Things To Do in Costa de la Luz

This all-Spanish city is where the country’s stereotypes meet – bullfighting, flamenco, tapas, the works. Wander its cobbled squares and streets – lined with fragrant orange trees – and you’ll come across open-air cafés and cubby-hole restaurants. Sights worth checking out include the Giralda Tower for city views, the Gothic cathedral and the Alcazar Palace. If you’re a Game of Thrones fan, the latter might look familiar – it was a filming location for the Water Gardens of Dorne in season five. You can be there in under 90 minutes from either Chiclana de la Frontera or Islantilla.

Sun worshippers, windsurfers and history buffs alike have something to keep them occupied at this stretch 20 minutes from Islantilla. There are sheltered sands and Roman ruins at one end, and perfect windsurfing conditions at the other. Plus, wherever you are, the views of Morocco are first-rate.

Learn your ‘amontillado’ from your ‘fino’ with a stop in this pretty sherry town. Toppped by a Moorish castle, it makes up Spain’s sherry triangle, along with Jerez de la Frontera and El Puerto de Santa Maria. The wineries here are famous for bone-dry Manzanilla, which is only made here, although it’s worth buying a few bottles of the local white Barbadillo plonk, too. You can drive here from Chiclana de la Frontera in less than an hour.

The golden sands of Isla Canela unravel along the coast for 7 kilometres, so you’ll have no problem finding a spot to call your own. The beach is lapped by gentle waves – perfect if you’ve got little ones in tow. Plus, there are watersports such as sailing, windsurfing and canoeing down by the shoreline.

You get two beaches for the price of one at La Barossa, in the town of Chiclana de la Frontera. There’s the busier part, which is accessorised with a promenade and tourist facilities like showers and toilets, and the undeveloped part, which is protected by sand dunes and shrubbery. Whichever section you choose to lay your towel, you’re guaranteed Blue Flag-standard surroundings.

Portugal’s home to never-ending beaches, cosmopolitan cities and Moorish villages. One of the nearest stop-offs is traditional Tavira, a sleepy town with no end of al fresco bars and seafood restaurants. And if you catch the ferry from Quatro a Guas, you’ll be dropped at Ilha de Tavira, a spit of white sand that’s as unspoilt as it gets.

You can see Morocco’s Rif Mountains from Tarifa – they’re only 9 miles apart. In fact, catch a boat from here and you can be in Tangier – once the stomping ground of Ava Gardner and Aristotle Onassis – in about 40 minutes. As for what to see when you get there, the Kasbah is its heart. Get lost in the tangle of hole-in-the-wall stalls piled high with spices, slippers and carpets.

Islantilla’s main beach is one of the best on the Costa de la Luz. It has Blue Flag status, and the fine golden sand stretches a mile up the coast to neighbouring La Antilla’s main square, which has a clutch of cafés. The beach itself is backed by sand dunes and a prom dotted with traditional tapas bars.

Christopher Columbus is the big fish in La Rabida’s pond. The explorer lived here for an entire year while he waited for the funds for his expedition to clear from the king and queen of Spain. There’s a museum inside, which catalogues Columbus’ journey to the New World. Outside, meanwhile, you’ll find the botanical gardens, where he would have whiled away the hours leading up to his big trip.

If you want to drop off the radar, drive 10 minutes from Islantilla to this sandy stretch. It’s actually made up of 2 beaches on either side of the Flecha del Rompido spit, with pine groves and fields of oranges and strawberries in between. It’s as quiet as they come, so you might want to bring your iPod and a chunky novel.

This 185,000-acre national park is one of Spain’s most prized assets. So much so, visitor numbers are restricted to protect it. That said, it draws in flocks of birdwatchers, eager to see visiting imperial eagles and greater flamingos. You can also see red deer, wild boar and mongoose among its lagoons, dunes and forests. Plus, it’s one of the lynx’s last refuges – about 60 pairs have set up home here.

Eight kilometres of golden sand greets you in Isla Cristina, Isla Canela’s next door neighbour. And the beach is so long that there’s a suitable section for everyone – whether you’re after a footprint-free portion or a slice for surfing in. If you’ve got smaller ones with you, head for the area that’s partly shaded by pine trees.

