Almería

The province of Almería is located in the southeast of Spain, on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. This geographical situation makes Almería the town that enjoys the maximum amount of sunshine in Spain with more than 3000 hours per year. This fact, together with its warm and dry climate, and an average temperature of 19ºC, makes Almería a tempting tourist destination, where you can enjoy its long coastlines and virgin beaches throughout the year.

This part of the country offers some singular natural attractions. Here we can find the first Maritime and terrestrial Nature Park in Andalusia, The Gata Cape-Nijar Park, which will surprise anyone owing to its extraordinary beauty. Inland, you can also enjoy the singular Almeriense Alpujarra, a region shared with the neighbouring region of Granada. The Alpujarra is located on the southern slope of Sierra Nevada, and it is formed by a group of mountains, rustic and isolated white villages, where wonderful wines and one of the best kinds of Spanish cured ham may be tasted.

For outdoor sports lovers, this province will undoubtedly be a paradise. If Golf is your passion, you can be assured that any of the seven golf courses will be to your liking. If not, you can also stimulate your adrenaline levels with activities like skiing on virgin snow in the Alpujarra, or practice trekking, speleological, mountain-bike, horse-riding routes, and parachuting in Sierra Nevada, Filabres Sierra or Alhamilla Sierra, as well as sailing, scuba diving, aquatic bikes, or any other type of aquatic sports in warm Mediterranean waters.

The cultural offer of the Almeriense province is also very rich. We will be able to find prehistoric locations, such as the Vélez cave paintings, declared Humankind Patrimony by UNESCO, or the location of Los Millares de el Argar which was the peninsular neuralgic nucleus in the Bronze Age. Numerous Phoenician remains are also scattered throughout this whole region, as well as Roman remains, such as the amphitheatre of Berja, the aqueduct of Carcauz, the bridge of Alhama of Almería, the Spa of Pechina, and a great many more... All Andalusia is scattered with Arab vestiges of the Muslim epoch, and Almería was not going to be an exception. We will find the prints of the old Muslim residents in Fiñana, Pechina and Olula Del Río. Neither can we forget the collection of castles nor the Christian churches throughout the region that go back to medieval times.

Thanks to the Moorish and Christian fiestas, especially popular in Mojácar, we will be able to see a reincarnation of the battles held between both sides more than 6 centuries ago. Another fiesta that we cannot miss is the famous Saint John's Eve, which is celebrated a lot along the whole Spanish Mediterranean coastline. Although Almería has in its Fair its own great fiesta. Every August, the Fair of Almería decorates the city to enjoy 10 continuous days of holidays in honour of its patroness, the Virgin of the Sea.

Film buffs will be delighted to visit the different spots where movies like "Lawrence of Arabia", "Indiana-Jones and the Last Crusade", "Conan the Barbarian", "007 Never say No", and many more, were filmed in Almería. Likewise, if you are a Western fan you should not miss Mini-Hollywood, Texas-Hollywood or Western Leone, the small towns that were built in the 60’s for the filming of Western films, where brilliant actors and directors such as Sergio Leone, Orson Welles, Clint Eastwood, Claudia Cardinale, Brigitte Bardot, or Henry Inn worked.

No matter what time of the year it is visited: if you are looking for a place to relax or to enjoy your favourite interests, if you are looking for countryside or sea, Almería satisfies anyone that has the opportunity to get to know it.