Starting from the village of San Miguel, look out on the left for the salt pans Salinas de Acosta, a vast 4km-long wetland created by a lagoon with blindingly white mounds of salt heaped up. Here you can see the ruins of an old village; the size of the church gives an idea of how important the salt industry must have been. Salt has been extracted from here for centuries since Phoenician times.
Torremolinos was the first town on the Costa del Sol to introduce a Low Emission Zone. This was on 1st January 2024 and covers a part pedestrian area of the historic town centre.
Granada was one of the first cities to announce a ZBE; this was in July 2020 for implimentation in January 2021. Four city centre zones were published in November 2022. No impplementation date is published.
Malaga is one of the many towns across Andalucia that is introducing ZBEs. The Malaga Town Hall approved the draft munuicipal ordinance in December 2023, it is hope to put the ZBE in operation before Easter 2024.
Cordoba is the second town tin Andalucia to introduce a ZBE and the first to introduce on in the historic city centre.
Seville is one of the many towns across Andalucia that are introducing ZBEs. The Seville Town Hall introduced the ZBE in January 2023, the first in Andalucia .
In December 2022, a new Spanish law came into force that requires towns and cities of a certain population to create low emission zones (Zonas de Bajas Emisiones, or ZBE) in their centres. This initiative is intended to help improve the air quality in towns and cities, and the health of their inhabitants.
Marbella is one of the many towns across Andalucia that is introducing ZBEs. The Marbella Town Hall approved the plan, and in December 2023, put up the signage just ahead of the 31-12-23 deadline but has not passed the ordinances to enforse it the Zone.
Estepona is one of the many towns across Andalucia that is introducing ZBEs. The Estepona Town Hall approved this ordinance on 19 January 2023, and was expected to be introduced in October 2023 but had not done so by the 31-12-2023 deadline.
At 1,248 km in length, this huge highway from Cadiz to Barcelona was the longest road in Spain. It is colloquially known as the Spanish Route 66, and many have travelled the entire route and written blogs about their adventure.
Much has been written about the Osborne bulls, large black sherry advertisements which you may well have seen by the roadside all around Spain. Another, less well-known but equally classic, advertisement that has become a historic and cultural element is "Nitrato de Chile".
Enjoy a collection of Andalucia Road Trip Videos that have been sent to us. Starting in the delightfully vibrant Malaga, my gorgeous accomplice and I spent 2 weeks travelling around as much of Andalucia as we could squeeze in. Starting in Malaga we travelled to the breathtakingly romantic Ronda where we were blown away by its beauty and history.
You may have noticed while driving around Andalucia a number of small, solid-looking, single-storey stone buildings beside the road, often with a distinctive station platform-style terrace in front, and often with large stone block castellated corners, pitched roof and two chimneys.
You may have noticed old concrete milestones by the side of Andalucian roads - local and national, not motorways. While most of these were replaced long ago by painted metal signs, a few still remain, reminders of a bygone age of road travel.
All the town of Andalucia are linked by national ( N-340) (Red Signage) or Andalucia ( A-346) (Green sinage) roads. There are still some smaller provincial roads (MA-2547) (Yellow signage) and even smaller comarcal roads (C-4568)(Green Signage).
All it takes is a drive across Spain to see the legendary brandy advertisement that has become a symbol of Spanish culture both here at home and abroad. The Osborne Bull is the black silhouette of bull that stands on hilltops and along the roadside in many – but not all – parts of Spain.
Lookout for specific speed limits. These will be signed but if you are driving across country you may forget the specific limit applies. Tunnels and underpass even on motorways will be limited to 80 or 100 km/h. Sharp bends will be signed, cross country roads passing through villages will be 50km/hr or road intersections 80km/hr.
The main motorways in Spain are generally well signed. However, if you are unfamiliar with Spanish geography, you’d best travel with a good road map. This is because signs will indicate the next large town or city but may not direct you to major cities until you are relatively close.
GPS works well throughout Andalucia, but there is no substitute for a good road map when it comes to planning out a journey or ensuring you can find alternative routes when construction blocks off the access seen on a GPS screen. A wide variety of road maps flood the market. However, the most highly recommended is the Michellin 446 of Southern Spain.
Almost all garages sell petrol at the maximum price permitted by the government. This can vary. As a general rule, most stations are self service. The exception is in some rural areas. Credit cards are universally accepted and tipping is not expected – regardless of what you might read in a guide book.
