Deep in the green Genal Valley, but only a few kilometres from Ronda, lies the tiny village of Júzcar, almost invisible as the valley roads twist and turn along the length of the Genal River. Juzcar is small, and easily walked around in less than 30 minutes, you could blink and miss this little inland Andalucia village, but don’t or you’ll really kick yourself later.

A little bit about Juzcar. It really is blue? and Smurfs live there?

Juzcar is a small village located in the province of Malaga in Andalusia, southern Spain. It gained international fame in 2011 when it was painted blue for the promotion of the Smurfs movie. The village was chosen by Sony Pictures to celebrate the world premiere of the movie, and as part of the promotion, all the buildings in the village were painted blue, making it look like a real-life Smurf village.

The village was originally a traditional white Andalusian town, but after the success of the Smurf movie promotion, the residents of Juzcar voted to keep the blue color as a tribute to the famous blue cartoon characters. The blue paint used was eco-friendly and made with natural pigments, and it has become a tourist attraction ever since.

Clive Muir

I’ve been living in this lovely area of Western Andalucia for the last 20 years or so and dedicate most of my time to the running of English language tourist information websites for the towns of Cádiz, Ronda, Grazalema, the famous or infamous Caminito del Rey, and also Wildside Holidays, which promotes sustainable and eco-friendly businesses running wildlife and walking holidays in Spain.

www.rondatoday.com/