The Costa del Sol and Andalucia, Spain
Southern Spain´s Costa del Sol has been a popular holiday
destination for holiday makers from all parts of Europe, and increasingly
so from across the Atlantic, for many decades now. The reasons for this
are plain to see and include guaranteed sunshine, clean, safe, sandy
beaches,friendly locals, good healthy food- the Mediteranean diet being
considered one of the healthiest in the world,and a lovely relaxed
fun loving attitude to life.
Package tours to the Costa del Sol have always been best sellers but
recently there has been an increased interest in "doing your own thing" by
renting a private villa or apartment. This in turn has led to the expansion
of rural tourism as more and more country villas in the delightful unspoilt
interior of Andalucia have come onto the holiday market. It is now possible
to rent a private villa in some absolutely stunning locations and truly
experience the "Real Spain".The peace, tranquility, beautiful scenary and
long hot summer days add a wonderful dimension to a Spanish holiday.In
addition there is the added advantage of the mild winters and beautiful
springs which makes holidaying here an all year round delight.The vast
majorityof such holiday villas are also within easy travelling distance of
the Costa del Sol, thus affording the best of both worlds.
Andalucia has the largest European land mass devoted to nature reserves
and in many parts is still totally unspoilt.Traditional "campo " life is
still very much in evidence with the production of olive oil, cork oak and
sweet chestnut forests,grape and wine production along with the tradtionally
kept goat herds that do so much to help keep the land as it has been for
centuaries.
The wild life is amongst some of the most varied in Europe and includes
wild boar, genets, mongeese, vultures,golden eagles, and the European eagle
owl to name but a few.
In addition to the beautiful scenary there are many historic towns to visit
such as Ronda, which boasts the oldest bullring in Spain, Granada,with the
magnificent Alhambra and Cordoba with it´s marvellous Mezquitta. Along with
these are the famous and numerous "pueblos blancos" or white villages.You
can while away many happy hours rambling through the maze of streets of such
places as Casares, Gaucin, Benarraba, Jimena, Algotocin and many more
barely on the map.They all have wonderful ferias throughout the summer,and
plentiful bars and restaurants serving local foods, wines and tapas.
Many cultures have left their mark on this part of the world.From
prehistoric cave paintings in the Serrenia de Ronda ,Pheonician towers at
strategic points along the Costa del Sol to the widespread and more famous
Roman and Moorish monuments and remains.However it is certain that there is
still much more to be discovered here as archeologists have barely scratched
the surface of many of these remains.
So please don´t think of the Costa del Sol, and Andalucia in particular,
as all sun, sea and sangria,not that I have anything against them! but
there is just so much more to be discovered and enjoyed that you really
could spend a life time holidaying in the area and not get bored, indeed
I believe many people do.
Article supplied by Ruth Polak at
www.costadelsol-vacationrentals.com
