Category Eat & Sleep

Anyone who has walked 7.7 kilometres through the Desfiladero de los Gaitanes has earned a proper meal. The village of El Chorro – smaller, quieter and more authentic than many tourist centres in Andalusia – sits directly at the southern exit of the Caminito del Rey and offers exactly what is needed after a long trail: shade, a cold drink and good food.

Most visitors to the Caminito del Rey arrive as day-trippers – from Málaga, Ronda, Marbella. They walk, they leave. And they miss the best of it. Staying one night in El Chorro or Ardales means experiencing the region in a different light. The reservoir at dusk. The silence after 8 p.m. The scent of pine and limestone. This is the real Andalusia – not the crowded tourist trail at 11 in the morning.