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The province of Almeria is situated in the south east of the Spanish peninsula and borders with the provinces of Granada and Murcia. In all, this province covers 8774 square kilometres with a population of 425,000 inhabitants, of which 145,000 live in the capital city, also named Almeria.
Inland, Almeria has an almost lunar landscape of desert, sandstone and dried up river beds and has long been a popular choice for filming American style spaghetti westerns, (The all time Peter O'Toole classic, Lawrence of Arabia was also shot here). You can visit mini Hollywood or Yucca City, just outside Tabernas which was the set of A Fistful of Dollars and various other films and is open daily to visitors.
This province is the hottest in Andalucia with an average of more than 3,100 hours of annual sunshine, lasting from well before Easter into November. Particularly noticable in the area around Nijar. It is no coincidence that Europe's most powerful telescope has been installed here, on the outskirts of the small town of Gergal, as well as the most important solar energy plant.
The natural protection of the mountain range of the Sierra de Gador also has resulted in the Almeria province being one of the most productive agricultural zones in Europe with more than 10,000 hectares of flowers and garden produce, much of it cultivated under plastic with a production volume of some 250 million kilos, 80% of which is exported with an estimated value of 22,000 million pesetas. White Macael marble is another of Almeria's major export products and is famed for its luminous, unblemished appearance.
The coastline is largely unknown, due once to the lack of water and good roads. This situation is changing, however, and now a number of good beaches are accessible by bus and are worth considering, even right out of season. Some of the most popular coastal resorts include Roquetas de Mar, Aguadulce and Mojacar the latter being the town with the largest number of foreign residents in the province. The coastal village of San Jose is one of our favourites.
Almeria's thermal waters of Alhama de Almeria and Sierra Alhamilla also deserve a special mention. The natural temperature of these baths varies from 30 degrees to 46 degrees centigrade and their fame dates from Roman times.
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