FROM MALAGA AIRPORT
The GPS coordinates of our Finca are 36:53:46 N Longitude, 3:26:34W Latitude.
For shops and restaurants en route, see notes in brackets in the text and directions at the bottom. Below these there is a sketch plan showing how to locate Palomas, Concha and Azahar when you arrive.
Google maps of the airport
will give you more detail if you need it. FROM MALAGA AIRPORT
If you have time to spare coming from Malaga, the old town (casco antiguo) in that city is well worth a visit with its baroque cathedral and the Picasso gallery. On route B, Antequera old town is worth the detour.
For shops and restaurants en route, see notes in brackets in the text and directions at the bottom. Below that there is a sketch plan showing how to locate Palomas, Concha and Azahar.
Malaga airport is being enlarged and a new access road is being built so there is a huge amount of building work going on and this is causing a little bit of disruption, not to flights but to the amount of time it takes you to get to and from the airport. The car hire offices are situated inside the arrivals area immediately after the baggage collection carousels.
After arriving at Malaga, you have two alternatives for your trip to Los Piedaos. Some people choose to come one way and go back the other, either route taking two hours or so. Whichever route you choose, leave the airport building and follow the sign to MALAGA. If you are leaving from a car-hire firm's premises on the industrial estate, go back to the roundabout on the terminal approach road and right round it (if you have hired a car from Marinsa, Malaga Car Hire or Nizza their depot is on this roundabout). After a few hundred metres go over the flyover and join the main coast dual carriageway going east towards Malaga.
About 1.5 kms after joining the dual carriageway, take the exit on your right which is signed A25 MOTRIL/ANTEQUERA. You are now on the Malaga ring road. Follow big blue signs reading E15/A7 ALMERIA, CORDOBA, GRANADA, SEVILLA. After about ten kilometres you have the choice of inland or coastal route. The later can be very crowded in July and August.
ROUTE A on the map above.
This goes inland through wild Andalusian mountains, bypassing Granada. The route is motorway for practically the whole distance, approximately 180 kms in total. For the inland route you bear off to the right following signs for CORDOBA, GRANADA, SEVILLA. Continue, following the signs for GRANADA. (See restaurant A).
About 100 kms from Malaga airport, and after the sign to Granada airport, get into, and stay in the additional right hand lane. (If you are driving from Granada airport and have joined the motorway, then follow one of the two alternative directions from here.) There are now two options:
<1> You can stay on the main road round the Granada ring road (and go shopping if you need to)
<2> Cut across open country and rejoin the main road 15 kilometres south of Granada.
Option <1>
After a few hundred meters, take the slip road to the right which has a rather small sign for GRANADA, SIERRA NEVADA, SANTA FE. After 10 kms, and just before a roundabout and flyover, take the slip road up to the Granada ring road ("Circonvalacion") signed for ALHAMBRA, SIERRA NEVADA, JAEN, MOTRIL. (See supermarket B). Continue following MOTRIL signs.
About 40 kilometres after leaving Granada, take the slip road to the right signed BEZNAR, LANJARON and LA ALPUJARRA, and follow the signs towards Lanjaron. (See restaurants C).
Option <2> See sketch map right at the bottom of this web page
Stay in the slip road on the right looking for a rather small sign GRANADA, SIERRA NEVADA, SANTA FE and bear off to the right. Just after the curve take a turning to the right signed SANTA FE and immediately there is a roundabout. Turn right to LA MALAHA, straight over the next roundabout and then in about 10 km to the south straight on at a roundabout signed OTURA. After another 10 km you will see the Granada / Motril motor way in front of you and you take the slip road on your right up onto this and you have now rejoined the main route.
After 15 km take a slip road to the right signed BEZNAR, LANJARON and LA ALPUJARRA, and follow the signs towards Lanjaron. (See restaurants C).
Soon after entering Lanjaron you can bypass the centre by following signs to ORGIVA and La Alpujarras, signed right at a minibout.
Leaving LANJARON, drive for approximately another 6km towards ORGIVA. You will turn right onto our track just past kilometre post 14, so watch out for the numbered kilometre posts on your way. As you approach post 14 you will see ahead of you a blue and white arrow "left bend" sign so slow down and signal right. On your right is a small sign that says "ALMAZARA" and a pile of white stones and on your left on the other side of the road a high white wall with orange gates. Immediately opposite this is a track with a small building with two doors that houses refuse bins. Drive slowly and be prepared for a tight turn RIGHT. Once you're off the road, double back onto the track which runs back in the direction from which you came, past the pile of white stones. (DON'T take the track straight ahead at right angles to the road and on the left of the bin store, it runs out). See sketch plan below.
ROUTE B on the map above.
This route is via the coast, and the last part, the Costa Tropical, is beautiful.
Click for more details.
The coast road is motorway for most of the route with the final section between Almunecar and Motril due to be completed in 2010. This route is approximately 140 km in total.
Continue on the motorway following signs for ALMERIA, MOTRIL. (See restaurants D). After about 100 kms, you pass SALOBRENA and take the exit signed A44 to GRANADA/JAEN. (See supermarket E). You are now on the final stretch of motorway. Pass two roundabouts and then, about 15 kms from the coast, there is an exit to VELEZ DE BENADAULLA / ORGIVA / LAS ALPUJARRAS. (Ignore the first exit to VELEZ de BENADAULLA) Follow the signs for ORGIVA and stay on this road for about 10 kms, and when you pass through a short tunnel, immediately turn left over a river bridge. Continue uphill into ORGIVA.(See restaurants F).
