White villages · Costa del Sol

Casares

Casares is a white village piled up a crag 435 metres above the western Costa del Sol, crowned by a 13th-century Nasrid castle and looking out to Gibraltar and the coast of Africa.

About Casares

Casares sits at about 435 metres on a limestone spur of the Sierra Crestellina, looking over cork-oak hills to Gibraltar and, on clear days, Morocco. Legend links its name to Julius Caesar. A Nasrid frontier post, it saw the Pact of Casares between Pedro I of Castile and Muhammad V of Granada in 1361 and fell to Castile in 1485. The old village has been a Conjunto Histórico-Artístico since 1978; the municipality has about 9,000 people, many on the coast.

Calle Villa climbs through the old gateway to the castle precinct, where walls and towers enclose the shell of the 16th-century Iglesia de la Encarnación and the cemetery, with the widest views. Plaza de España has the Fuente de Carlos III of 1785. On Calle Carrera, the Casa Natal de Blas Infante, birthplace in 1885 of the father of Andalusian nationalism, is a small museum and the tourist office.

Casares is 20 km from Estepona (25 minutes) and about 100 km from Málaga airport (70 minutes). Avanza bus L-77 comes from Estepona a few times a day. Use the car parks at the village entrance: lanes are steep and cobbled, with steps to the castle, so not suitable for wheelchairs. Allow two to three hours; good for photographers and walkers.

Spring and autumn are best; in summer come early or for the evening light. The Feria is in early August. Try sopa casareña, conejo a la montaña and pan cateto, baked here since 1890. Tip: the classic view is from the Gaucín road just above.

Casares in pictures

Tightly packed whitewashed houses with terracotta roofs on the hillside of Casares

What you’ll find

Bus connectionPublic transportBuy
Car parkParkingFree
CastleCastle visitFree
FestivalAnnual festivalFree
Hiking trailHikingFree
Historic centreOld town walkFree
Local foodLocal cuisineBuy
Moorish quarterMoorish heritage walkFree
MuseumFree museum (09:30–14:00)Free
Tourist officeVisitor information (09:30–14:00)Free
ViewpointSightseeingFree

Nearby places to visit

Down on the coast, Playa Ancha (9 km) is Casares's own Blue Flag beach, and Playa de la Duquesa (11 km) lies beside the marina at Manilva. In Estepona, the Mercado Santa Ana, Estepona (12 km) is the town's food market for fish, fruit and local produce. Inland, the Baños de la Hedionda, sulphur baths with Roman-era vaults, are in a valley below the village and open in summer with free booking. The road north climbs to Gaucín (9 km) and its Castillo del Águila, and a mountain road over the Sierra Bermeja leads to Genalguacil (12 km), the art-filled village of the Genal valley.

Casares at a glance

Category
Culture White villages

Location
Costa del Sol, Málaga

Town
Casares

Address
Plaza de España, 29690 Casares, Málaga, Spain

Opening hours
Open access; the streets and castle precinct can be visited at any time. Casa Natal de Blas Infante and tourist office (Calle Carrera 51): winter Mon–Fri 09:30–14:00 and 16:00–18:00; summer Mon–Fri 09:30–15:00. Baños de la Hedionda: summer only, Wed–Sun 12:00–20:00, booking required.

Prices
Free to walk around; the castle precinct and the Baños de la Hedionda are free.

Website
turismocasares.com

Phone
+34 952 89 55 21

Open in Google Maps Explore Costa del Sol