High Above,
Far Below

Just after sunrise, the colour of the rock face changes. First grey. Then gold. Then a warm rust red that slowly descends the Sierra Nevada. Watching it happen, a cup of coffee in hand — that is one of the most peaceful moments this place offers.

Sometimes, if you're lucky, mountain goats cross the crags opposite.

You're sitting at the breakfast table. Orange juice, warm bread, local produce. Looking out over a vastness you didn't expect to find in Spain.

What this is

La Almunia del Valle is a country estate dating back to the 17th century — documented by the Granada Chancery — set within the Sierra Nevada National Park, 17 kilometres south-east of Granada. The village of Monachil lies a kilometre below. The house sits above it.

An almunia was, in Moorish Andalusia, a summer retreat. The name is no coincidence. An irrigation canal — possibly older than the house itself — still runs through the entire estate today. As Pat explains: "It irrigates the entire estate and fills the cisterns that store water for use at different times. The canal belongs to an irrigation community that organises the days and times for watering for each owner." A system that has worked for centuries.

15 rooms, all with private terraces overlooking the Río Monachil valley and the Sierra Nevada. A mountain-water pool. Restaurant, library, cocktail bar. From a distance, the house is barely visible — it folds into the hillside as if it had always been there.

What you experience

You have breakfast on a terrace built into the slope. The valley below. The peaks beyond. You take your time and savour it.

Monachil is known as one of the liveliest adventure sports destinations in the region — climbing, paragliding, canyoning, mountain biking, skiing in winter. The village hums with activity. La Almunia del Valle sits a kilometre above it and shifts the pace completely. You can have both.

Then you set off — directly from the hotel. Two kilometres away, the Los Cahorros gorge begins: narrow limestone cliffs, a 63-metre suspension bridge, natural stone pools, and an old pigeon tunnel through which the Río Monachil disappears and re-emerges. Beautiful. And on weekends, well and truly busy.

For those who want something quieter, there are little-known alternatives. One of them: the Circular de los Cahorros (PR-A 283). The same canyon, seen from above. Nine kilometres through pine forest and pastureland, looking down over the gorge and up at the high peaks behind it. Hardly anyone there. Almost meditative.

In October, the chestnut forests glow in deep yellows and oranges. As Pat puts it: "Sierra Nevada is home to some of the oldest chestnut groves in Europe. The autumnal colours of our natural spaces, with their enormous range of hues and the light that floods the landscape, make this corner of Andalusia a truly special place. In my opinion, it's the best time for hiking and enjoying the high mountains with their enviable temperatures."

You come back, cool off in the pool — fed by mountain water — and sit on the terrace. A glass of wine. The old olive trees around you. The warmth of the hosts, who talk with you personally. You feel genuinely welcomed, genuinely arrived.

The people behind it

Pat Merino and José Manuel Plana run La Almunia del Valle together. They are present every day. Pat speaks personally with each guest. The people who come here love exactly that.

The meat in the restaurant comes from Pajuna cattle raised in the Sierra Nevada — an old, robust breed, farmed by small family businesses in the region. The soap dispensers in the bathrooms were made by a local potter. They are refilled, not replaced. You notice: every detail is considered here.

This is an estate you feel, not just see. The care for the old property, for the surroundings, for the community, for the place where they live. Down to the smallest detail.

One hour further east — the Gorafe Desert

You drive east. The landscape slowly changes. Drier. Redder. And then, after an hour, the first hills of red clay rise before you — eroded over millions of years into shapes that remind you of Mars. You look around. There is nothing else to see, as far as the eye can reach.

The Granada Geopark stretches across 4,700 square kilometres — UNESCO-protected, and barely known outside Spain. Around 242 Neolithic dolmens run along the Río Gor: one of the largest concentrations of megalithic monuments in Europe, set right in the middle of this desert landscape.

At night, Gorafe has one of the darkest skies in all of Andalusia. You sit in a camp chair, look up, and understand how vast the silence really is.

In the evening, you drive back to Monachil. To the terrace of La Almunia. Wine, mountains, a different kind of stillness.

Who this is for

For adventurers who want to experience nature in the Sierra Nevada — hiking, climbing, kayaking on Canales reservoir, and much more. The region has activities without end. Those who seek the open horizon head to the Gorafe desert. And those who need to truly arrive somewhere come back to La Almunia — to the stillness, the terrace, the wine.

Not a good destination without a car — the hotel sits a kilometre above Monachil village, and Gorafe is barely reachable without your own transport. Also worth knowing: the building follows the slope, with terraces and steps throughout.