People are more and more concerned with having a healthy life-style. This is due to several reasons, for example, our sedentary routine makes us gain weight and causes us to worry about our health and pushes us to practice sports after our working hours are over. Another reason is that we are more informed than ever, we have acces to a lot of information and therefore, we know what is good and what is bad for our bodies, and how important is to have a healthy living.

We like to think that health and leisure can go together, and a vacation is probably one of the best times to dedicate oneself to a healthy living and to have fun at the same time. The southern coast of Spain sure is of the best places for this kind of vacation. Let’s see some of the benefits of this land:

Sun: Positive effects of a moderate sun exposure has been proved many times. Sun exposure kicks off the chemical and metabolic chain reaction that produces vitamin D, wich is good for bones. A daily 15 minutes of sun exposure is enough to prevent some cancers. Moreover, good weather is said to be efficient against some kind of depressions and to help people feel better with themselves. In the coast of Granada, for example, the average number of sunny days per annum is 320.

Sea water: Swimming is one of the best sport one could choose to practice, especially if we want to prevent some back pains or would like to take care of our hearts. OK, but you can swim in a swimming pool, right? You don’t need to go to the coast of Spain. The truth is sea water have some positive effects on our health, otherwise it would have never been used for healing purposes during thousands of years. Seawater soothes and heals: vitiligo, eczema, dermatitis, psoriasis and some fungal conditions.

Beach: We all know walking is a good exercise. Walking on the beach offers new angles to this healthy activity. When you walk on the beach, you are breathing the cleanest air, you are in contact with seawater, and if you go bare feet, you are getting a foot massage from the sand or little stones of the shore, that stimulates your blood circulation. Walking or jogging on the beach is a more demanding exercise than on a hard surface, it requires more energy and it burns more calories. If you get into the water knee-deep, the stroll gets even tougher.

Food: I am not going to go about how healthy a Mediterranean diet is. We have all heard a lot about this. Unfortunately, I cannot talk about how delicious it is either, you better come and taste it yourself (perhaps with a glass of good wine).

Bathed by the waters of the Mediterranean, the county of Costa Tropical-Granada is protected from the cold by the high peaks of the Sierra Nevada, whilst the warm winds from the North of Africa provide the region with a temperate climate, thus giving it both its name ‘Tropical’ and a subtropical microclimate which is unique in the Iberian Peninsula. With an average temperature of 18,5 ̊C and 320 days of sun a year, the holiday of a lifetime is guaranteed while half of Europe is covered with snow.

Located in the South of the province of Granada, it offers visitors direct contact with Nature, with wide open spaces of great beauty and interest such as The Sierras de Tejada, Almijarra and Alhama Natural Park, and the Acantilados de Maro-Cerro Gordo Nature Reserve, which has posidonia or ‘seagrass’ fields of great value growing in the depths of its waters.

Sun and Beach

Along 73 km of coastline lie the beautiful, contrasting beaches of Granada’s Costa Tropical, with their wide range of hotels and great infrastructure. One example of this high quality tourism is Motril, the town which is proud to be the town in Spain with most awards for the quality of its beaches: three quality Qs and two blue flags in 2006.

Almuñecar, Motril and Salobreña have beaches to offer with all the facilities of the great tourist centres: La Herradura, San Cristóbal, el Tesorillo or Velilla (Almuñecar); Calahonda, Poniente, Granada, Torrenueva and Carchuna (Motril); and Playa del Peñón and la Charca (Salobreña). Those of a quieter nature can opt for the beach at la Guardia in Salobreña or La Rábita in Albuñol, as well as the natural coves of El Caletón or El Pargo. What’s more, those who prefer nudist beaches will find true havens in the beaches of Cantariján and El Muerto in Almuñecar, La Joya in Motril and El Ruso beach in Albuñol.

Art and Culture

A gateway used by powerful civilizations, this land saw the arrival of the founder of the Omeya Emirate of Al-Andalus and now boasts several valuable archaeological sites and monuments which bear testimony to the busy history of this privileged, strategic site. Your visit could begin with the Cueva de los Murciélagos, the Cave of the Bats (Albuñol) which dates from Neolithic times, and could then continue with the Salting Factory from the Roman Punic period in Almuñecar, without forgetting, of course, the forts and castles, look-outs and watchtowers which the Muslims erected as a defense against invasion by Christian troops. All this alongside pretty villages with harbours, and inland hamlets, which peer out towards the sea from the slopes of the Alpujarra, preserving that mountain region feel.

