? Any links? A site that talks about the water quality in that area? I wasn't able to find anything.

Posted by
45 posts

Perhaps if you go to theolivepress.es and put Nerja into the search function, you'll come up with articles. This situation has lasted for many years, and someone on TA screwed up and declared the place the best beach location in all Spain for 2018. See the comments that go with that article. zthere's a place just east of Nerja that's supposed to be OK - Maro ?? - but I don't know it.

Posted by
7160 posts

Thanks for the correction Bedar,.

bb - if Nerja is like Rota was back in the late 70s and early 80s, the town’s waste is discharged straight into the Mediterranean. We never went into Cadiz bay back then, just for that reason. Now Rota has a treatment plant and the bay is much cleaner.

Posted by
18 posts

Thanks for the side discussion on Nerja.

Now back to the main topic - any other towns not to be missed?

What about splurge-worthy places? We're staying at pretty frugal places for most of our trip, but could splurge for a couple of nights somewhere special - any ideas?