Millions of tourists flock to holiday resorts like Malaga, Marbella and Almeria every year, with southern Spain being one of the most sought-after areas in the country. However, if you search hard enough, the Mediterranean nation is actually dotted with stunning towns that despite their beauty hardly attract any tourists at all. 

Around 50 miles east of Malaga and 40 miles south of Granada lies the beautiful little town of Salobreña. Built on the summit of a rocky crag, it’s just a short distance away from the Mediterranean Sea, offering views that simply cannot be beaten. Incredibly, it has a history that stretches back some 6,000 years. 

The Old Town of Salobreña garners the most attention. It sits atop a rocky prominence and comprises a cluster of picturesque whitewashed houses and steep narrow streets that lead up to a 10th-century Moorish castle. 

“Castillo de Salobreña” is one of the main tourist attractions in the town. Standing some 100 metres above sea level, it offers breathtaking panoramic views of the sea and the surrounding nature, mostly sugarcane fields. 

It normally costs €4 (£3.44) to visit (€2 [£1.71] for the usual reduced entry), but if you time your trip right, it may coincide with an “open day”, where entry is free. Monday afternoons, meanwhile, are always free. Be sure to bring a card with you, however, as the ticket office does not accept cash. 

The kingdom of Granada, in which Salobreña lies, was the last Arab foothold in Europe to fall to the Christians. Salobreña stood as a Muslim community from 700 AD for nearly 800 years until 1489. 

It was this community that first planted sugarcane on the flat coastal plain and it remains a key industry today. The last remaining cane sugar factory in Europe was located along this coast, which closed in 2006.

The impressive 500-year-old church near the castle, Nuestra Señora del Rosario, is also a must-see – the town’s main mosque before it was converted by the incoming Christians, a regular occurrence in Andalusia. 

The second part of Salobreña is new developments which spread from the bottom of the Old Town right to the coast. The beach is around a mile away, so it is walkable, via the straight Avenida Mediterranéo road.

Another major tourist attraction nearby is the “El Peñón” (The Rock) which divides two of Salobreña’s five beaches and juts out between Playa La Guardia and Playa de la Charca and into the sea. 

The Olive Press recommended Hotel La Miba as the place to go to rest your legs after a day of exploring, a short distance from Salobreña proper but offering fantastic views of the steep crag. Here, you can find an open-air pool and a “skybar”, all available for as little as €130 per night in April for a short stay. 

In the summer months, average temperatures remain around 26C, peaking in August around the mid-30s during the day. Even in the colder months, temperatures remain around 13C, making it a great destination year-round. 

It is easy to get to Salobreña. It lies just off the main A-7 coastal road, also known as the Autovía del Mediterráneo, which stretches from La Jonquera near the French border to Algeciras.