Naked Places, Spain & Portugal: Southern Spain

SOUTHERN SPAIN

	Murcia				Murcia is not subdivided into provinces.
	Andalucía				Almería Granada Málaga Cádiz Huelva

Southern Spain consists of two autonomous communities: Murcia and Andalusia (Andalucía in Spanish). Murcia is among the autonomous communities of Spain that are not divided into multiple provinces. Thus, the autonomous community of Murcia and the province of Murcia are one in the same. Murcia is at the southeastern corner of Spain. The rest of southern Spain is Andalusia, the country's second largest autonomous community in land area. Andalusia has eight provinces (only the five coastal provinces are included in this guide), and each of those provinces is about the size of Murcia. Andalusia is the most Moorish influenced part of Spain and is known for the exotic architecture of its monuments, like the grand Alhambra palace in Granada or the Mezquita of Córdoba, a mosque-turned-cathedral. Andalusia is the only part of Spain that has both Mediterranean and Atlantic coastline. The five coastal provinces of Andalusia are listed in geographic order on this page, going east to west. Almería, Granada and Málaga are all entirely Mediterranean, but Cádiz—part of which is along the Strait of Gibraltar—has both Mediterranean and Atlantic segments, and Huelva is entirely Atlantic.

Southern Spain is the warmest part of the country. The weather is suitable for bare bathing during much of the spring and autumn, but winter vacations are a bit chancy. In summer, you may find that the mercury rises a little too high for your taste. In July and August, temperatures exceed 90°F (32°C) in much of the south. The naturist possibilities of Southern Spain include Vera Playa (in Almería), the largest naturist resort complex in Spain and one of the preeminent naturist destinations in the world; the many beaches of rugged, unspoiled Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park (also in Almería), a region of cacti and palm trees in one of the very few parts of Europe considered to be desert; a tiny nude beach tucked away in cosmopolitan Benalmadena; a nude beach in Cádiz from which you can see Africa on the horizon, at least on clear days; and windswept Atlantic beaches of Huelva that offer abundant possibilities for naked solitude.

Spain's coastline is, mostly for purposes of tourism, divided into various segments that mean absolutely nothing but sound romantic. We don't make use of the terms in this guide, but here are the ones that pertain to Southern Spain, from east to west. Costa Cálida, which means "Warm Coast," is the coast of Murcia. For Almería, there is no special adjective; it's just Costa de Almería. Granada's coast is the Costa Tropical, but this term is not as widely used as the others; Granada's share of the coastline is comparatively small. The coast of of Málaga is the Costa del Sol, which is the most popular of Spain's costas for sun-seeking vacationers. There does not seem to be a moniker for the small Mediterranean stretch of the coast of Cádiz, but Costa de la Luz, which means "Coast of Light," refers to all of Atlantic Andalusia. (Compared to the Costa del Sol, the Costa de la Luz is rather off the tourist radar.) The names of other coastal segments are listed under Eastern Spain. There are names for segments of Spain's north coast as well, but those names are not well-known tourist lingo.

MURCIA MAP WEATHER

NUDE BEACHES

Murcia has about 120 kilometers of coastline, and a very prominent feature near its northern border is a huge, shallow, salty lagoon called Mar Menor. Near the town of San Pedro del Pinatar, Playa de la Llana 37.8099N, 0.7561W

is located on a narrow strip of land that separates Mar Menor from the Mediterranean. Going south on the beach away from the access point, nudity becomes commonplace, but nudity does not occur at Llana with the same regularity as at some of the beaches farther south in Murcia, closer to Cartagena and Mazarrón.

While the beaches near Mar Menor face east, the coastline changes direction beyond the southern end of the lagoon, and the beaches of the rest of Murcia are oriented mostly toward the south. Directly south of Mar Menor on the eastern outskirts of Cartagena, Calblanque Regional Park is a beautiful natural park that consists of multiple beach coves backed by rugged mountains, and there are coves toward each end of the park that draw nude bathers. Near the eastern extreme of the park, Cala de los Dentones 37.6076N, 0.7201W

is a small, hidden beach that is lightly attended and draws some nude bathers, and the coves near it also see occasional near use. However, far more nude bathers gather at Playa de Negrete 37.5977N, 0.7627W

, which is several kilometers to the west toward the opposite end of the park. A sign along the trail to Negrete labels it as "Playa Nudista," and there is also a chain of smaller and more secluded coves beyond Negrete where nudity is the norm.

On the western outskirts of Cartagena, Playa de la Morena 37.5819N, 1.0686W

is a small beach that abuts Camping El Portús (listed farther down), which is a naturist resort that is tucked away amid the arid coastal mountains. It is attended mainly by resort guests, but day visitors can pay a fee to pass through the grounds and access the beach.

