Benalauría: Festivals, History and Nature

Culture and History

The Fiesta de Moros y Cristianos de Benalauría officially bears the designation “Fiesta de Interés Turístico Nacional de Andalucía”. It takes place on the first Sunday in August and reenacts a Mudéjar rebellion from more than five centuries ago. The CI Casa Moros y Cristianos presents the origins and development of the festival through images, stories, historical texts and elements from the performance. During the fiesta, the 17th-century Casa Consistorial serves as a “castle”.

The Columbario Romano del Cortijo del Moro is a rectangular Roman burial chamber from the 1st century AD that is associated with an agricultural villa. The Iglesia Santo Domingo de Guzmán was rebuilt at the end of the 16th century and restored at the beginning of the 19th century. The Museo Etnográfico is located in the Molino de Antonio Almagro mill, whose origins date back to the 18th century; it preserves a traditional olive press and wine presses and also displays agricultural equipment, weights, measures and other tools used in agricultural production.

The Capilla de Siete Pilas dates from around the late 1950s; the image of the Immaculate Conception has been venerated there ever since. The historic Torreón Virgen del Rosario offers views of the Valle del Genal, the Sierra de las Nieves and the Sierra Bermeja.

Landscape and Nature

The Mirador del Fresnillo is located on Plaza del Fresnillo, a few metres from the Museo Etnográfico, and offers views across the Valle del Genal. The cemetery of Benalauría is also laid out on interconnected terraces and offers views across the Valle del Genal.

The Cañón de las Buitreras is designated a natural monument of Andalusia and reaches depths of 100 metres and, in some places, up to 200 metres. A colony of griffon vultures nests in the rocks around the Cañón de las Buitreras. Benalauría’s natural surroundings include numerous river bends that form an impressive riverside landscape.

The area around Benalauría is suitable for observing animals, including griffon vultures, golden eagles, eagle owls, otters, roe deer and trout. In the Valle del Genal, chestnut forests shape an especially lush landscape known as the “Bosque de Cobre”.

Food and Traditions

The Fiesta de los Huertos takes place in mid-August and offers a traditional breakfast featuring produce from the vegetable gardens, as well as the opportunity to discover and buy products from the gardens of Benalauría. Bodega 28 Metros Cuadrados offers visitors a wine experience with red, rosé and white wines made from grapes grown by small local producers from the valleys of the Genal and Guadiaro.

A bakery in Benalauría has been operating since 1882; three generations have kneaded and baked a bread product there with care and expertise. During the Romería de la Virgen del Rosario, the Virgen del Rosario is carried in an ox-drawn wagon to the Área Recreativa El Bailadero.

Other Places

Other places with their own page are Portugalejo, Campillos, Almargen, Rincón De La Victoria, Fuente De Piedra, Cartaojal, Benalmadena and Alhaurin De La Torre.

For the higher-level travel overview: Málaga.