Tag Archives: Setenil de las Bodegas

Cortijo la Perla Blanca – Stylish Bed and Breakfast Accomodation

Cortijo la Perla Blanca – Stylish Bed and Breakfast Accomodation is located just a 10 minute drive from Ronda on the road to Seville in the fertile valley known as Los Prados. This Boutique Bed & Breakfast is gently nestled within its own working Vineyards, and proudly welcomes you in casual elegance, to rural Spain.

Opened in 2014, La Perla Blanca offers 5 spacious rooms with King size beds and a modern style en-suite bathrooms. Each has been individually and charmingly decorated following a subtle name and colour scheme, and most have balconies with views over the vineyards or central courtyard. A private and independent King-size suite with canopy bed, and private garden with hot-tub is also available, situated near the pool.

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Hotel El Almendral – Setenil de las Bodegas

Distinctly Andalusian in style, the El Almendral is designed to reflect the beauty of the region around it. The hotel is located just a few minutes north of Ronda in the Cádiz province at Setenil de las bodegas. The area is unique and well worth visiting for its nature and history.

The Hotel El Almendral is designed to offer guests the modern amenities that they have come to expect from hotels in the Andalusian region. All rooms are air-conditioned and a heating system is also available. The hotel’s rooms also have terraces overlooking the village or countryside, and all 28 rooms are double.

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Cycling from Ronda and around the Serrania

The Ronda area is, without doubt, a cyclists delight and can be challenging at times! In fact the areas around Ronda and the sierra de Grazalema  are well known and a popular training destination for proffessional cyclist wintercamps preparing for long distance road races and triathlons. so lets take a look at Cycling from Ronda and around the Serrania

For those of us who are’t so competetive  there a choice of route lengths from 30km to 100km some of them being relatively easy to complete for regular cyclist. (like myself :) ) Keep reading for more information about who you should contact to get the best out of cycling and mountain biking in the Ronda area.

Regardless of the route you choose you are absolutely certain to enjoy the spectacular views. The serrania of Ronda and the sierra of Grazalema is amazingly diverse  with it’s river basins and valleys, rocky mountains, and long stretches of flat windy roads. The white picturesque villages blend in to the environment perfectly and are great places to stop for a well earned rest!

Look up as you ride and you’ll see vultures, eagles, and other birds of prey and check out the slopes for mountain goats and deer.  Almost every turn in the road presents vistas that will take your breath away and the springtime roadside wild flowers are stunning.

From Ronda, some  shorter day  rides will take you to Arriate on a loop that is only 30km, or if you have the energy, take a longer ride to Setenil and Acinipo.

E-Bike – Acinipo and Setenil Circular Guided Cycling

Fancy visiting Acinipo by bike? A cycling journey through history. An undulating mountain loop from Ronda up into the hills and the Roman remains of Acinipo. Continue riding down to the ancient riverside “cavehouses” of Setenil de las Bodegas and then back up to Ronda. Quiet roads with long ascents and descents.

Ronda cycling with hike and bike

Professional cyclists should attempt the ride to Grazalema and then across the mountain top to Zahara de la Sierra via the puerto de las palomas (doves gateway), or the breathtaking route to Gaucin, perhaps with a detour to Genalguacil.

Here are a few of the most popular routes to take a note of to ask about for when you are in the bike hire shop…(see at the bottom for a list of companies that hire bikes or organise cycling holidays in the Ronda area.)

1. Arriate
2. Setenil-Cuevas del Becerro
3. Faraján-Cartajima in the Genal Valley
4. El Burgo through the Sierra de las Nieves
5. Benaoján-Atajate
6. Acinipo-Setenil

For Mountain bike enthsiasts these routes (13-40km) are fun;
1. Pilar de Coca
2. Puente de la Ventilla
3. Parchite & Arriate
4. Genal Valley or the Guardiaro River
5. Lifa and El Burgo

Finally, professional cyclists should ask about longer road routes (30-144km);
1. Setenil-Cuevas del Becerro
2. Faraján-Cartajima
3. El Burgo-Ardales-El Chorro
4. Acinipo-Setenil
5. Zahara-Palomaspas-Grazalema
6. Grazalema-Ubrique-El Colmenar
7. Benaoján-Atajate
8. Atejate-Algatocín-Jimena de la Frontera

Cycling the Via Verde de la Sierra with Hike and Bike

Where to get more information and hire your bikes?

Hike and Bike is a company run by local guides Heather and Wayne and they specialise in hiking and biking they are based in Ronda and are specialist providers of cycling holidays, cycling tours tours, day trips and bike rental.

On their guided holidays and day trips, the guides are with you every step of the way. You will never lose your path or waste precious holiday time trying to find the best trails.

For the self guided tours you travel at your own pace with one of the preloaded Garmin GPS devices. Simply follow the Garmin route, supported with our bespoke maps, to experience the most charming sights and sounds of rural Spain.

Find out more about Hike and Bike on their website here.

Cycle Ronda  Can hire you a bike on a daily basis and recommend the best routes to suit your level of fitmess. They also organise fully supported bespoke cycling holidays based in Ronda or on an inn to inn basic… What a great way to see the area staying in a different hotel each night with your bags delivered for you whilst you enjoy the ride, the challenge and the scenery!

All you need to organise your cycling in Ronda is on their website here.



Happy Cycling!


Setenil de Las Bodegas

For many thousands of years Setenil de las Bodegas has been occupied, possibly for as long as people have been using the Cueva de Pileta, though it wasn´t until the age of the Phoenicians and then Romans that the village was first mentioned in texts.

Hotel El Almendral in Setenil de las Bodegas

Always eclipsed by nearby Acinipo, Setenil was, at first, a warehouse for storing goods that were traded with other parts of Iberia or the rest of the Empire. It was during this time that archeologists believe the caves were first closed off with brick walls to prevent thieves from stealing goods produced in the area.

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Casa Andalus, Self-Catering Holiday House in Olvera

Olvera is known as “the King of the Pueblo Blancos” (white towns) and it was declared a Protected Area of Artistic and Historical Importance in 1983. It is a friendly town with a population of around 10,000 and has all the amenities you will need to enjoy your holiday including numerous shops, banks, internet cafe, bars and restaurants. There is also a municipal swimming pool and bar which is open during the summer months.

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