Near Mazarrón, there is a small range of mountains called the Sierra de las Moreras, and there is a short stretch of just 3 to 4 kilometers where the mountains meet the sea. The road that follows the coastline through this short but rugged stretch is unpaved. If you follow the gravel road west from the small town of Bolnuevo, you will soon reach a collection of six small coves that are signed for nude bathing. These beaches, located within a span of about 2 kilometers, are: Playa de la Cueva de los Lobos 37.5619N, 1.3291W

; Playa Amarilla 37.5601N, 1.3316W

; Cala Grúa 37.5575N, 1.3388W

; Cala Leño 37.5575N, 1.3400W

; Cala Desnuda 37.5572N, 1.3412W

; and Cala de Barranco Ancho 37.5557N, 1.3438W

. Playa de la Cueva de los Lobos, which is the first of the coves (i.e., closest to Bolneuvo) tends to be the most popular. Cala de Barranco Ancho, which is the most distant of the coves from Bolnuevo, tends do draw more gay nudists than do the others. Considering the proximity of these coves to one another, it is easy to explore them all.

A bit farther southwest, Playa de las Minas 37.5282N, 1.3841W

is the small nudist extension of a popular textile beach called Playa de Percheles, and these two adjacent beaches are located along a rural, agricultural stretch of coastline that lacks residential or tourist development. Minas and Percheles are about 5 kilometers southwest of the six Bolnuevo nudist coves (described in the previous paragraph) via the gravel coastal road, but they are more often accessed via a paved road through the farming village of Cañada de Gallego. Percheles is the only well-attended beach in the immediate vicinity. Besides neighboring Minas, there are other nearby coves that get occasional nudist use, but those other coves are typically deserted.

NATURIST RETREATS & OTHER NATURIST-FRIENDLY PLACES TO STAY

Almond Tree Villa 37.6233N, 1.8948W

   E, F, G
          Lorca

Camping El Portús 37.5837N, 1.0683W

   S, D, E, F, G     beach
          Cartagena

Casa de Cinco Hermanos 38.4034N, 1.1357W

S, E, G
Jumilla

ANDALUCIA

Almeria MAP WEATHER

NUDE BEACHES

Playa del Playazo 37.2232, -1.8017

Playa del Playazo is the formal name of the beach adjacent to the Vera Playa naturist complex (listed farther down), which is the largest naturist resort in Spain and one of the largest in the world.

Playa del Castillo de Macenas 37.0884, -1.8503

Playa del Sombrerico 37.0608, -1.8552

Backed by rugged mountains, this off-the-beaten-path beach south of Mojácar is accessed by driving along an unpaved road for 3 kilometers.

Playa de los Muertos 36.9501, -1.8977

This long and very popular beach in Carboneras is mostly textile, but some nudity occurs at the far south end. Playa de los Muertos (and the entire town of Carboneras) is located toward the northern end of Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, which spans over 40 kilometers of coastline. This park is in a part of Spain that is a desert, complete with rugged brown mountains, cacti and succulents. All the beaches of Almeria listed farther down are in the natural park, with the exception of the last beach in the list (Cerillos).

Cala de Enmedio 36.9328, -1.9466

This beach and the next beach (Cala del Plomo) are nearby coves within Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park. Enmedio is more difficult to reach and thus less crowded.

Cala del Plomo 36.9226, -1.9549

(See also the previous listing.) While both this beach and neighboring Cala de Enmedio are accessed by driving along unpaved roads for several kilometers, the road to Plomo is in better condition and goes all the way to the beach, so crowds here are larger. Both Enmedio and Plomo can also be reached by hiking from the seaside village of Agua Amarga.

Cala de San Pedro 36.9031, -1.9796

Of all the beaches in Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, this beach near Las Negras has the most loyal following and is characterized by a somewhat counterculture flavor. Unless you have a he-man vehicle that can handle the rough access road, you'll have to do what most visitors do and hike the better part of an hour to reach the very secluded beach.

Playa del Playazo de Rodalquilar 36.8628, -2.0050

Within Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park and close to the village of Rodalquilar, this beach is mostly textile but has a nudist presence at one end.

Cabo de Gata South Beaches

At the far southern end of Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, south of the village of San José, there are a collection of coves that are frequented by nudists. Some of the coves are predominantly nudist, some draw a mix of nudists and textiles, some have a nudist-to-textile ratio that varies depending on the overall size of the crowd, and some are usually deserted, even at peak times. The coves that are collectively known as the Calas de Barronal, which stretch roughly one kilometer, draw the largest crowds of nudists of any of the beaches. All the beaches of the area are exceptionally beautiful, and all are located within a span of about five kilometers of coastline.

Playa de los Genoveses 36.7411, -2.1215