Almuñécar is a Spanish beach town to the south of Granada on the Costa Tropical between Nerja and Motril. It has a storied history with Phoenician, Roman and Moorish heritage.
Almuñécar began as a Phoenician colony named Sexi
Under the Moors, Almuñécar blossomed as the fishing town of al-Munakkab or Ḥiṣn-al-Munakkab.
Roman Aqueduct
(The Roman aqueduct in the Rio Seco valley about 2 km (1 mi) north of Almuñécar)
Almuñécar lies on a prominent headland between two rivers Rio Verde and Rio Seco along the steep southern coast of Spain, and was settled early. Phoenician occupation of the site, Sexi, has been proven from the 9th century b.c. In Roman times, the city was a municipium with Latin rights known as Sexi Firmum Iulium. The main local industry seems to have been the production of garum.
(The Roman aqueduct at Torrecuevas near the source of the Rio Verde about 4 km (2 mi) north of Almuñécar)
Beach
Almunecar has 19 kilometres of local coastline with 25 beaches along the coast of Almunecar and La Herradura.
THE SAN MIGUEL CASTLE
The castle is said to date back to the Phoenician era in 7th century BC. Since then the castle offers a fantastic journey through time having Roman, Moorish and more recently Christian influences.
Visit
Almuñecar is part of 4 beach towns on the Costa Tropical and widely considered the 2nd most beautiful town with Nerja being the first.
It is largely overlooked due to Nerja being famed as the place to be on the Costa Tropical. As a result there are very few tourists, even in high season and there's always place on the beach or any of the other tourist attractions.
In my personal opinion, the drive from Granada to Almuñecar, passing the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains is worth the price of admission in itself. It is a one hour drive with the bus, with nothing but the most beautiful mountaneous scenery to be found in the south and possibly in all of Spain.
Once you arrive at Salobreña and you keep heading west to Malaga, there is nothing but gorgeous mountain landscape, quiet beach towns facing the calm and chilly Mediterrean sea.
For those visting or living in Granada, Almuñecar is highly recommended for its rich history, lack of tourists, being a modern and upkept (unlike rundown Almeria and certain parts of Malaga) and just being a must visit and must see Spanish coastal town.
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