Spain is home to the second most UNESCO-designated Biosphere Reserves. It has some truly exceptional natural resources and you will find lots of natural attractions including lakes, mountains, valleys and forests.
Spain has many national parks which are each distinctive in their own way, many of which are in Andalucía.
El Torcal Park Nature Reserve is known for its strange natural limestone rock formations and is located 30km north of Malaga near Antequera, near the village of Villanueva de la Concepcion.
The formations are easily accessible by car and it is possible to drive right into the heart of the park, some 1.100m above sea level. As well as the rock formations, there are also wildlife, flora and fauna in abundance, with over 30 varieties of orchids growing in the park.
For those that want to explore the park by foot there are three routes, all marked out with different coloured arrows; green for the shortest route being 1.5km, yellow which is 2.5km long and red, the most difficult and challenging route covering 4.5km and taking around 3hrs to complete. When reaching the peak of the red route you will see amazing views of El Torcal Park and the African Coastline.
Sierra de Cazorla is a mountain range in the Jaén province of Spain, named after the town of Cazorla. The mountain range is located between Sierra Nevada, Sierra de Segura and Sierra del Pozo, roughly 3hrs from Malaga.
Sierra de Cazorla, Segura and Las Villas is the largest natural park in Spain covering 214.336 hectares. The village of Baza is located in Sierra de Cazorla in the Guadalquivir valley and here you will find beautiful green forests full of oak, pine and olive trees. The highest point of the sierra is 1,847m high and named as Gilillo peak.
The area offers plenty of activities including hiking, horse trekking, mountain biking, four-wheel drive tours, canoeing, fishing and caving…to name a few! This is a great area for camping – right in the heart of nature.
Parque Natural Cabo de Gata-Nijar (natural park) is located in the Southeastern corner of Spain and is one of Andalucía’s largest protected coastal areas. It is also Europe’s only natural park with a warm desert climate. If you want to escape the droves of tourists and hustle and bustle of coastal life then Parque Natural Cabo de Gata-Nijar is a definite must see. With the hot climate, stunning scenery and abundance of wildlife, including flamingos in their natural environment, it is a place to take the whole family. Although, as many Spanish descend on the area in the height of the summer and with the very hot weather, it may be advisable to go a bit more out of season to really be able to comfortably enjoy the whole trip.
For something a bit different and not for the faint-hearted another great sight-seeing attraction is El Caminito del Rey; a walkway pinned along the walls of El Chorro gorge. El Chorro is located near Álora about an hour’s drive inland from Malaga. The walkway, often referred to as Camino del Rey (King’s Pathway), had fallen into disrepair and was partly closed for over 10 years. More recently, in June 2011, the pathway received extensive renovations and repairs.
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