Now that we have been here close to two months, I feel I have scoured the town and come up with a reasonable understanding of the important features and services that you need to know about. Things like: the major attractions, cultural events, eating in all its permutations, services that you will likely need to access at some point, and even retail shopping.
This will all be broken down into a two-part… possibly three-part… series, because there is just too much to cover in one article. And in some ways, you might consider that I have left the best to last. We shall see.
FYI, it is generally accepted that Nerja is the eastern limit of the Costa del Sol. But the folks in Almeria probably have something to say about that. 🙂
First of all, a shout out to whoever took the title photo for this article. It is one of the most interesting picture I have ever seen taken in Nerja. It captures the beauty of the Balcón de Europa from an angle most of us never get to see. The photo appears in many places, but the photographer is never identified. And, I have a particular fondness for night photography.
“Photo Carousel” – Once again, I am using the “Carousel” format to present the photos in the best possible manner. You click on the first photo (top-left) in a grouping to start the Carousel.
ATTRACTIONS
First of all, let’s start with the thing that most places promote when they are trying to lure tourists – they’re “Attractions”. Attractions are those special things the place has to offer that they think tourists will really find enjoyable and memorable For most people coming to the Costa del Sol, that would probably be the waterfront, the beaches and the pedestrian pathways connecting everything together. So, that’s what I’m not starting with, that’s what I’m saving until last. Why, you ask? Probably because I still need to gather up photos to present it in a way that will give you a very clear understanding of what it’s all about. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. 🙂
Tourist Office
Before I begin with the specific attractions I think you should know about, I want to speak about the local tourist office. Every city and town along the Costa to del Sol has a tourist office, and they are an invaluable source of local information. It really should be the first place you go to when you arrive in any Costa town.
The Nerja Tourist Office is located in the Nerja Town Hall… close to the Balcón de Europa … and opens every day at 10:00 am. It closes for lunch between 2 and 5 PM on weekdays and closes completely at 1:30 on weekends. But, just to be sure, search for their hours before you head down there. I suspect the hours that they’re open will fluctuate during busier months and may do so at other times now that the pandemic is winding down.
The tourist information office can provide you with maps of Nerja and other important information. like bus timetables, local hotels, day trips, attractions and any other enquiry visitors might have. Additionally, there are many leaflets, free newspapers and magazines available in the office.
Check it out!
Balcón de Europa
The Balcón de Europa is generally presented as Nerja’s focal feature, or attraction. It is an elevated peninsula, sticking out into the Mediterranean. Great views of the coastline can be had from it, and definitely a nice place just to stroll.
A stairway/walkway accessible just off the east side of the Balcón allows you to walk right down to the beach and ultimately out on to a walkway that goes around the base of the Balcón, past the Hotel Balcón de Europa on the west side, and then up again, a few hundred metres along.
When you get most of the way up, you can pause on the patio of Cochran’s Irish pub for a refreshing beverage and have a nice view back at the Balcón. The walkway ultimately takes you back up to the Balcón District.
Balcón Video
My own little photo overview of the Balcon begins with the video I shot in 2018. It provides a 360-degree view from the end of the Balcón … and a musical interlude. 🙂
And now the photos!
Balcón District
That said, when I think of the Balcón, I’m really thinking about the whole “Balcón District”. And, just so you know, I am probably the only one who refers to it as that… definitely not its official name. I am thinking that it is probably really called the “city centre” but, why let facts get in the way of a good story. 🙂
For me, the Balcón District radiates out from the foot of the Balcon onto several streets and pedestrian laneways, which are crammed with patios, shops, bars, restaurants, ice cream stands, and all the other good places that tourists like to visit. It is primarily a pedestrian-only area.
My presentation of this area will basically consist of a walk-through format in the pictures. It will start close to where we are staying, and then proceed eastward towards the Balcón itself, and then just a little further west to where three streets radiate out and contain much of the district.
Let’s start walking. I have broken down the photos into two clusters to make browsing through them a little easier.
The second grouping starts in the Plaza Balcón De Europa. Two of the three photos that show the streets radiating out as part of the Balcón Districts have video links included under the photos that will let you “walk” along each of the streets. You will have to wait until a later post to see my pictures of Calle Hernando de Carabeo.
Calle Almirante Ferrándiz
Calle Pintada
Tourist Train
Tourist Train? After the majestic Balcón and environs, a cutesy little tourist train is the next-best attraction in Nerja?
Hear me out. No, it wouldn’t be identified as best by anybody, but it does “signal” the beginning of a bit of a connecting “train” of thought that “tracks” through the attractions that follow. Hope you can get on “board” with that idea.
The Cueva-Tren, as it is called, departs from the Plaza de Los Cangrejos… just outside the gate where we are staying. It makes a stop in Maro, a district of Nerja, and then heads out to the famous Nerja Caves. It takes approximately 35 minutes to complete the trip if traffic is normal. It runs on roads, not on rails.
The current cost is €16 per adult, with a €1 reduction for seniors. The cost includes an admission ticket to the Nerja Caves, a free Audio-guide if you download it to your mobile phone, an admission ticket to the Nerja Museum, and round-trip travel on the tourist train. Admission to the Caves alone is normally €12.
