Playa Cotobro is an ideal location to spend a relaxing holiday. From the apartment balcony you can watch magnificent sunsets and go to sleep with the soothing sounds of the mediterranean less than 50 metres away from the bedroom. Next door to Edificio Carla is one of Andalucia's finest restaurants, the award winning Jacquy, with its gourmet and shellfish menus at under 30 euros. A 40 minute walk westwards across the hills above a tiny nudist beach, you arrive in Marina del Este with its opulent marina and waterside restaurants. Most notable is Atmosphera, a trendy bistro style venue where the French chef produces the most exquisite chocolate desserts. A ten minute walk eastwards from Cotobro and you arrive in the bustling, upbeat town of Almuñecar without the headache of looking for a parking place, which can prove difficult in July and August.

Almuñecar is packed with restaurants and bars. Its lively beaches sport palm-roofed bars, many offering free tapas. Most ‘chiringuitos’ serve sardines cooked on spits over open fires. The market is full of locally farmed produce. Exotic fruits such as mangoes, custard apples and bananas are grown in the area and of course there is a huge variety of freshly caught seafood. Near the muncipal market is the old quarter of town, the ‘casco antiguo’, full of narrow cobbled streets, little plazas and abundant shops.

The town has a rich historical and archaeological heritage that you cannot fail to notice as you wander around. Founded by the Phoenicians in the first millennium BC and developed later by the Romans, it remained an important port in the Arab conquest. San Miguel castle was built as a holiday palace for the Nazari royal family.

In the centre of town is a botanical garden, the Majuelo Park, which, as well as having one of the finest collections of subtropical plants in Europe, also hosts an important jazz festival in July.

Another attraction of the Costa Tropical is its wonderful subtropical climate: moderate temperatures, abundant sunshine and very little rainfall mean it is a haven for many sporting activities both on and off shore. Around the area there are many places offering opportunities for diving, riding, paragliding, sailing, etc. Almuñecar has an impressive public swimming pool if the sea is too cold! Twenty minutes away is the golf club at Playa de Granada, near Motril, which is shortly to be doubled in size to 18 holes. (green fees are around 27 euros). There are two Nature Reserves in the area where vast expanses of land, untouched by tourism, are home to rare vegetation and wildlife such as the Cappra Hispanica. La Herradura, 15 minutes
drive away, is a world-renowned centre for scuba-diving and boasts some of the most beautiful marine life off southern Spain. Work has already started on Europe's first marine park, to be situated between Almuñecar and Maro, near Nerja.