The cultural options along the Costa make this one of the most appealing areas for cultural visits in the province. Museums as representative as the Archaeological Cueva de Siete Palacios, the Cave of Seven Palaces (Almuñecar), the Preindustrial Sugar Museum (Motril), the Historical Town of Salobreña and the Museum of Oil and of the Gastronomic Heritage of Andalusia (Vélez de Benaudalla) go hand in hand with internationally recognized music events such as the veteran Jazz on the Costa Festival and the International Andrés Segovia Classical Guitar Competition or the un-missable summer flamenco event par excellence, the Lucero del Alba Festival, which takes place in Salobreña.

A flavor of its own

The Mediterranean provides the inhabitants of this region with delicious fish, the main ingredient used to make the dishes which are characteristic of the area: fish cooked in escabeche marinade, in more elaborate dishes or as part of seafood rice dishes. These recipes also include a touch of the tropical, provided by the tropical fruit which, thanks to the region’s micro-climate which is similar to that of the Pacific, are grown on picturesque mango, medlar, guava, avocado and custard-apple plantations, this latter fruit being granted the status of Designation of Origin along with that grown on the coast of Malaga province. Another typical image to be seen along this coast is that of sardines cooked on a spit over a fire, or that of summer visitors regaling their taste-buds with a glass of sugar-cane rum of Motril.

For the more Active

The Costa Tropical offers water-sports lovers a whole range of activities. The beaches at Carchuna or La Herradura are absolutely ideal for riding the waves on a windsurf board; the rich seabed at Calahonda, the cliffs of El Caletón and El Pargo in La Caleta at Salobreña (near its artificial reefs) or the caves and grottos in the Acantilados de Maro-Cerro Gordo reserve, are an irresistible magnet for expert divers and snorkelers; and for those who wish to moor their leisure boats, the county also boasts the Motril Sailing Royal Club and the Leisure Marina at Marina del Este. The inland countryside is also the scene of active tourism activities such as hang-gliding and paragliding in the Sierra de Lújar and hill-walking in the Sierra de Almijara mountains, and the Peña Escrita Ecological Park.

Costa Tropical Events organises business, corporate and private events in one of the most attractive regions in the South of Spain, Andalusia. Through our carefully selected programs, created with utmost respect for the environment and its natural resources, we invite you to explore and experience this unique part of Spain in a sustainable manner.

Tailor-made programs are developed in close cooperation with our clients, who can benefit from the solid and carefully built up network. Costa Tropical Events uses its expertise to create a unique event that will meet your expectations, taking in account all specific requirements such as transportation, accommodation, catering, activities and excursions.

The area offers a huge range of activities:

Adventure and active:
Diving, hiking, sailing, kayaking, windsurfing, kitesurfing, snowboarding, skiing, rock climbing, jeep safari’s, horseback riding, paragliding, tennis, golf, canyoning, motor trips and mountain biking

Nature:
Walking tours in natural areas, birdwatching, flora & fauna

Themed:
wellness, spiritual, yoga, pilates, gastronomy, honeymoon, flamenco, salsa

Cultural:
City trips to Moorish towns like Granada, Cordoba, Seville, Malaga & Ronda, the Mudajar route or a trip to Morocco

Educational:
English and Spanish language courses (business & leisure)

Creative:
Art classes such as painting, sculpture, mosaic, photography

The warm waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the mild winds from the north of Africa and the freshness provided by the mountains in Sierra Nevada create a unique microclimate at the Costa Tropical. With approximately 320 sunny days a year and an average temperature of 20 degrees Celsius, a perfect climate is created to provide a wide range of year-round activities.

Beautiful white washed Spanish villages like Almuñecar, Salobreña and La Herradura are situated in this idyllic, yet undiscovered and unspoilt area of southern Andalusia. From the crystal clear blue Mediterranean Sea to the Sierra Nevada mountain range, a great wealth of treasures is waiting for you to be discovered.