Hiking in open countryside – ten minutes from Costa del Sol beaches

If you love exercise and nature, then chances are you enjoy hiking. On the Costa del Sol, not everything is about beaches – explore the pathways of the immediate interior and a world of beauty opens up before you.

Like an intrepid explorer, you will be amazed at the diversity and beauty of this region when you set foot on trails that run along ancient shepherd and smugglers paths, wind through wooded groves, past country farms and villages up from green valleys into the hills, and ultimately into shaded forests. Continue up, and the trek becomes a proper hike, complete with sections of climbing, or stepping over stones as you cross a mountain stream.

The climate of the Costa del Sol makes this a fantastic form of exercise in all but the heat of summer, when you might prefer to head straight for a rock pool or lake you discovered perchance during a spring hike or autumn stroll.

Popular hiking trails on the Costa del Sol

• Senda Litoral Dunas de Artola – part of the coastal pathway that connects large sections of the Costa del Sol shoreline
• Ruta Barranco Blanco – trek through beautiful hillside country near Alhaurín to reach one of the most beautiful natural pools on the Costa del Sol
• Benahavís Guadalmina River trail – a route that takes you through gorgeous countryside, past a gorge and rock pool, to the edge of the village, and beyond
• Sierra Blanca trail – follow protected mountain scenery from Cascáda de Camoján and Sierra Blanco through to the forested hills near La Quinta
• Refugio de Juanar La Concha hike – the gradient rises steeply from the wooded groves of the Refugio de Juanar to the ultimate prize, the peaks of Marbella’s La Concha Mountain, with spectacular peaks
• Camino Rural de Istán – from Lake Istán into the hills to the picturesque village of Istán

The hills beyond Marbella are full of such delightful surprises, including waterfalls and the chance to spot wildlife such as ducks, eagles, vultures, squirrels, rabbits, turtles and a wide variety of birds—all within a short distance of your new home at Ocean View.