Costa de Almería from Belfast
The driest place in Europe, and the quietest of the southern Spanish coasts. Where the Costa del Sol built, Almería mostly did not.
- Flight time
- 3h 15mfrom BFS
- Season
- May to October
- Direct from Belfast
- Yes
Why this coast matters from Belfast
Because it is the only southern Spanish coast that still has empty bits.
Almería is the driest province in Europe, with parts of it receiving under 200 mm of rain a year. That dryness kept the tourist development sparse, which means a coastline where you can still find a cove with nobody on it in June.
Who it suits
Book it if you want heat and space, you will hire a car, and you would rather walk to an empty beach than have twelve restaurants outside the hotel.
Look elsewhere if you want a resort with everything on the doorstep, nightlife, or short transfers to a lot of choice.
Cabo de Gata
The Cabo de Gata-Níjar natural park covers around fifty kilometres of volcanic coastline, and it is the single reason this page is worth reading.
Playa de los Genoveses and Playa de Mónsul are reached down dirt roads that are closed to cars in peak summer, with a shuttle instead. Both are large, sandy, backed by nothing, and look like the set of a film — which, in Mónsul’s case, they were.
You need a hire car, sun protection and water. There are no facilities, and that is the entire proposition.
The other desert
Inland at Tabernas is the only true desert in Europe, and in the 1960s it stood in for the American West in a long run of spaghetti westerns. Two of the film sets still operate as attractions.
It is forty minutes from the coast, it is properly strange, and it makes a good half day when the beach has done its work.
Where to stay
- Families and value
Roquetas de Mar
The main resort, with a long sandy beach, decent hotel stock and prices below the Costa del Sol for equivalent standard.
- A hill village with a beach below it
Mojácar
A white village stacked on a hillside, with a long strip of beach and hotels a couple of kilometres downhill. Two places in one.
- Marina, golf and quiet
Almerimar
Purpose-built around a marina. Low-key, flat, and popular with people who return every year.
- The natural park
San José
A small village inside Cabo de Gata, and the best base for the empty volcanic coves the park is famous for.
- A city that sees few tourists
Almería
A Moorish fortress above a working port city, with tapas still served free with a drink in many bars.
When to go
The driest climate in mainland Europe. Rain here is an event, and the season stretches further at both ends than anywhere further west.
| Month | Air | Sea | How busy |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 17°C | 15°C | Very quiet |
| February | 18°C | 15°C | Very quiet |
| March | 20°C | 15°C | Quiet |
| April | 21°C | 16°C | Quiet |
| May | 24°C | 18°C | Sweet spot |
| June | 28°C | 21°C | Building |
| July | 30°C | 24°C | Busy |
| August | 31°C | 26°C | Peak |
| September | 28°C | 25°C | Sweet spot |
| October | 24°C | 22°C | Warm, quiet |
| November | 20°C | 19°C | Very quiet |
| December | 18°C | 17°C | Very quiet |
Typical averages, not forecasts. Sea temperature lags air temperature by roughly two months, which is why October often swims better than June.
Mistakes people make
Expecting the infrastructure of the Costa del Sol. Fewer hotels, fewer restaurants, fewer everything. That is the trade you are making and it is the reason to come.
Booking Cabo de Gata without a car. The natural park is the best thing here and it has almost no public transport. Its beaches are reached down dirt tracks.
Ignoring the wind at Mojácar. It can blow steadily along this stretch. Lovely for a walk, less lovely for an afternoon on a lounger.
Missing the desert. Tabernas, inland, is where the spaghetti westerns were filmed, and it looks exactly as you would hope.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the Costa de Almería so much quieter?
It developed later and less, partly because the land behind it is desert and agriculture took a different path. The result is a coast with gaps in it, which is now the attraction.
Is Cabo de Gata worth a hire car?
It is the reason to come. A volcanic natural park with unbuilt coves, reached down unsurfaced tracks, and the most striking coastline in mainland Spain.
How does it compare to the Costa del Sol?
Drier, quieter, cheaper, fewer facilities, better empty beaches, and a longer drive to anything else.
When does the season end?
Later than most. October still delivers 24°C air and a 22°C sea, with almost nobody there.
Before you book
- Guide
What actually fits in hand luggage
Why bags that fit at home fail at the gate, and the measurement everyone gets wrong.
- Explainer
Flight only, or a package?
What the bundle is really worth, and the protection you lose by booking the parts separately.
- 3h 10m
Málaga
Three hours from Belfast, and the only Spanish beach coast where you can walk off the plane, get a train, and be on a promenade in twenty minutes without booking anything.