Things to Do in Andalucia

The Palace of Charles V is a carefully designed statement of triumph and prestige. By building a royal residence in the heart of a conquered Muslim citadel, Charles honored his grandparents, the Catholic Monarchs, and celebrated the victory of Christianity over Islam.

The palace is in the Roman style, with a circular building set in a square. It was begun in 1526. Work on it was abandoned for 15 years during Granada's Moorish uprising, and abandoned again in 1637, leaving the palace unfinished and roofless. Finally, in 1923, a plan was designed to rescue and complete it.

Málaga’s gleaming white-stone cathedral was built over many years on the former site of a mosque after Isabella and Ferdinand had expelled the Moors from Andalusia in the 1480s. All that is now left of the mosque is the pretty Patio de los Naranjos, still filled with sweet-smelling orange trees. The cathedral is affectionately known locally as La Manquita (the one-armed lady) as it only has one—granted very elaborate and Baroque – bell tower. The other tower stands stunted and half-finished and the cathedral façade was never completed due to lack of civic funds; no-one is sure why but it may have been that funds were diverted into other projects across the region after a massive earthquake in 1680.

The original architect of the cathedral was Diego de Siloe and construction began in 1528; it continued slowly over the next two and a half centuries and this can clearly be seen in the mish-mash of Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architecture on the façade. The architecture José Martín de Aldehuela, who built the Puente Nuevo in Ronda, also had a hand in finishing this cathedral.

The interior is a mix of gleaming Renaissance and Baroque elements, with a lavishly ornate vaulted ceiling and two massive organs that boast 4,000 pipes between them. The fine 17th-century choir is of mahogany and cedar, adorned with 42 sculptures of saints designed by Luis Ortiz da Bargas and Pedro de Mena.

Adjacent to the cathedral is the smaller, 15th-century Iglesia del Sagrano. Only its original Gothic portico now remains as it was largely rebuilt in 1714 following the 1680 earthquake; it has a wonderfully over-the-top interior. There is a small open-air museum in the cathedral grounds scattered with sculptures by Málaga artist Jorge Rando.

Marbella: the very name is enough to conjure an expensively scented whiff of the rich and famous who have flocked here since the 1960s and 70s. Sean Connery used to come here to play golf; Joan Collins lived here too. The cream of the stars may have moved on, but there's still plenty of money in Marbella - hence the prices.

The city still has a hearty whack of chic, despite the inevitable ugly over-developments and overcrowded beaches. And if you want to know why everyone started coming here in the first place, you have only to wander along to the old part of town, with its whitewashed houses, palm trees, jasmine and geraniums. 

South of Seville's main old quarter and extending along the Guadalquivir River, you'll stumble upon the city's main green getaway, Maria Luisa Park. Once primarily the land of the Palace of San Telmo (now home to Andalusia’s president), this patch of paradise was donated to the public in 1893, evolving over the years into the Seville escape that you see today.

Most of its transformation came about during preparation for the 1929 World's Fair: expansive boulevards were created, fountains erected, gardens planted. Today’s park is so robust in flora and fauna that it is actually considered a proper botanical garden. And expect not only diverse plants, but also birds too, including ducks and swans that float in the fountains and lakes, and even green parrots that live in the center of the park.

It's not all just grassy knolls, ponds and paths, either: Maria Luisa Park is also home to numerous monuments and sights. Don't miss the Fountain of the Lions, with its four stone felines spouting water into an octagonal pond, or the Mudejar Pavilion, which houses the Museum of Arts and Traditions. And most notably, be sure to spend some time wandering the colorfully tiled Plaza de España, which is crisscrossed by several bridges and lined by painted scenes of provinces around Spain.

The much-rebuilt Mondragón Palace perches on top of the El Tajo Gorge and looks north towards the Sierra de las Nieves. Although little remains of the original Moorish palace, it may once have been the home of the 14th-century Moorish King Abomelic, who built the underground Water Mine at the Casa del Rey Moro. What is more certain is that Ronda’s last Moorish governor did live there.

Following the Reconquest in the 1480s, the palace was presented to Isabella and Ferdinand, and today its appearance is largely a hybrid of architectural styles. However, in places there are original Moorish mosaics and beautifully carved wooden ceilings plus a well-restored Mudéjar courtyard, complete with tiled, tinkling fountains and views of the gorge. Other courtyards were less lucky and were clumsily restored under Franco’s regime with lashings of concrete. The palace entrance is flanked by two squat reconstructed Mudéjar towers but is now primarily ornately Baroque.

The small Museum of Ronda and the Serrania on the second floor showcases local history and archaeology – going right back to prehistory – alongside a display dedicated to Megalithic and Moorish tombstones and burial traditions.