"Andalucía - a fantastic winter vacation spot!" Top 5 Page for this destination Andalucía by Bwana_Brown

Andalucía Travel Guide: 14,368 reviews and 31,478 photos

Abandoned church at El Cabo de Gata - Andalucía

My wife and I spent three weeks in Spain over the Christmas 2008/New Year 2009 holiday season as we sought to escape the -40 C temperatures of western Canada. Our research on Spain indicated that Andalucía was the place to be at that time of the year so away we went - spending 17 nights roaming from place to place in our rental car (as well as 3 nights in Madrid and 2 more in Alicante after flying to the Mediterranean coast there).

Andalucía is an amazing part of Spain - we simply loved it. During the course of our travels we took in its historic cities, the majestic Sierra Nevada mountains, several ancient 'white villages', the Mediterranean shores, fabulous gorges, the rugged Atlantic Ocean coast, Roman ruins and finally the hidden gem of El Cabo de Gata-Nijar Nature Park. Heck, while we were there we even threw Gibraltar into the pot! The people were friendly and accommodations were great, making this one of our favourite vacation experiences.

Take a ride along with us on this page - I've put all the tips in the order in which we did them to make it a bit easier to follow our trip. Also, my 'General' tip contains a map of the area that shows our driving route and also where some of the main attractions are located.

Pros and Cons

Pros:Tremendous variety, not busy in winter and mild temperatures too!
Cons:The weather could be dicey in winter - we were lucky with it
In a nutshell:Andalucía was perfect for us but might be too busy for my tastes in summer

Last visit to Andalucía: Jan 2009
Intro Updated Jan 2, 2010
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Reviews (60)

Attractions we visited in Andalucía - Andalucía

Map of various Andalucía attractions Favorites (1)

This map of the southwestern part of Spain shows where we picked-up our rental car in Alicante (500 km up the coast) as... more travel advice

Santa & the 'Three Wise Men' entering a window - Andalucía

Three Kings Day celebrations Local Customs (4)

This was the first time that we experienced Christmas/New Year in a Spanish-speaking country and we noticed that the... more travel advice

Mediterranean Sea shore fishing Local Customs (4)

About half-way through our 3-weeks in Spain, during our morning walk along the Mediterranean shore of eastern Estepona,... more travel advice

Orange tree above us at a lunchtime restaurant - Andalucía

Orange tree streets Local Customs (4)

My first experience with orange trees as street decorations struck me five years ago in 2004 while in the city of... more travel advice

Transportation (2)
See All Take a ferry to avoid parking hassles!
Things to Do (29)
See All Try to take in Gibraltar while in the...

Hotels (10)
See All (Tarifa) Not bad compared to last time...
Restaurants (14)
See All (San José) An interesting evening meal

Comments (16)

xaver Nov 1, 2010 at 12:52 AM Report Abuse

this looks like an amazing tour of andalusia, I agree with you, some hotels or B&B can sure be a tourist attraction.
JLBG Jun 8, 2010 at 1:31 PM Report Abuse

The Alhambra is of course high on our wish list. Thanks to remind me how beautiful it is! I did not know about El Torqal Nature Park Reserve and that is a visit to add. Yummy restaurant tips! Alcachafel=artichoke. Thanks for this very informative page!
kyoub May 31, 2010 at 4:35 AM Report Abuse

I have really enjoyed traveling through Spain with you. You did a wonderful job of describing your journey. Thanks,Glenn
unaS Apr 3, 2010 at 4:36 PM Report Abuse

I too loved Sevilla and Granada. You have awoken some great memories - and introduced some new goals. Many thanks
TheWanderingCamel Mar 5, 2010 at 7:38 AM Report Abuse

Great overview of this most fascinating region. The Moorish history of Spain is a particular interest of mine. I'll be back for more soon. leyle
robertgaz Jan 25, 2010 at 3:12 PM Report Abuse

It seems that you had Spain to yourselves ;) Casa Sol y Luna looks to be a great find!
deecat Jan 22, 2010 at 9:39 AM Report Abuse

Love the info about the goat herders. We also loved the Orange tree streets. Great hotel and restaurant tips. Ronda and Sevilla were favorites for us, especially the Parador Hotel. Excellent job, Glenn.
Kuznetsov_Sergey Jan 15, 2010 at 11:53 AM Report Abuse

Great overview of Andalucia bringing back sweet memories and many new information about this wonderful land! Dream to come back there one day and see more and more... Thank you Glenn for sharing!
calcaf38 Jan 8, 2010 at 5:22 PM Report Abuse

Wonderful panorama of Andalucia. I like the DK Eyewitness books while at home: on the go, I find them unpleasant to hold, and hard to follow. Hope all of you are doing well. Thank you for looking at my Torcello page.
micas_pt Jan 8, 2010 at 11:52 AM Report Abuse

Great opening photo. Excellent overview of your road trip around Andalucia.