La Axarquía is a historic Andalusian region which covers the Eastern end of the province of Malaga. Nerja is one of its most important towns. Until fairly recently, its inhabitants lived from fishing or the sugar cane industry. Today it is a tourist destination of the first order.

The Balcony of Europe is the main attraction for visitors to Nerja, a meeting place for locals and visitors. It is an urban viewpoint located on a small rocky headland, which placidly enters the waters of the Mediterranean. It is the end point of the walk that starts at the town council. Its shape makes it look like a round diving board (la reola), perfect for diving into the water.

A viewpoint surrounded by beaches 

Not by jumping, but you can enter the beach of the same name through the Boquete de Calahonda, situated to the left of the balcony. It is the favourite beach of the locals in Nerja and even today you can bathe surrounded by fishing boats. From Calahonda, through the Paseo de los Carabineros, you can get to other local beaches, such as El Chorrillo, Carabeo, Carabeíllo and Burriana, the largest.

Heading the other way, towards Malaga, the Balcony of Europe also has a small urban beach at its feet: Caletilla beach. They are beaches, like that of Salón, enclosed by rocky outcrops that aid in isolating them from one another.

The Balcony of Europe owes its name to Alfonso XII, who visited Nerja in 1884 after the city was destroyed by an earthquake. The king was amazed by the view of the coast, with the Maro cliffs (today a natural park) sinking into the Mediterranean. Until then, the locals had called that point the Mirador de la Batería (Battery Viewpoint). The name refers to the battery of cannons that occupied that strategic position. There had previously been a watchtower, of Arab orign, reconstructed in the 17th century.

Nerja Cave, a geological wonder 

Besides its coast, Nerja has other points of interest. The most important is the Cueva de Nerja (Nerja Cave), discovered in 1959 when some young people from Maro decided to go bat hunting in a well in the area. What they discovered was a geological wonder that attracts thousands of visitors a year. The cave, located in the Sierra de Almijara mountains, is famous for the column of the Sala del Cataclismo (Cataclysm Chamber) reaching 45 metres in height.

Another point of interest is the Puente del Águila bridge. It is a spectacular aqueduct built in the 19th century to carry water to the mills of the Maro sugar factory. In Nerja, as well as visiting the city, you can also eat very well, especially with typical dishes such as ajoblanco (chilled garlic soup), migas (fried bread, garlic and oil), maimones con uvas, made with garlic, bread and pepper. Casa Luque (tel.: 952 521 004) is a restaurant which occupies a building dating from 1863 and lets you taste Axarquía's gastronomy. In contrast, the restaurant Udo Heimer is a curious fusion of Spanish and German cooking.