David Boldick

How to get there.

Murcia, Malaga and Alicante airports are all about 2 3/4 hours drive to the cave. We fly from Exeter or Bristol. Granada is only about 1 1/2 hours from the cave and is serviced by Gatwick, Stansted, Nottingham, and Liverpool airports. Almeria is 2 hours away from the cave(Leeds/Bradford, Birmingham and others). We can advise on the less expensive car hire.

Things to do.

Swimming in warm lakes and cold rivers, walking in the mountains, buying gorgeous cheap fruit and vegetables in local markets, feeding the fire with wood collected in the forest, eating delicious food in lakeside restauraunts, visiting historic hill towns or the Alhambra palace, day trips to the coast.... or (our favourite) doing nothing at all - just listening to the goat bells in the vast luminous landscape. At the right time of the year going up to the Sierra Nevada and playing in snow is wonderful.

Local shops.

Cortes be Baza.
Coviran is a small supermarket in the village at the end of the main street. Most shops look like houses. Butchers, bakers, general groceries, electrical etc.

Campocamara. Spar shop and Coviran. Owner of Spar shop (Emilio) speaks a little English.

Castril. A reasonable number of shops and a great restaurant.

Pozo Alcon. Largish town with many shops and restaurants.

La Teja. If you find the shop please let us know where it is.

Baza The nearest large town to La Teja and has a Lidl and some supermarkets, including Mercadona in the centre, which is our favourite.

Markets

All markets start in the morning and are finished by 2pm, usually they start finishing around 12 oclock.

Pozo Alcon. Monday. One of the larger street markets.

Baza. Wednesday. Biggest market within easy reach (30 minutes).

Campocamara. Thursday. One of the many small street markets.

Castril. Friday. A smallish good fruit and vegetable market with an organic stall.

Cortes de Baza. Saturday. A small village market at the end of town.

Benamaurel. Sunday. A smallish street market off the through road to Baza.

Restauraunts

Lake Bolera. A 15 minute drive from the cave. We use this lake most days and the restaurant is very good, both quality and quantity. Back to the bus stop turn right and go for 15 minutes untill you reach a T junction. Turn left and restaurant and lake are 2/3 kms on the right.

KM6. Further along the same road on the left, again a good place to eat.

Pizzeria. Even further along the same road, probably the best place for vegetarian food.

These restauraunts are not open every day out of season.

Even further along the same road is Pozo Alcon with its many shops and restaurants.

Banos de Zujar 45 minutes drive and a little more expensive, this restauraunt by lake Negratin is worth it. There are hot springs here.

Castril Has a hotel restaurant at the entrance to the town. Really good but does not cater for vegetarians.

Baza. Hostal opposite Lidl is good and quite cheap. Also pizzerias and other restaurants.

Cortes de Baza. Various cafes and small restaurants.

Fiestas.

These celebrations are usually held on the following weekends.

La Teja. The first weekend in July.

Pozo Alcon. The second weekend in September. This includes a fun fair.

Baza. The second weekend in September. This is usually the biggest with concerts, carnavals and fun fair over several days.

To avoid disappointment please check with the Tourist board to exactly what is happening and when.