Nature lovers should visit this wildlife haven, about halfway between Isla Canela and Chiclana de la Frontera. Made up of protected forests, lagoons and dunes, it’s one of the best bird-watching sites in Europe. Grab your binoculars and follow its marked trails to spot the likes of eagles, storks, flamingos, deer and mongoose.

Morocco is so close to this part of Spain, you can almost smell the spices of this North African country. Ferries to Tangier from the town of Tarifa only take an hour and, once you land, you’ll enter a whole new world of mosques, souks and Moorish architecture. Spend a day browsing the bazaars, seeing Tangier citadel up-close, and sipping mint tea in a pavement café.

It’s possible that Cadiz is the oldest city in Europe. And, over the years, it’s amassed a pretty impressive antiques collection. Baroque churches and 18^th-century cathedrals are just part of the city’s architectural archive. If you only see one thing, make it the Torre Tavira. From the top of this 18^th-century tower you can see views of the entire city. Plus, there’s a camera obscura here, which lets you inspect the vistas close-up.

The seafood in Huelva, about an hour from Isla Canela, is second to none. Find a vacant table in Plaza de las Monjas and place an order for the town’s speciality – white prawns. They’re usually served grilled and they’re the perfect partner to a glass of the region’s condado wine. This selection of reds and whites is known as The Discovery of America collection.

It’s said the Andalucian horse has been bred in these parts since around 200 BC and, each May, in the town of Jerez de la Frontera, locals pay tribute to the intelligent animal with a horse fair. This prestigious equestrian event attracts visitors from all over the world, and it’s packed with horse shows and races.

Spain’s stereotypes have been fortified in Seville. In this city, tapas bars are ten-a-penny, shops sell castanets, and silk-suited matadors fight bulls in The Plaza de Toros de la Maestranza. Seville’s main claim to fame, though, is its oranges. They’re too bitter to eat raw, but head to one of the city’s traditional restaurants and you can try citrus-marinated ceviche.

Famed for its sherry-making, Jerez, about half an hour from Chiclana de la Frontera, is filled with bodegas where you can try all the varieties of the classic Spanish tipple. But the town has a lot more going for it than just sherry. It’s home to the Royal Andalucian School of Equestrian Art, which stages shows of dancing horses every Tuesday and Thursday. Other must-sees include an impressive Moorish fortress, beautiful plazas and a flamenco museum.

For incredible surroundings, El Rompido’s kilometre-long beach wins hands down. Not only are the sands here cushiony and golden, but the beach is part of the Flecha de el Rompido natural park, so the whole thing is surrounded by thick vegetation. As such, it’s lovely and peaceful. The drive here takes 35 minutes from Isla Canela.

You’ll need a full day to explore this beautiful Moorish city, thought to be Europe’s oldest. Jutting out into the Bay of Cadiz, it’s bordered by the Atlantic on three sides. Down on the waterfront you’ll find pretty gardens, open squares and a hub of tapas bars and seafood restaurants. Shops and galleries are taken care of in the old town, and the 18th-century gold-domed cathedral is worth a stop, too. It’s about half an hour’s drive from Chiclana de la Frontera.

This traditional Spanish town is the world’s sherry capital. As you’d expect, it’s not short on bodegas where you can try – and buy – the tipple. But it’s not all grapes here. Horses are a major passion and if you stop by the Royal School of Equestrian Art on a Thursday, you can watch a show. Flamenco is big news, too – there’s an exhibition on it at the Centro Andaluz de Flamenco.

The towns along the Costa de la Luz are choc-full of parades in the week leading up to Easter Sunday. Crane your neck through the crowds lining the streets of Islantilla and you’ll spot processions of locals in colourful robes and pointy hats. For the biggest celebrations, though, make your way to Seville, where you’ll see golden carriages swanning through the streets near the Cathedral. And if you can stay awake for it, there’s a night-time procession that starts as soon as the clock strikes midnight and Good Friday begins.

This festival in Huelva is all about Christopher Columbus, who set sail on his famous 1492 voyage from the port here. Everything happens at the Real de la Feria fairground, which looks more like a mini-city for the 6-day event. Join the roaring crowds at the bullfighting tournaments, and catch sailing races and a huge fireworks display at the nearby port. As for how to get there, it’s a 20-minute drive from Islantilla.