Day Trip | Visit the Lanjarón Valley in Granada

A few weeks ago I had the best day out ever - visiting the Lanjarón Valley in Granada with a bunch of friends who know the area well, one being a local of a beautiful village called Los Pinos del Valle (with some of the most beautiful village houses and gardens I have ever seen). The day consisted of a barbecue in nearby Torrox then a drive to the valley where we picked oranges and lemons from the trees, drank water from the stream, wandered on hilltops and visited the beautiful village of Los Pinos. Here we stopped by the village shop, where we ate cured jamon -pulled down from hanging from the ceiling - just for us. We ate the sliced jamon at the shop counter and left with wild honey. Lanjarón is most famous for its mineral water, which is sold throughout Spain, and is situated in the Western Alpujarras around 50 kilometres from the city of Granada itself. Less famously, Rowan Atkinson aka Mr. Bean, (I'm told), has a villa overlooking the lake. You can read more about the area here plus I'm sure my friends will be available (for a commission - they're those sort of friends!) to treat you to a day out too! Driving time from Marbella about 4 hours round trip and a chance to see the 'Real Spain'.