AlgarroboTop Offers
The most direct route to Algarrobo is by the Autovía del Mediterráneo, heading towards Motril and following the relevant signposts. There is also a bus service to the town. Although described as a coastal town, Algarrobo is actually situated three kilometres inland, the beach area being known as Algarrobo-Costa. Algarrobo itself is at the foot of a hill that leads up to the Hermitage of San Sebastián by one of the streets in the town. The streets are narrow and winding, and most of the houses are low and white-washed, many with niches built into the facades to venerate saints. This has been a tradition in the town for many generations. The river Algarrobo flows from the higher Axarquía east of the Vélez river through the municipality, reaching the sea along a narrow coastal strip that runs from Mezquitilla to Caleta de Vélez. It was here in the Morro de Mezquitilla that the first evidence of pre-historic settlement was found in the area, dating from the Bronze Age. Nevertheless, the most interesting remains are to be found in the Trayamar Necropolis, consisting of a collection of tombs that extend from the Trayamar finca to a nearby hill. The Moors came later, these being of a Berber tribe known as the Beni Tumi, from which the name of the Sierra de Bentomiz derives. They stimulated the local economy by the cultivation of cereals, fruits and nuts, and the making of silk. The town passed into the hands of Doña Catalina de Ribera towards the close of the 15th century, and she had to face rebellion from the Moriscos later as a result of their expulsion and the re-settlement of Christian families. |
