Spain’s Costa del Sol: A Bit of Beach and a Bit of History

On Spain’s Costa del Sol, many towns come in pairs: the famous beach town with little history and its smaller yet much more historic partner established a few miles inland — safely out of reach of the Barbary pirate raids that plagued this coastline for centuries. Nerja (my favorite beach town on Spain’s south coast) is a good example of this pattern. Whereas it has almost no history and was just an insignificant fishing village until tourism hit, its more historic sister, Frigiliana, hides out in the nearby hills. The Barbary pirate raids were a constant threat. In fact, the Spanish slang for “the coast is clear” is “no hay moros en la costa” (there are no Moors on the coast). When those pirate raids finally stopped, the people of Frigiliana moved down to the coast for an easier life in what became the resort town of Nerja.

While you’ll likely hang out in Nerja, Frigiliana is a delightful white-washed hill town to explore.

beach
Nerja, Spain
street lined with bright white buildings and pink flowers
Frigiliana, Spain


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