Title: Arabian Nights 1
Artist/Group: Buddha Bar
It was so hot that my mind and body needed to relax by the sea. So we decided to head towards the Costa de la Luz in southern Spain. The Costa de la Luz has the nicest beaches of Andalucía, so we packed our beachwear and began our journey. Our first stop was Tarifa, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean. I felt a bit disappointed by the town and its beaches, despite its historical and cultural past. The town is attractive to walk around but that’s all. The beaches are so windy that wind-surfing or kite-surfing are a must, but don’t expect to stretch a towel in the sand and lie over it for more than 10 minutes. Our hotel was our best reward. The Dos Mares Hotel is located in Playa de los Lances, about 5km far from Tarifa and decorated in a Moroccan style, featuring 35 bungalows amidst palm trees and cactus. http://www.dosmareshotel.com/
We set our base in Zahara de los Atunes, a small fishing village with wonderful beaches, not as windy as those of Tarifa and a great spot to discover the adjacent beaches and towns. We spent the mornings lazing in the sun and the early afternoons sleeping “siesta”. We also had fabulous culinary experiences and made delightful discoveries of the surroundings. In short, we had a wonderful vacation.
ARRIVING. You may take a bus from Malaga direction Cadiz. The company that runs the route Cadiz-Zahara de los Atunes is Transportes Generales Comes. http://www.tgcomes.es . The journey will last about 2 hours, and it will cost approximately 7€. We arrived Zahara by car, which was the best option to visit the surroundings comfortably. From Malaga take the E-15 Malaga-Algeciras-Cadiz. In Los Pastores, take the E-5/N340 and follow directions to Zahara de los Atunes. The drive will last 2 hours and a half, (200km)
SLEEPING.
ZAHARA DE LOS ATUNES. There are many accommodations in Zahara de los Atunes and the local area. We stayed at El Cortijo de Zahara, http://www.hotelelcortijodezahara.com/ingles.html located beachfront in the Bahia de la Plata, about 4km from Zahara, next to The German´s Beach, Playa de los Alemanes. The style and architecture are those of a typical Andalucían villa, the bedrooms and restaurant have magnificent views of the ocean and the courtyard is a delight full of jasmines and bougainvilleas.
CAÑOS DE LA MECA. Hotel La Breña. http://www.hotelbrena.com/en/index.php This cozy small hotel, seven rooms only, is located seafront facing Africa, next to the spectacular La Breña National Park.
VEJER DE LA FRONTERA. Hotel Casa Cinco. http://www.hotelcasacinco.com/ The hotel is located in the centre of the Old Town of Vejer de la Frontera, beaches 10km away. Vejer de la Frontera is a lovely small town located in a hill near the coast. Hotel Sindhura, http://www.hotelsindhura.com/html/indexGB.htm
EATING and DRINKING
Being in Zahara de los Atunes, we are supposed to find the best tuna in the World and almost every restaurant offers unless one tuna based dish. I prefer it “a la plancha”, grilled with vegetables. Casa Juanito, in Zahara, is a good place to begin. Chiringuito Los Sueños is a beach bar in Atlanterra where to taste a good wine and some tapas, excellent kitchen. There are many restaurants along the coast offering mainly fried fish “pescaito frito”, also a specialty of the region. “Jonnhy” in Atlanterra, has well a decorated terrace where to have a drink watching the spectacular sunset. La Luna and La Gata in Zahara are also very nice places to enjoy live music. La Jaima, over Playa del Pirata in Caños de la Meca is a hip bar and disco settled in a Moroccan tent with cushions in the floor.
BEACHES.
The best beach is Playa de los Alemanes, next to Cabo de la Plata in Zahara de los Atunes, though there are no restaurants or “chiringuitos” nearby. Playa de Zahara is a long extension of sand, very windy, perfect for windsurfing, and full of restaurants and small beach bars. There are some magnificent beaches of natural beauty hidden behind the pine forests of Caños de la Meca. Playa del Pirata, is the most popular, also the area of the Faro de Trafalgar has a nice sheltered beach.
El Palmar, the seafront of Vejer de la Frontera is well-known among young people for the practice of surf and kite surf.
http://www.placerdetrafalgar.com/index_english.htm
