The city of Almeria is located at the foot of a mountain range which is crowned by the magnificent Alcazaba, an Arab fortress built by the Calph of Cordoba, Abd-erRahman 111 with three huge walled enclosures (in the second of which are remains of a mosque, converted to a chapel by the Catholic kings).

In times of war, the Alcazaba could hold an army of more than 20,000 men. From here, there is a good view of the city's famed cave quarter, "Barrio de la Chanca" and of the strange fortified Cathedral with its gothic style construction and renaissance facade.

Dating from the 16th century, it was built during an era when the southern Mediterranean was terrorised by the raids of Barbarossa and other Turkish and North African pirate forces, its corner towers once held canons. Situated in the centre is the great altar with its wealth of priceless art work including a tabernacle dating from the 18th century, designed by Ventura Rodriguez, paintings by Alonso Canoñ; a typical Andalusian altar piece made by Araoz and the statue of St. Indaletius, the patron saint of Almeria, sculpted by Saizillo.

The coastline varies enormously in the degree and type of development along it. The stretch of shore between Granada province and Almeria city is the most blighted by plastic greenhouses, although it has the occasional wildlife oasis, such as the lakes in the Albuferas de Adra Natural Reserve, which attract numerous aquatic birds undeterred by the sea of plastic that surrounds them. Another protected enclave south of the resort of Roquetas de Mar is the Punta Entinas-Sabinar Natural Area, covering a beach and marshlands between two headlands in the municipality of El Ejido, the epicentre of the plastic greenhouse agriculture.

East of Almeria there is a remarkable change as you draw nearer to the Cabo de Gata. The park has a long, rugged coastline with secluded bays and remote beaches, some linked only by a footpath. Much of the park is comprised of volcanic rocky mountains that plunge directly to the shore, creating one of Andalucia´s most dramatic coastlines. San Miguel del Cabo de Gata is the first village you come to in the park from Almeria, close to a saltwater lagoon with exceptional birdlife, the Salinas del Cabo de Gata. The next coastal village is the largest one in the park, San José, with the small resorts of Las Negras, La Isleta del Moro and Agua Amarga to the north.

The most popular resorts are Roquetas de Mar and Mojácar, the latter with the highest concentration of foreign residents in the province.

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