The Coolest Neighbourhoods in Almería, Spain

La Chanca is a tattered and charming quarter of brightly coloured houses that tumbles down the hill from the Alcazaba to the Nicolás Salmerón Park. It is the gypsy and fishermen’s quarter, where some residents still live in caves dug into the pale rock. To properly appreciate its charms, visit during the day, when you can marvel at the Alcazaba towering over its scruffy rooftops.

Modern Almería centres around the city’s two principal thoroughfares, the Paseo de Almería and the Avenida Federico Garcia Lorca. It is filled with sleek designer stores, office buildings and cafés, the outside terraces of which fill up with locals every lunchtime and in the early evenings. The modern centre’s nerve centre is the lively Central Market, just next to which is El Quinto Toro, a must-visit tapas joint.

Mercado Central, 14 Calle Circunvalación Ulpiano Díaz, Almería, Spain

El Quinto Toro, 6 Calle Juan Leal, Almería, Spain, +34 950 23 91 35

Almería‘s 1,500-metre city beach backs onto a lively and friendly residential neighbourhood called El Zapillo. So, if you’re spending the day on the Playa de Almería and don’t fancy the 15-minuite walk back to the centre for refreshments, stay put: there are some great fish and tapas restaurants in this triangular-shaped barrio, including several along the Paseo Maritimo with spectacular sea views.