Almeria. Top things to do in Almeria, Spain. Travel to Almeria in Andalusia, Spain.
Location and History of Almeria
Almeria is a city on the south east coast of Spain with population of around 197,000.
The coastline in Almeria province has more than 100km of spectacular beaches.
The city was founded in 955 by the Arabs. It was an active port that traded in silk, oil and raisins.
During the 18th century huge iron mines were discovered and French and British companies set up business in the area.
In the 20th century Almeria saw massive economic growth through tourism and intense agriculture with crops being grown year round in expansive plastic-covered green houses.
There are subterranean tunnels to protect the locals during the civil war. You can visit these tunnels which are called Refugios de La Guerra Civil.
Our Apartment
Our apartment was located through the main area of Almeria in the old town. We arrived on the last day of the Fiesta and we had to navigate through the crowd.
It was a roomy apartment was next door to Patio de Vecinas. I booked the apartment because it had a roof top bar. The rooftop area was deserted and hadn’t been used for quite some time.
The owner of the apartment owned the restaurant next door as well and he told us we could use the rooftop and gave us all the instructions of how to turn the lights on.
We celebrated our anniversary on the rooftop, dancing in the dark, barefoot on the grass, under neath 1000 stars, listening to our favourite songs (just like the Ed Sheeran song that was playing at the time). Very romantic.
Beach and Promenade
The beach area is a nice walk from the old town. First you walk through a lush park with gardens, water features and statues.
Then you continue along a stunning wide paved promenade past cafes and restaurants, which were a perfect spot for a café con leche.
There are some impressive modern sculptures along the walk as well.
The beach of Playa de Nueva Almeria is flat and wide where the locals set up their beach gear for the day.
The Alcazaba of Almeria
This is Almeria’s Moorish fort of Alcazaba (walled city) and it covers 25,000sqm on top of a steep hill just outside the old town area.
It was built during the latter half of the tenth century by Abdal Al Rahman III.
It is a huge area that contains remains of a city, a castle with a museum inside, the huge wall that stretches for hundreds of metres and the cistern which held all the water.
There is also the garden and pond area which has lovely water features with decorative tiles and paving.
It is the second most visited monumental site in Andalusia.
The Cathedral of Almeria
This is a gothic and renaissance style cathedral which was built between the 1524 – 1562, which is a very quick time frame.
It served as a place of worship and a defence against the marauding Berber pirates.
Iglesia De La Virgen Del Mar (Virgen of the Sea)
La Virgen Del Mar is the Patron Saint of Almeria.
Each year at the end of August there is a procession which takes the Statue of the Virgen from the Lighthouse to the dock by boat.
Then there is procession which is on the last Saturday in August where the crowds gather to witness the bells ringing, marching soldiers, priests, the marching band plus a whole lot more.
Tapas and Food of Almeria
Almeria is probably in the top three places for food in Spain. There are many tapas bars, and some Michelin Starred restaurants.
The amazing thing about the tapas in Almeria, is that all the tapas are free with food.
We went to La Consentida Restaurant where we bought a bottle of wine and were then able to order four substantial tapas from the menu as well as dessert, all for the price of the 12 euro bottle of wine. As you can imagine we went back to this restaurant.
Another favourite bar we visited was rated as the top tapas bar in Almeria. It was called Casa Puga.
It is a small bar where the waiter is the cook and he can cook and serve without moving too far. You stand at the bar to order and eat your tapas and have your drink. They take your order and write the bill on the bar with pencil and you pay at the end.
In one restaurant I (Leanne) ended up orderin, by mistake, a bottle of water that “has never been touched by the sun” and cost us more than the bottle of wine.
Cabo de Gata
One of the most popular day trips from Almeria is to Cabo de Gata which was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. It was a nine hour day.
The area is characterized by volcanic rock formations, lava flows, volcanic domes and volcanic craters.
It is an extremely rugged coastline with spectacular views.
The first stop was the light house near the Playa de San Miguel. The light house is a popular area for kayaking. There is also an old church near Playa de San Miguel.
We also visited the Salt Plains of Cabo de Gata where there are many flamingos, however, we didn’t see many and the ones we did were a light grey colour. They turn pink after eating the brineand carotenoids in the microscopic algae under the salt.
Next stop was San Jose for lunch which had some lovely restaurants and a very pretty beach.
We once again travelled to a spot on the coastline to see more of the rugged beaches.
On our way home we passed the Michelin tyre testing track of 4,500 hectares, which is right in the heart of the natural park area.
Day trip to Western Theme Park Tour
This dusty rugged landscape of Almeria’s Tabernas Desert became a popular filming destination for Hollywood spaghetti westerns starring Clint Eastwood.
You can visit three of the Wild West sets that were built specifically for these movies.
There is now a theme park, a zoo, accommodation with pools and it’s a very popular spot with fabulous reviews.
Favourite Place to have a wine in Almeria
Leanne’s favourite place for a wine was on the rooftop bar of the Patio de Vecinos for their wedding anniversary.
Lyle’s favourite place was at a beach restaurant at San Jose having a cold Sangria.
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