In February 2023, Matt – part of our Sales team in Australia – travelled to Southern Spain on a 9-day Escapes by Globus tour.
These holidays offer departures in Europe’s off season (November – March) to take advantage of cooler weather, fewer crowds and prices that are up to 40% cheaper than if you were to travel in summer. While exploring this vibrant country, Matt found three unexpected treasures of Southern Spain while on tour.
1. Mijas
You’ve probably never heard of Mijas, and to be honest, neither had I before this Southern Spain tour. However, it is everything you could ever want from a European experience!
Picture a whitewashed town overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, complete with cute donkeys and all the pinch-yourself euphoric moments you could want. Whitewashed homes and donkeys probably conjure up visions of one of those crowded Greek Islands, yet here we are in Spain with a similar experience less the crowds. Mijas has thousands of geraniums hanging on the walls to really make the town pop against its white façade. Plus, the view back towards Costa del Sol is one that you will never forget.
2. Ronda
This one isn’t the name of a person, but a quaint town with a larger-than-life personality in the heart of Southern Spain. To nail the pronunciation of Ronda like a true Spaniard, you must really roll that first ‘r’.
What makes Ronda special is that it is built over the El Tajo Gorge. This has resulted in its signature bridge, the Puente Nuevo, which connects its two sides with great views from both on the bridge and looking back at it.
Ronda has much more to it than its bridge though, with a famous bullring known as the Plaza de Toros. It dates right back to the eighteenth century and really brings some of that signature Spanish culture to life. The Plaza de Toros is also one of the Local Favourite experiences included on a Globus tour. Don’t miss the incredible bocadillo (sandwich) bars, the perfect snack at a price that doesn’t break the bank.
3. Gibraltar
On a technicality, Gibraltar isn’t in Spain. However, this less-than-7-kilometre2 territory is connected to Spain with the fifth highest population density in the entire world. As it’s regarded as a British Overseas Territory, you feel like you’ve been immediately transported to London with British pubs, great fish and chips, bad coffee and Union Jacks galore.
Everything from the currency, the accents and the language immediately shifts and it’s a bizarre experience in every possible way.
Gibraltar also has some incredible caves with limestone formations that you can walk through, and we can’t forget the cheeky monkeys who love to entertain visitors. My highlight of visiting Gibraltar is that you can see Africa! It looks like it’s within swimming distance and I told everyone in my group I could make it (but in reality, I probably couldn’t!). Lastly, a fun fact I learnt is that every time a plane lands or takes off at their International Airport, the only road in and out of Gibraltar is closed because it runs directly across the runway!
These three unexpected treasures feature on the Southern Spain Escape tour which makes these not so easily accessible gems suddenly extremely easy to travel to.