As you come into the centre of Orgiva, you will the old restored "palacio" on your left and the twin-towered church through the traffic lights ahead. TURN LEFT at the traffic lights, signed low on the corner for Lanjaron/Granada/Pampaneira and Trevelez. (See supermarket G).
As you leave the town, there is a little BP filling station on your right. Bear left over the bridge. The bridge is at km post 16. It is exactly 2 kms from here to our track. Continue past the junction on the right at the top of this incline in the LANJARON direction. You will see the ALPUJARRA HOTEL with another larger BP filling station just beyond it. Pass both of these and continue.
In a few moments you will drive through the small scattering of houses and pottery shops along the roadside at LAS BARRERAS (unsigned). As you leave you will pass the large black doors of the olive mill on your right. The road bears left here up a slight rise past a campsite building which has a small pyramid roof in each corner. There are tall trees on your right and then an S-bend sign and a 50 speed sign and, in front of you, blue and white arrows showing the road bears right. Move towards the centre of the road and start to indicate LEFT. Drive slowly, signal early and be prepared, for it is a tricky turning as the main road you are on bears sharply right.
As soon as you cross the main road you will see in front of you a small building with brown doors that is a refuse bin store.DO NOT TAKE THE TRACK TO THE LEFT OF THE HUT (see diagram below). Take the track to the right of it, running almost parallel with the main road, passing a pile of white stones and a small sign that says "ALMAZARA", on you right. If you pass kilometre post 14 you have just passed the turning!
TRACK TO LOS PIEDAOS
As you approach Los Piedaos, La Rama is just around to the right in front of three palm trees. Las Palomas, Azahar and La Casa de Concha are down the track to the left. You can park for the moment in front of our carport. On the right of the blue gate you will see a green ship's bell. Ring it hard, just in case we haven't spotted you already, and come into the courtyard. Don't worry about the dogs that are probably on the roof terrace, they bark a lot but don't bite!
Your casita will not be ready until 1500 hrs (3pm) on your arrival day, but you can leave your luggage and use the pool from 13.00 (1pm). If you arrive after 2300 (11 pm), or if for some reason there is no answer to the bell, please drive to your cottage and let yourselves in.
La Rama is round to the right of the main house and its front door key will be under a stone in a large pot on the left, inside the gate. After unloading, please park your car behind the palm trees. The other cottages are down the track to the left of the main house. The front door will be open with the key on the inside.
Azahar is on the right, park into the space between the low curved walls on the right; Palomas is on the left, park in the space past the stone wall. Concha is through the arch straight ahead, park into the space just before the arch.
Inside each casita you will find an information brochure and a folder to explain things and help you settle in. There will be some bread, butter, milk, jam, tea and coffee, wine and beer in your cottage.
If you need to contact us telephone us on (34) 958-784-470 or our administrator, Maggie, on (34) 958 763 492 or 638 725 823. It would be helpful if you could let us have your telephone contact number in the unlikely case of any last minute need to get hold of you.
We look forward to seeing you and wish you a good journey. Buen viaje!
This sketch plan shows how to locate Palomas, Concha and Azahar. La Rama is round to the right of the farmhouse shown in the photo above.
SHOPS AND RESTAURANTS EN ROUTE
(See notes in brackets in the text above).
ROUTE A
(A) On this inland route there are not many places to eat. The best is the restaurant Meson San Isidro, at Rio Frio, just off the main road about 70km from Malaga.
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(B) If you want to do a big shop, there is a large supermarket Hypercor on the left side of the Granada ring road. Come off at the Mendes/Nunez exit and round under the ring road.
(C) There are two reasonable restaurants on the left as you enter Lanjaron. La Casa de Papel is behind the arch on the left as you enter the town, and La Frenaza a little further on. If you wish to eat in more style before arriving at Los Piedaos, go over the mini roundabout into the town centre. At the small Hotel Paris on the right hand side, turn right and park. At the bottom of this short road is the best restaurant in town, La Alcamadia in the Hotel Castillo, with a lovely terrace overlooking the castle and the sea in the distance.
ROUTE B
(D) The nearest beach restaurants are just off the motorway. At La Herradura (signed Almuñecar oeste / La Herradura) Turn left at the beach and you will find El Chamboa de Joaquim at the east end but there are many others. Next at Salobreña which is more complicated then gettinn into La Herradura. Drive down to the beach and turn right for a few hundred meters. El Peñon is in a lovely position, on a rock jutting out into the sea.
(E) If you wish to shop at a supermarket, go straight on past the Granada turn off and turn left towards Motril after 2 kms. About 1 km up this road you will see an "Alcampo" supermarket on the right. After shopping, go back the way you came and turn right onto the GRANADA road.
(F) If you want to eat in Orgiva before arriving at Los Piedaos, pass the first set of traffic lights, and, as you round the bend and see the old palacio and church on the road ahead, La Almazara, Restaurante Jardin, on the right is one of the best restaurant in Orgiva. Park in the street as near as you can.
(G) After the lights and just before this shopping street turns sharp right, you will see on the left the "Alpujarra" supermarket. This is adequate for most basic supplies. You will probably need to go further on in order to find a parking space.
The road from the airport leads to the motorway which you join after about 4 kilometres. Take the GRANADA direction and stay in the additional slip road right hand lane.