Natural parks in Andalucia

Montes de Málaga

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Montes de Malaga Natural park in Andalucia
  • Region: Andalucia
  • Province: Malaga
  • Declared a Natural Park: 1989
  • Park surface area: 4,996 hectares
  • Towns in the Montes de Malaga Area: Casabermeja, Colmenar, Málaga

Points of interest

The Montes de Málaga natural park is just 5km from the city of Málaga. It consists of rolling hills and mountains with a high point of 1031m. The highest road pass is Puerto de León at 960m.

There are many streams that cut through the park and fall into the Guadalmedina river to the west. The slopes are planted with pines and offer beautiful views of the Mediterranean countryside and coast.

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Sierra Subbética

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Set in the middle of Andalucia this is a limestone semi-mountainous area with a rolling hills and a high point of 1.570 m named la Tiñosa
  • Region: Andalucia
  • Province: Córdoba
  • Declared a Natural Park: 1988
  • Park surface area: 32,056 hectares
  • Towns and villages: Cabra, Carcabuey, Doña Mencía, Iznájar, Luque, Priego, Rute and Zuheros

Points of interest

Set in the middle of Andalucia, the Sierra Subbética is a limestone semi-mountainous area with rolling hills and a high point of 1.570 metres named la Tiñosa. The main economy for the area comes from olive oil, therefore much of the area has intensive olive grove plantations.

The villages and towns in the Sierra Subbética are a delight to explore.

If you have an interest in fossils then this area should be on your bucket list for Andalucia as it is also a UNESCO global geopark and also part of the “Fossil route”

This short documentary in Spanish highlights the scenery, culture and history of the Sierra Subbética.

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Sierra de Baza

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The depression known as la Hoya de Baza and the Sierra de Las Estancias
  • Region: Andalucia
  • Province: Granada
  • Declared a Natural Park: 1989
  • Park surface area: 53,649 hectares

Villages in the area

Baza, Caniles, Dólar, Gor, Valle de Zalabí

Points of interest

The sierra de Baza with its limestone peaks over 2000m is a relatively humid, botanical jewel between two arid plains of Las Hoyas de Guadix-Baza and the Llanos del Marquesado. It is part of the Cordillera Penibética range with the highest peak of Santa Bárbara at 2,271m. The steep slopes have a covering of pines with oaks and acer.

Thia natural park is home to nearly a hundred and fifty endemic species exclusive to the Iberian Peninsula: Iberian endemics 81, Southern Iberian endemics 51, Granada endemics 17.

This video shows some of the scenery and other interesting aspects of the area around the sierra de Baza. It was created for the FITUR tourism show in 2021 by the council of Baza

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Sierra de Maria-Los Velez

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A part of the Cordillera Bética mountain range which holds forests in an otherwise arid part of Almeria. The Sierra de Maria-Los Velez creates a haven for wildlife and a special biosphere for plants.
  • Region: Andalucia
  • Province: Almeria
  • Declared a Natural Park: 1987
  • Park surface area: 22,670 hectares
  • Z.E.P.A

Points of interest

A part of the Cordillera Bética mountain range which holds forests in an otherwise arid part of Almeria. The Sierra de Maria-Los Velez creates a haven for wildlife and a special biosphere for plants. The Sierras hold close to half of the plant species listed within Almeria. The main high point, the Sierra Maria, has northern facing slopes which are cooler and more humid, so the vegetation is dense. In contrast, the drier south facing high points are home to only a few plants that can withstand the poor soil and extremes of temperatures. Aptly named the hedgehog zone, these are generally low growing thorny, flowering cushions.

Velez Blanco. Footpaths and sceneries in the Sierra de Maria-Los Velez natural park

In Spanish this video show the spectacular sceneries and a few of the trails in the area.

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