Logbook · 13 places

What to see and do in Níjar

What to see and do in Níjar (Comarca Metropolitana de Almería, Almería): 13 places across monuments, nature, activities and curiosities, with a photo and a Google Maps location.

1 Villages · 3 Monuments · 2 Nature · 2 Curiosities · 4 Historical milestones · 1 Food and drink

How far each place is from the centre of Níjar

Towns near Níjar

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What to see in Sorbas 16 km · 9 places
What to see in Tabernas 19 km · 10 places
What to see in Viator 21 km · 8 places
What to see in Pechina 22 km · 4 places
What to see in Huércal de Almería 23 km · 8 places
What to see in Rioja 23 km · 7 places

Spain › Andalusia › Almería › Comarca Metropolitana de Almería › Níjar

What to see and do in Níjar

Níjar
Village
The largest municipality in the province of Almería, with 33,319 inhabitants, taking in much of the Cabo de Gata coastline. It has belonged to the 'Los Pueblos Más Bonitos de España' network since 2019 and preserves a centre with a strong craft tradition, with more than two hundred declared Sites of Cultural Interest within its territory, the highest figure in the province.
Parque Natural Cabo de Gata-Níjar
Nature
Protected area declared a natural park on 23 December 1987, covering around 37,500 hectares of land, 70% of it within the municipality of Níjar. Recognised as a UNESCO biosphere reserve in 1997 and a member of the UNESCO Global Geoparks Network since 2001. Along its 63 km of coastline are beaches such as San José, Los Genoveses, Mónsul, Las Negras and the Playazo de Rodalquilar.
Cortijo del Fraile
Historical milestone
Cortijo (rural farmstead) declared Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection) under the Historic Site category in 2010. The events that took place there on 22 July 1928, when the bride of an arranged wedding fled with another man on the eve of the ceremony, inspired Federico García Lorca's 'Blood Wedding'.
Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación (Níjar)
Monument
Mudéjar church whose foundation goes back to the 13th century, declared Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection).
Rodalquilar y la minería del oro
Historical milestone
Gold was discovered at the Mina de Las Niñas in Rodalquilar in 1883. Extraction by cyanidation succeeded in 1931, and in 1956 the Denver ore-processing plant was inaugurated, with Francisco Franco present at the ceremony.
Cine en Níjar
Curiosity
The desert landscapes of Níjar provided the setting for 'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly', 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade' and television series such as 'Los hombres de Paco'.
Jarapas de Níjar
Food and drink
Níjar is the municipality with the strongest craft tradition in the province, with more than a dozen active weaving and pottery workshops; jarapas, fabrics woven from rag strips, are its best-known product.
Torre de la Vela Blanca
Monument
Watchtower forming part of the coastal surveillance network along the Mediterranean shoreline, in the municipal term of Níjar.
Noria del Pozo de los Frailes
Monument
Traditional water-lifting mechanism preserved in the village of Pozo de los Frailes, within the municipality of Níjar.
Cerro del Hoyazo
Nature
Also called the Volcán de la Granatilla, it is a stratovolcano formed more than six million years ago, with garnet deposits.
Presa de Isabel II
Historical milestone
Inaugurated in 1850, it was at the time the largest dam in southern Spain.
Oro de Las Niñas
Historical milestone
In 1883 gold was discovered in the Las Niñas mines, in Rodalquilar; the metal appeared dispersed in quartz and had to be processed in Antwerp.
Poblados de colonización de Níjar
Curiosity
Between 1958 and 1959, agricultural colonization villages were built in the municipality, examples of modernist rural architecture by José Luis Fernández del Amo.