Andalucia & Costa del Sol Things to Do

With a Mediterranean climate that can’t be beat, and over 40 courses dotting its coastline, Spain’s Costa del Sol is a golf destination worth adding to your athletic itinerary.

Whales and dolphins really like the waters where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Mediterranean Sea, the area which in Spain is the southernmost point at Tarifa, heading east past Gibraltar and on to the Costa del Sol. This higher salinity of the Mediterranean meeting the lower-salt Atlantic causes a unique food chain for these sea-living mammals.

Tarifa is a small city on the southernmost tip of Spain, in fact it’s the southernmost point of Europe, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean, facing Morocco across the Straits of Gibraltar.

Vino de Jerez or Sherry is produced in the Sherry Triangle of Andalucia, in the towns of Jerez, Sanlucar de Barrameda, and El Puerto de Santa Maria, with most bodegas or wineries clustered around Jerez de la Frontera.

Some believe the word sherry comes from the Arabic for Jerez which is Sherish. Others say it is an anglicizing of the word Xeres (Jerez) and in fact the industry began with Irish and Scottish entrepreneurs about 250 years ago. Either way it is a particularly popular drink in the Spanish area of Cadiz and also in Britain and Ireland.

It’s so popular with sunseekers that it’s hard to believe anything along this Spanish coastline could still be a well-kept secret but there are few beaches tucked away from the crowds.

The area to head for is east of Malaga.

Cadiz is and ancient city dating from 1000 BC, and it’s been continuously occupied since then, making it one of Europe’s oldest cities. Like many old cities, it’s in two halves, or two characters: the narrow streets of the historic center and the more modern suburbs and business districts. Cadiz is on a peninsula, surrounded by water which is why it’s also been such a popular place for a port during the centuries; Christopher Columbus set off on two of his voyages from here.