Casa Junius is located in the middle of the AXARQUIA
The Axarquia: what to do
The Axarquía (Spanish pronunciation: [axaɾˈki.a]) is a comarca of Andalusia in southern Spain. It is the wedge-shaped area east of Málaga. Its name is traced back to Arabic الشرقية (aš-Šarqiyya, meaning "the eastern [region]"). It extends along the coast and inland. Its coastal towns make up the Costa del Sol Oriental - one of the sunniest places in mainland Spain with the average of 320 sunny days a year. Inland you will find a very mild climate and many olive- and almond trees and vines along the slopes of the mountains and valleys.
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The Axarquia is part of the province of Malaga. This province belongs to the state of Andalusia with its beautiful city of Sevilla as the capital. The state of Andalusia is highly independent, has its own parliament in Seville and its own laws. Spain is a federation of several states with its capital in Madrid.
Of course: The beach
Yes of course, many people come to Spain to visit its Mediterranean beaches and the Costa del Sol is no exception. Casa Junius is only 25 miniutes drive from the Costa del Sol beach at Caleta / Torre del Mar, east of Malaga city. The beaches are clean and spacy and well maintained every night during the summer. Close to the beach are many parking places in Caleta as well as Torre del Mar. During summer time you sometimes pay a little parking fee, in all other seasons parking is free.
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The beaches are organised and maintained very well. During the night, it is cleaned. Sand strips are also made every night, perpendicular to the waterline. There is a distance of 2 meters between these strips. The bathers are allowed to sit on a strip. So Spain prevents people from lying too close to each other. This is completely different from the chaos you see on a nice day at Zandvoort (Netherlands).
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On several places on the beach you can eat grilled fish for less than €5,- or rent 2 sunbeds for about €10,- /day. No, these prices are no Zandvoort prices either!
Hiking in the mountains
Hiking on the slopes of the Maroma is very popular. There are many old tracks, old stone bridges and a newly built metal bridge along side the sometimes steep rock slopes. A path is often very wide, somestimes it is narrow and on the sides steep down. Yes, it can be challenging and for a hiking fan the ultimate, but there are also moderate routes.
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You can find many hiking websites, but one good website from the area is of the Dutchman Bob Kraanen. He is also a tour guide and lives in the area. Visit his site: www.bobwalks.com
In the Axarquia you enjoy the panoramic sceneries, the many birds and of course most of the time the fantastic weather. Even in wintertime you can enjoy many sun days and excellent weather to walk. The best rime of the year to hike is from September to May. During summer it might be too warm.
Casa Junius is also located in the mountains and close to all walking areas. Our townhouse Casa Maria in Sedella is located in the heart of the hiking area. Read our hiking blog.
The weather in the Axarquia
Casa Junius is located in the middle of this region
In July and August daytime temperatures reach 36°C. Sea temperatures remain at about 20°C from July to October and above 15°C for the remainder of the year. Our unheated private swimming pool of 8 x 4 metres reaches a temperature of 30°C during June to October, fall to 10°C during winter in January and rise again to 20+°C from March and onwards.
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Little rain falls mainly from November and March / April with no rain anywhere from May to September. The prevailing winds come from the Atlantic Ocean and cause western Andalucia to be wetter than our region Axarquia in the east.
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The mountain ranges are about 2 degrees cooler than the valleys and have a higher rainfall with sometimes a little snow high up in the mountains in winter. The villages on the slope of the Maroma get their clear water for consumption and irrigation from the mountain whole year around via an ingenious water system. The little picture on the left shows the top of the Maroma in the snow. You only see that in winter and not even every winter.
The Sierra Nevada, above 3000 metres near Granada, is snow covered for most of the year with thriving winter ski resorts. You are also close to Europe's most southern ski-pistes (1,5h drive from Casa Junius) in winter.
So it is possible to ski in the morning, drive to the beach and pick up some sun at 22 degrees in the afternoon. Yes, that is southern Spain in what we call wintertime.
Places to visit are next door
Built on the slopes of the Marona are many lovely small villages, just 30 minutes from Casa Junius. Yes, you need a good car, as many road are dirt roads, winding between the olive groves and vineyards. Villages, which history go back over 2000 years with the Romans and Moors. Cruel and bloody battles have been fought, people were deported and replaced by others with another religion. Traces are still seen after hundreds of years.
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What remained were the white villages like Competa. Part of its history is written on the side of the church. Also Frigiliana, the old town was partly Moorish and even medieval. Don't forget Sedella at the foot of many hiking trails. Or Nerja, in the vicinity are the famous caves of Nerja with especially the more than 20,000 year old wall paintings. It is certainly worthwhile to visit them, drink a coffee somewhere and enjoy the sun and the view.
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But don't forget, Casa Junius is just 40 minutes drive from Malaga city as well as from the airport. It is a beautiful city, size Amsterdam. Malaga is modern, full of life all year around, excellent shopping and nice restaurants along side the harbour and the famous foodhall.
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Last but not least: Casa Junius and the Axarquia is more than laying at the beach. There are tons of information on internet and you don't have to be an expert to find it.
Or:
Just find out by staying with us a couple of days!