Don’t bother to try and buy tickets online. Simply check out the schedule online and arrive at the spot where it departs, and buy your tickets on the train. You only need to be there a few minutes early.
Nerja Caves
The famous Nerja Caves (Cueva de Nerja) are found in Maro, a district of Nerja (Málaga). They were discovered on the 12th of January 1959 by a group of five young boys who were out searching for bats. They are truly spectacular and well worth a visit.
From Wikipedia:
“Stretching for almost 5 kilometres (3.1 mi), the caverns are one of Spain’s major tourist attractions. Concerts are regularly held in one of the chambers, which forms a natural amphitheater.
Skeletal remains found in the caverns indicate that they were inhabited from about 25,000 BC up until the Bronze Age.”
Some of the photos were taken by the Love-goddess on a 2018 visit. The others are from indicated sources.
The Nerja Museum
When you buy your train ticket it also includes admission to the Nerja Museum located in the Plaza de España. It is open every day from 10:00 until 4:30.
The museum is housed on three floors and covers the history of the caves and the town and some of the outlying areas.
Amongst the exhibits you will see is the skeleton of a young women who apparently lived in the caves around 18,000 years ago. Also on display are historical utensils and ceramics from the caves and other archaeological finds.
Not the best museum I’ve ever been to, but worth a visit on a slow day.
AYO’s Restaurant
And finally, we MUST include AYO’s restaurant as one of Nerja’s major attractions. I suspect that many people will think that it was Rick Steves that made AYO and his restaurant famous by having a lengthy look at it in an episode of his popular television travel series. In truth, AYO was very famous locally long before Rick came along. The restaurant has always been a major destination for locals and tourists.
Excuse me for interrupting Mr. Retiree guy, but you said that everything following the little tourist train discussion were somehow all tied together. I get the train going to the caves, people touring the caves, and the museum being about the caves, but this guy’s restaurant???
Drum roll… Yes. It. Is. Because… AYO IS ONE OF THE FIVE BOYS WHO DISCOVERED THE CAVES!!!
AYO, the nick name for Francisco Ortega Olalla, was one of the first boys to enter the caves back in 1959. His extremely successful restaurant has only enhanced his early celebrity. If you are interested in reading more about him, here is a link to an article on the Hotel Los Arcos website where he is interviewed. I find the English translation has probably confused a bit of the original text, but an interesting read, regardless. I have used the photo of him serving paella from their website in my photo gallery.
A great video about AYO’s can be found on the restaurant’s website. Scroll down to find it.
CULTURE
Let’s wrap up this first section of all the things you need to know about Nerja with a look at culture. There are more cultural experiences to be had in Nerja than you might think would be found in a small Spanish town. And several are available in English, as well as Spanish.
You will notice that I do not cover things like visual arts. That is because I have not had a chance to experience them here in any way that would be meaningful to share with you.
Cultural Centre
First up is a look at the small, but highly used, Cultural Centre. As you will see, it is used on an ongoing basis for a myriad of different cultural events.
Festivals
Several major cultural events take place in Nerja if you are there in February and March. Two are truly Spanish in nature but one is… well… Irish. They are presented in the chronological order in which they take place.
Carnaval
I will not regale you with more information about Carnaval given that I have already posted an entire piece about it. If your interest has been tweaked, you can go back and read it here.
What I will do though, is show you a video clip I shot during Carnaval in 2018. Above and beyond all the scheduled activities, small bands of people get together and put together acts that they perform while wandering around town during the event. I thought this was a great one. You must wait till the end of the video to see the pyrotechnics though. 🙂
Andalucía Day
Andalusia Day is a celebration practiced exclusively in Andalusia. It happens every year on February 28. It, like Carnaval, is an event put on primarily for the locals. You may have seen that we were in Cordoba for this year’s Andalusia Day, so not sure exactly what went on in Nerja.
You probably have seen the video I posted of the parade that rode by as we were having lunch in Cordoba, so I will not share that here again. Instead, here is a video clip of some folks singing spontaneously in the main square in Marbella on Andalusia Day in 2017.
Saint Patrick’s Day
As the saying goes, on St. Patrick’s Day everyone is Irish. That is certainly true here on the Costa del Sol. There is a large Irish diaspora living here and that means many Irish pubs and an interest in Irish events. St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated all up and down the coast.
It was pretty low-key here in Nerja this year… Mostly people drinking Guinness on bar patios of all sorts. However, we have seen some pretty serious St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in other towns.
I’m going to share with you a video clip that I shot in Marbella a few years ago. The local Irish pub essentially turned the event into Saint Patrick’s Weekend. This included a large Irish patio set up down on the boardwalk with a stage where many music acts performance. This clip is just one of those.
Next up in this series, we look at eating and drinking, shopping, and accessing services in Nerja.
But, to wrap it all up, I’m going to share another spectacular video for with you. It is from the Por Soleá website and watchable on YouTube. It is an amazing drone video of the Balcón de Europa.
