Costa del Sol Towns

Ardales

Attractions

El Castillo de la Pena dates back to the end of the ninth century during the revolt of Omar Ben Hafsun. He was part of their dominion until the Umayyad Cordoba put an end to the rebellion with the conquest of Bobastro.

In the vicinity of Ardales there are also the natural environments of the Guadalhorce reservoirs and the gorge of Gaitanes (used in the Frank Sinatra movie Von Ryan’s Express).

Notably, several kilometers from the town center is a home-nursery of the Hydrographic Confederation of the South.

Culture
Festivals
The main festivals of the people are the Fiesta de la Matanza (in February) and the Fair in honor of their patron saint, the Virgen de Villaverde (in September).

Crafts
Esparto craft articles are traditionally made and consist of iron and bobbin lace.

Gastronomy
The cuisine in Ardales is traditionally made using lamb and goat meat, cooked in dishes such as stews, knows as the shepherd andalusia kid stew. They also include products from pig meat and gazpacho.

Baking cookies are made with almonds and the threads of wine, while Empanadilla is made with angel hair and oil cakes.

Ardales is a municipality situated within the province of  Malaga and part of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It is centrally located in the foothills of the Sierra de las Nieves as it transcends towards the Guadalhorce reservoirs, between the districts of Alor and Teba Casarabonela.

In 2008 it had 2638 inhabitants. Its superficial expanse is that of 106 km² and it has a population density of 24.13 inhabitants / km². The geographical coordinates are 36 ° 52 'N, 4 ° 50' W and it is situated at an altitude of 445 meters above sea level and 52 kilometers from the provincial capital, Malaga.

History

There are several traces of prehistoric caves in the environment, particularly the first evidence of the enclave work from the Celtiberians (Turobriga) and subsequently further evidence extending through Roman times. At that time the language used was Arabic (Ard-Allah) which holds relevance to the enclave, especially during the rebellion of Omar Ben Hafsun against the emir of Cordoba (880), who also built the town of Cave Bobastro. It was then conquered by the Christians in 1389.