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ANDALUSIA

Ten things you probably didn’t know about Andalusia

In order to celebrate Andalusia Day on February 28th, we've unearthed 10 surprising and fascinating facts about perhaps Spain's most beloved region.

Published: 28 February 2024 10:16 CET
Ten things you probably didn’t know about Andalusia
The breath-taking city of Ronda, in Málaga province in Andalusia. Photo: David Vives/Pexels

It’s home to the only desert in Europe

When you picture the landscape of Andalusia, you’re likely picturing a sea of scorched dry hillsides, perhaps dotted with olive trees. You’re not wrong, parts of Andalusia are so hot and dry in fact that they’re actually considered to be a desert. Europe’s only desert is the Desierto de Tabernas, located in the province of Almería. It covers 11,625 hectares, has an average year-round temperature of over 17C and the amount of rainfall is only around 250 mm per year. It has such an iconic desert look in fact that many Westerns were filmed here.

Tabernas’ desert landscape and climate that characterize part of the province made it an ideal setting for Western films. (Photo by JOSE LUIS ROCA / AFP)
 

It’s also where you’ll find the rainiest place in Spain

It may surprise you, but not only is Andalusia home to the driest place in Spain, but it’s also home to the rainiest. Very rainy places may be more associated with the Basque Country, Galicia or Asturias, but it is in fact the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park that’s the wettest. The park sits east of the town of Arcos de la Frontera and around 80km north of Estepona on the Costa del Sol. It sees around 2,200 litres per metre squared each year. 

Dark clouds form over the Sierra de Grazalema. Photo: José Luis Rodríguez Martínez/Unsplash
 

Only 14km separate Andalusia from Africa

You may have heard that on a clear day, it’s possible to see the shores of the African continent from some parts of Andalusia, but did you know that the shortest distance between the two land masses is only 14km? This is the part known as the Strait of Gibraltar. The distance is so short in fact that many swimmers have even managed to swim between the two continents. 

And aerial view of the Strait of Gibraltar and Morocco. Photo: Daniel Camejo/Unsplash

It’s home to Europe’s biggest geode

In the province of Almería lies one of the world’s most astonishing treasures. The Geoda de Pulpí is Europe’s largest and the world’s second-largest geode, measuring an astounding 8m long by 2m tall. The geode is lined from floor to ceiling in dazzling crystals. It’s possible to visit the geode on a guided tour, which leads you 60m underground. 

The Geode of Pulpí was discovered in 1999. Photo: Andalusia regional government

Andalusia is where the highest mountain on the Spanish peninsula is found

The highest mountain in all of Spain is Tenerife’s Mount Teide at 3,715m, but the highest peak on mainland Spain can be found not in the mountainous north in the Pyrenees or the Picos de Europa, but in Andalusia. This is Mulhacén, found in Granada’s Sierra Nevada National Park with an elevation of 3,482m. 

The name Mulhacén is of Arabic origin, deriving from Mulay Hasan, one of the final Moorish kings of Andalusia. Miguel Alonso/Unsplash

The oldest city in Spain is here

The coastal city of Cádiz is not only Spain’s oldest city, but it is one of Europe’s too. It was founded by the Phoenicians in 1100 BC and began life as a port and a temple, where supposedly the ashes of Hercules were kept. This makes the city over 3,000 years old and it has been continuously inhabited ever since. 

Cádiz is also the most southern city in Europe. Photo: Vidar Nordli-Mathisen/Unsplash

It has more inhabitants than any other region in Spain

Castilla y León may be Spain’s largest region, but it’s Andalusia that has the most inhabitants. According to the latest stats available from 2023, Andalusia had a total of 8,576,703 residents. 

Crowds gather to see the Christmas lights in Málaga. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)
 

It used to be home to the richest city in the world 

The capital of Andalusia, Seville was once the richest city in the world. This was because the city’s Casa de la Contratación, established by the Crown of Castile in 1503 in the city’s port, managed an enormous fortune that flowed in from the explorers conquering the Americas. The company directed trade from the Americas for almost 220 years and during that time, transported a great number of riches and treasures across the Atlantic. 

Anonymous painting of Seville circa 1660 reflecting its wealth when dominating commerce with the New World.
 

García is the most common surname

According to the latest data from the Institute of Statistics and Cartography of Andalusia, García is the most common surname in the region, while María del Carmen and Antonio are the most common first names. A total of 3.3 percent of Andalusians are named María del Carmen and 4.6 are Antonio. These names mainly belong to the older population with an average of over 50 years old. Not only is María del Carmen the most popular name for women, but María is the second-most common, followed by the name Carmen. 

Andalusian poet Federico García Lorca, one of the generations of García in the region, is one of Spain’s most celebrated sons. (Photo by Jorge Guerrero / AFP)
 

One of its provinces has the largest concentration of castles in Europe

Andalusia is dotted with countless castles and fortresses, but it may be surprising to learn that one of its provinces has more than any other place in Europe. This is the province of Jaén. Some of the most spectacular are the Castle of Santa Catalina, the Castle of La Guardia, the Castle of La Mota, the Castle of Segura de la Sierra and the Castle of la Yedra. 

View of the ancient Yedra Castle in Cazorla, Jaén. Photo: Cristopher Eden
 

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DROUGHT

Will drought restrictions affect summer holidays in Spain?

