Cheap flights to Granada & Malaga:
This region is well served budget airlines. Velez de Benaudalla has excellent motorway access and is serviced by Granada (about 45 mins), Malaga (about 1hr and 15 mins) and Almeria airports (1hr and 35 mins). Ryanair offers cheap flights to Granada from Liverpool, East Midlands and London Stanstead. Ryanair also flies to Malaga from Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bristol, Dublin, E Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool and Stanstead. Numerous other airlines fly to Malaga or Granada from the UK including Iberia, Easy Jet, Jet2.com, Monarch, Aer Lingus, British Airways and BMI.
Local information:
Velez de Benaudalla is a pretty traditional whitewashed Spanish village nestled in the foot hills of the Las Alpujarras. Surrounded by spectacular countryside Velez is perfectly located with easy access to the Costa Tropical coast, Sierra Nevada ski resort and the beautiful city of Granada where the amazing Alhambra Palace can be found.
Velez is steeped in history, and you can wander through the ancient streets to the recently restored XVI century Ulloa Muslim castle or look at the Casa Jardin Nazari, which was inspired by Grenada architecture and is generally considered to be the finest example of Hispanic-Muslim gardens in Spain. There is also a couple of play areas/parks to keep the kids amused.
There is a good choice of shops, bakeries (with lovely homemade breads and cakes), banks, a pharmacy and a doctors surgery. There are also numerous Spanish bars and restaurants many of which offer complimentary delightful tapas with every round of drinks!
Surrounding area:
With more than 320 days of sunshine on average every year, the Costa Tropical and Granada region offers a combination of the rugged coast line of the Costa Tropical which runs along the shores of the warm Mediterranean sea with its pretty, friendly coastal towns and beaches, and the contrasting historic white Andalucian villages nestled in the hills of the breathtaking countryside, all with the back drop of the Sierra Nevada mountains and ski resort. There are few places in the world where you can ski in the morning and swim in the sea in the afternoon, making the Granada region almost unique.
The Alhambra Palace in Granada with its stunning architecture and gardens is the most visited tourist attraction in Europe, second only to the Vatican. At the centre of this beautiful town is a labyrinth of narrow streets bursting with atmosphere and lined with buildings that reflect the Arab influence of Granada’s varied history.
Ski:
Sierra Nevada is Europe's most southern ski resort. The resort is located 32 km from the centre of Granada and is only about an hour drive from Velez. In 1996, it hosted the World Alpine Ski Championships.
The ski season normally lasts from the beginning of December until the end of April or beginning of May. Artificial snow machines now mean that the resort can open for skiing even when there is no natural snow. Andalusia has a very high proportion of sunny days even in the winter and usually it is possible to ski with beautiful blue skies and warm temperatures. It is possible to ski in the morning and sunbathe at the beach in the afternoon on the same day.
In total there are 79 pistes in different parts of the resort: of these 4 black, 34 red, 33 blue and 8 green. The highest run is the Águila red run and on a clear day you can see across to the Riff mountains in Morocco. To get to there follow signs to the Alhambra, and then the signs to the Sierra Nevada which leads you there
Golf:
Los Moriscos Golf is ideally situated to be considered a family golfing center. About 15 minutes away from Velez, the club house, bar and restaurant are set right on the beach at Granada Costa on the Costa Tropical. The 18 hole course, 8 kms. from Motril, is mainly flat, adorned with palm trees, sugar cane and the abundance of the exotic semi-tropical fruit plantations, large greens and man made lakes. The address is Los Moriscos, Playa Granada, 18600 Motril, Spain. Phone: 00 34 958 825 527.
Santa Clara Granada golf course is situated just off the motorway on the way to Granada from Velez (about 35 minutes away). The golf course, designed by Enrique Canales Busquets has been created with respect for the natural environment of indigenous wildlife and vegetation, providing a fantastic meeting place for golf enthusiasts. The address is Arda. del juncalillo, s/n (18630) Otura, Granada, Spain. Phone (+34) 858 702800.
