Málaga Spots › Villages and viewpoints
Photo: Tango7174 (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Zahara de la Sierra
From Ronda centre40 min
DurationHalf day (3–5 h)
DifficultyEasy
PriceFree
Best timeAll year
KidsSí
AddressZahara de la Sierra (Cádiz). Aparca en el mirador de la entrada del pueblo o en el aparcamiento municipal de la Plaza Lepanto y sube andando
About
- White village perched on a hill (about 500 m) above the turquoise Zahara-El Gastor reservoir
- Nasrid castle with its keep (Torre del Homenaje): you climb the steep Calle El Fuerte from Plaza del Rey, and the view at the top is huge
- Church of Santa María de la Mesa (18th c.): Baroque doorway in pink marble, tiled dome and gilded altarpiece
- Torre del Reloj (16th c.), part of an old hermitage
- Viewpoints: the one at the entrance, Plaza Lepanto and the balcony of Plaza del Rey over the reservoir
Good to know
- The climb to the castle is short but hard: best early or at sunset
- Local sweets: suspiros (meringues) and gañotes; and sopa de quemones (a local soup)
- Corpus Christi, celebrated for over 500 years: its big festival
- La Bodega trail (0.9 km, easy, no permit): starts next to the municipal pool and has views of the Garganta Verde
- Combine it with kayaking on the reservoir or with the Garganta Verde (with a permit)
Near here
Garganta Verde (trail with permit)Hiking · Zahara de la Sierra (Cádiz) · 45 minCanyon with walls up to 400 m high
Mesón OñateHome-style game cooking · Zahara de la Sierra · 40 minFamily mesón (traditional restaurant) with a terrace looking over the reservoir; home cooking with plenty of game.
Zahara-El Gastor reservoir: kayaking and swimming at ArroyomolinosWater sports · Zahara de la Sierra (Cádiz) · 40 minTurquoise reservoir at the foot of Zahara castle
El Torreón, the highest point in CádizHiking · Grazalema / Benamahoma (Cádiz) · 40 minThe highest peak in the province of Cádiz (about 1,648 m)