Whether it be limits on swimming pools, street cleaning or even daily water consumptions limits, several parts of Spain are considering their drought restrictions ahead of the summer season.

Published: 8 May 2024 12:27 CEST
Will drought restrictions affect summer holidays in Spain?

Many parts of Spain have been suffering from ongoing droughts for the better part of the last three years. The situation has been particularly bad in Catalonia and Andalusia, as well as parts of the Canary Island of Tenerife.

This past winter, reservoir levels in Barcelona fell to just 16 percent and the region declared a drought emergency in February 2024. This was the lowest level that had ever been recorded. Water restrictions were put in place, affecting Barcelona and 201 other municipalities in the region in total, over 6 million people and almost 80 percent of the Catalan population.

In Andalusia, at the start of the year, reservoir levels had plunged to an average of just 20 percent capacity and restrictions were put in place there too.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: What and where are the drought water restrictions in Catalonia?

As well as agriculture and industry, water restrictions also have the potential to affect holidaymakers in Spain this summer because the rules mainly affected those with private swimming pools and gardens, although in many areas, particularly in and around Barcelona, personal usage was limited to 200 litres per day.

Typically, spring is the rainiest time in Spain and everyone was hoping for a return to normal conditions. Luckily there has been rainfall over the past few months and reservoir levels have risen slightly. 

The Ter-Llobregat Reservoir, which serves nearly six million people in the metropolitan area of Barcelona and part of Girona, is now up to 25 percent and heavy rains in Andalusia meant the levels there have risen to an average of 30 percent capacity.

Because of this, on Tuesday May 7th Catalonia announced that it would loosen restrictions and lift the state of emergency. The personal limits have risen to 230 litres per person per day and the agriculture, livestock and industry sectors will have a little more water for their needs.

Patrícia Plaja, spokesperson for the Government of Catalonia said: “The increase in reserves allows the restrictions of the last three months to be lifted and for us to exit the emergency phase,” however she also warned that “the drought is not over.”

The levels are still very low and although Spain’s regions are no longer at the highest level of drought emergency, they are still experiencing drought and some restrictions are still in place and likely will in some form over the summer.

Various measures have been put in place over the last few months to try and help rectify the situation. Barcelona announced it would fight the drought with a floating desalination plant and dictated that hotel swimming pools should be open to the general public. 12 desalination plants are also slated to be installed on the Costa Brava.

Though the situation has definitely improved ahead of the long dry summer months, tourists still need to be aware of the situation.

People spend the day at the WaterWorld aquatic park, in Lloret de Mar, Catalonia. (Photo by Josep LAGO / AFP)

Will drought restrictions affect summer holidays in Spain?

Though the signs are cautiously optimistic following the rainy Easter period, drought restrictions in some parts of the country could still affect summer holidays in Spain.

Public and private community pools can now be topped up once again in Catalonia, but cannot be completely refilled if they were completely empty. Single use private pools are prohibited from both being refilled completely and topped up.

This means that if you’ve rented a private villa in the region that advertises a pool, you may want to check if it will be filled or not as chances are if it has to be re-filled, it may not be possible.

Cleaning streets and watering grass in public and private gardens with drinking water remains prohibited. This may mean that parks and gardens will appear browner and dryer than usual and streets may be dirtier (and slightly smellier than usual). Cars can only be washed at specialised establishments, you cannot wash them yourself.

Local government in Tenerife recently declared a state of emergency due to the critical water situation on the island. There are restrictions in place in several areas of the island, though it seems the brunt of water restrictions are focused on irrigation systems used in the agricultural sector for now.

Water authorities in the Valencia region, however, have indicated that no urban water restrictions are expected to be necessary this summer nor at any point this year, except in small municipalities in inland Castellón.

Andalusia’s Minister of Sustainability and Environment, Ramón Fernández-Pacheco, announced on Tuesday that “the filling of swimming pools will be allowed” in Málaga province this summer, something that was until recently unclear due to the ongoing restrictions.

Owing to the Easter rains and subsequent refilling of the region’s reservoirs, the Junta gave the green light to the filling of pools throughout Málaga province, including the Axarquia area, one of the hardest hit by drought conditions. Until now, the filling of community pools was allowed, but has now been extended to pools in neighbouring urbanisations and private homes, something many tourists will be thankful for this summer.

However, there are still some municipalities in which water consumption per person per day is still restricted to 180, 200 or 225 litres depending on the area and the local rules.

“The amount of water is being maintained… it would be another matter if we had a May in which it rained a lot, but at the moment it doesn’t look like that is going to happen,” said Fernández-Pacheco.

In Cádiz and Almería, locals are still waiting to see if the restrictions will also be eased further ahead of summer. Regarding swimming pools, Fernández-Pacheco pointed out that this latest decision concerns the rules in Málaga only. “The Junta will study area by area,” he said.

This means that summer rules remain up in the air until the region’s drought committees meet again. The next meeting is scheduled for sometime in May.

However, if developments in Catalonia and Málaga are anything to go by, some restrictions, particularly on pools, could be lifted following the recent rains but daily per person consumption limits could remain in place.

Though it seems likely that some restrictions could be eased ahead of the busy summer season, the affected regions, which are also often popular tourist destinations, are still at risk of drought regardless of short-term rainfall.

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