Costa del Sol Tourism Guide - Nerja

Nerja Tourist Guide & Nerja Beaches

If you're coming to Nerja by car hire for a day trip, follow the signs to Balcon de Europa. A large car park is here, adjacent to Balcon de Europa and Nerja's main beaches and sights. As a holiday resort, Nerja has beautifully scenic rocky cove beaches, most of which have steps down to them so may not be suitable for visitors with disabilities or families with very young children.

Nerja town is compact, with the central Balcon de Europa - a large pretty square with whitewashed church, alfresco cafes and horse carriage rides waiting to give you a tour. The balcony affords fine views of the Eastern Costa Del Sol Coast, a highlight of any visit. Nerja is a bit of a hybrid, half resort catering well for a huge number of tourist visitors who flock here, but also with a foot in the Granada Province's patch. Its name has Arabic roots - Naricha meaning abundant spring If you're based here day trips to Granada up the winding N323 are easily accessible. Costa Del Sol Car Hire is recommended if you're staying here - the drive along the coast via the N340 runs alongside the coast towards Almunecar. A stunning drive, there are several out of the way beach coves and stop off points to admire the views. Once at Salobrena a visit to the 13th century Moorish hilltop castle is an easy day trip. Alsina Graells (weblink right) run a regular bus service from Nerja out to Granada, Almunecar, Salobrena and elsewhere and bus fares are excellent value.

Nerja's beaches are a big attraction, with a different flavour to those west of Malaga. Main beach Playa de Burriana is to the east flanked by the Parador. Sunbeds and parasols are available and parking is adjacent. It's a short walk from the car park to this long beach bay just below the Capistrano area. Restaurants, bars, cafes and shops are all adjacent, plus scuba diving is popular from here with day trips along the rocky coast. When the winds up this beach get as heavy swell. Immediately to the east of Balcon de Europa is popular Calahonda beach, a sublime small cove beach with a mix of rock, pebbles and sand. It's a steep walk down to Calahonda beach which has a bar restaurant open in summer and ample sunbeds/parasol hire. To the west of Nerja sits Playazo Beach. This one's the longest beach in the Nerja area with pebble come fine sand. Good for strolls and quiet times, facilities are good including beach showers, toilets and some low-key bars and snack kiosks. Adjacent to Balcon de Europa to the west Salon Beach is even more secluded and a smaller cove beach with access just down behind the Balcon de Europa hotel. Other smaller beaches include Carabeo beach, a small cove connected to Burriana, and Torrecilla beach just at the bottom of Nerja town centre.

Nerja Tourist Information Office, Puerto del Mar 2, (Balcon de Europa), 29780 Nerja Malaga. Tel. 95 252 15 31. For detailed information on walking Nerja's coastline and discovering its numerous coves, see the official Nerja Town Hall weblink right for details.

Cuevas de Nerja (Nerja Caves) & Nerja Attractions

Just 4km east of Nerja (follow the N340 and signs to the Cuevas de Nerja past the aqueduct), Nerja's caves inhabited around 25,000 BC by Cro-Magnon man, is one of Spain's major natural wonders and not to be missed if you're in the area. Discovered fairly recently in 1959 by boys looking for bats, only one third of the caves are open to visitors. That gives you a sense of just how huge these caverns are, as during a visit the 'one third' is a huge area. The Stalactites, stalagmites, rock formations and huge and small caverns will have you awe struck. The beginnings of the formation of these spectacular caves dates back around 5 million years ago, and is connected to the clashing of tectonic African and European plates which also resulted in the formation of the Sierra Tejeda or Almijara mountains. Rainwater infiltrated fissures eroding and creating vast cavities with flowing underground waters.

As the ground rose, underground waters flowed at lower depths leaving the cavities open to the formation of stalactites and stalagmites from carbonate deposits. Hence the spectacular subterranean scenery you see today in the Nerja Caves. During the Festival Cueva de Nerja in July the caves are used for concerts, and there's usually some background classical music on during a tour. Both skeletal remains and cave paintings have been discovered here in the Nerja Caves, pointing to their inhabitation from around 25,000BC to the Bronze Age. By around 4500BC inhabitants in the cave were keeping domestic animals and producing pottery. Extensive exhibitions within the caves guide you through the time periods of inhabitance and how the caves were formed.

Cueva de Nerja, Ctra de Maro, s/n 29787 Nerja Malaga. Tel. 952 529520. (see the official Nerja guide for details).