Information, Hotels, Accommodation guide for staying in the town of Lanjaron, Alpujarras
We have lived here permanently in the spa town of Lanjaron since 2002. The town is very friendly, very spanish, and not as "touristy" as some of the other Alpujarras towns. The World Health Organization has recognized Lanjaron as one of the places with the greatest longevity on the planet. It is indeed the quality of its waters - together with the climate, the pure mountain air and the Mediterranean diet - that allows many of its citizens to live more than one hundred years.
Eat and Drink
Lanjaron is well supplied with small supermarkets and shops for all
your "mountain needs". There are 3 banks with ATM's
Bar Flower - best tapas bar in town owned by Franci
and Jeni
Bar Los Faroles - family run business good for breakfasts
and lunches
El Volante - good drink and food from Jose Antonio
Cafe Bar Health - More of a "Bistro" restaurant with
great food including veggie options!
Cafe Bar Suizo - WiFi is available here too.
Gonzales Bodega - Good wine and tapas. Watch Real Madrid here at the weekends!
Bar Galvez - Traditional spanish bar with good tapas
Map for our clients to get aquainted with the town!
Lanjaron and it's mountains. What is it like?
Latest featured news
Inspiring the Adventure » Lanjaron
Inspirations for your own Sierra Nevada, Spanish or Patagonian Mountain Adventure!
Alpujarras weather trends in 2011 from our Lanjaron meteo station
At the end of the year it is always interesting to look at the extremes, averages and trends in the years weather. Our weather station in Lanjaron, Alpujarras has provided the following information for 2011 (2010 figures in brackets).
Temperatures - nothing too different on the maximums and m...
Why restoring an old mountain refuge is good for the soul
In the past week we have been helping to restore the Refugio de Caballo, at nearly 3000m in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada, Spain. Very hard work, but it has allowed us to give something back to the mountains that have given us so much over the years.
The refuge is in a superb situation...
New live webcam in Lanjaron alongside the Rio Lanjaron
There is a new webcam set up in the town of Lanjaron showing the flowing waters of the Rio Lanjaron. Now at first glance this may appear a bit boring to some people. But to the townsfolk of this spa town in the Alpujarras, the waters mean everything. They are the lifeblood of the town! Fortuna...
A first visit to Lanjaron by mountaineer John Ormsby in 1866
Back in 1866, an English explorer and member of the Alpine Club of London, John Ormsby, came to visit the Sierra Nevada, the Alpujarra and my home town of Lanjarón. In March 1867 he read his report before the Alpine Club and its magazine, The Alpine Journal, was then published in full. This in...
The Mediterranean river that rises in the tundra
The river Lanjaron rises in the high mountains of the Sierra Nevada and plunges down through such contrasting and varied scenery and terrain, that the teacher, Fernández Prieto called it "the Mediterranean river which rises in the tundra."
The Rio Lanjarón begins its journey in a small lake...
The Lanjaron Festival of Water and Ham
Since 1980, Lanjaron has celebrated Midsummer's Eve in honour of San Juan Bautista (John the Baptist) with its Fiesta del Agua y del Jamon (Water and Ham Festival), although the ham aspect has been overshadowed over the years by the liquid element. At the stroke of midnight on 23 June, the small mountain village erupts into the greatest water fight in Spain, and maybe even the world.
Famous for its mineral water, Lanjaron is the perfect destination for this crazy water war. Locals make sure they park their cars out of town in anticpation of the liquid onslaught that attracts revellers from all over the country and further afield.
At midnight, participants take to the streets armed with buckets, water pistols, and anything else they can get their hands on. Total strangers soak each other to the skin, while ladies spray the crowd with hose pipes from the safety of their balconies, filling up their buckets in the process.
By the time the whistle blows at the end of the fight, there is a river running through the streets, and all are soaked to the bone. After a quick change of clothes, the cerveza starts pouring, fireworks fill the sky and the real party begins. Over the next few days, revellers celebrate the calm after the storm with a feast of mouthwatering jamon (ham), another product for which Lanjaron is renowned.
The Moorish Castle of Lanjaron
Only its ruins remain over a rocky promontory near to the town. It is located about 600 meters of altitude. Its location was superb, because it dominated, on one hand, the access road to the Alpujarra and, on the other, the one that communicated Granada with the Coast. The castle was surrounded by a wall defended by two great towers of rubblework, one to the north, semi-circular, and another one to the south.
Fernando the Catholic King conquered the town in 1490. Its Moorish inhabitants rebelled again in 1500, a revolt that was controlled by the Christians after an epic defence. The captain who defended the place preferred to throw himself from a tower before surrender. It participated in an active way against the Napoleonic troops in the Independence War, its inhabitants receiving the qualifying name of “canoneros” since then.
The castle is currently being rennovated.
Useful Information
Town Hall: Plaza de la Constitucion. Tlf 958 77 00 02
Doctors: C/Huertos. Tlf 958 77 95 78. Open 8am until 10pm. Emergencies tlf 112.
Tourist Information: Avda de la Alpujarra s/n. Tlf 958 77 04 62
Library:_ C/Cordoba, 3. Tlf 958 77 22 16
Post Office: C/Hondillo, 1. Tlf 958 77 07 34
Guardia Civil: C/Melilla. Tlf 958 77 00 05
The Spa Baths have been the most important mineral-medicinal waters of Andalucia since the 18th century when its healing properties were discovered.
The town hall has an interesting website that provides useful information in both spanish and english.
We can provide details of clean comfortable accommodation in Lanjaron ranging from apartments to country villas and farmhouses. The town is well supplied with hotels. We use the Hotels Central (2*) and Alcademia (3*). All are very clean and comfortable. We can assist and advise with regard to choice.
