Álora

About Álora

Álora climbs the hillsides above the river Guadalhorce. The castle on the Cerro de las Torres has Phoenician and Roman roots but was built mainly in the Moorish period. In 1434 the Adelantado of Andalucía, Diego Gómez de Ribera, was killed besieging it, an episode told in the ballad Álora la bien cercada; Castile took the town in 1484. The municipality has about 13,700 inhabitants.

The castle is entered through a tower with a horseshoe arch and keeps square towers, the rebuilt keep and the Torre de la Vela. Inside stands the Capilla del Nazareno, once the main mosque and later Álora's first church, ruined by an earthquake in 1680; the precinct also served as the town cemetery. Below, the 17th-century Iglesia de la Encarnación is one of the largest churches in the province.

Álora is 40 km from Málaga (40 minutes) and about 35 km from the airport. Cercanías line C-2 runs from Málaga to Álora station, in the valley below the town. Park near the church or in the lower town; the climb to the castle is steep, and its paths are uneven, so not suited to wheelchairs. Allow two to three hours. It suits walkers heading to the Caminito del Rey.

Spring and autumn are best. On Good Friday the Despedía, the farewell of the processional images, fills the square below the church. Try sopa perota, a bread and vegetable soup, and the valley's oranges. Tip: guided tours of the castle and old town start from the municipal museum.

Álora in pictures

What you’ll find

• Bus connectionPublic transportBuy
• Car parkParkingFree
• CastleCastle visit (09:00–18:00)Free
• ChurchChurch visitFree
• FestivalAnnual festivalFree
• Guided tourGuided tourBook
• Hiking trailHikingFree
• Historic centreOld town walkFree
• Local foodLocal cuisineBuy
• Moorish quarterMoorish heritage walkFree
• ViewpointSightseeingFree

Nearby places to visit

Up the valley, the Caminito del Rey (14 km) is the cliff walkway through the Desfiladero de los Gaitanes, and Bobastro Church and Ruins (11 km) is the rock-cut church of Umar ibn Hafsun's 9th-century stronghold. The Cueva de Ardales (14 km) has Palaeolithic paintings seen on booked tours. Down the Guadalhorce, the Pizarra Municipal Museum (8 km) displays archaeology and ethnography in an 18th-century mansion. Among the white villages, Casarabonela (13 km) has an Andalusi quarter below its castle ruins, and Teba (26 km) has the largest castle in the province.