This city of the province of Cadiz has great tourist attractions among which there are golf courses, sports facilities, a marina and a large number of hotels to choose from. It is the municipality of Cadiz which is situated closest to the province of Malaga and where is outstanding the residential area of Sotogrande as a destination of many tourists each year.
This town was formed after the war of secession in Spain, after the loss of Gibraltar, many of the inhabitants were expelled and these believing that they would return remained in the vicinity of the Rock on ancient Arab settlements, which led to the formation of San Roque and the refounding of Algeciras.
This town was already populated by Iberians, Phoenicians, Carthaginians and Romans before the Arabs, being one of the first places they managed to conquer.
The old town of San Roque is a good place where you can stroll around and discover monuments, it has been declared a historic-artistic compound, and there are monuments and places like:
At the beginning of the sixties, Sotogrande was a large uninhabitated country area consisting of a series of country estates. In 1964 Joseph McMicking, an American citizen living in the Philippines, with exceptional foresight to lay the foundations of what is known today as one of the best residential tourism areas in Europe: Sotogrande and its first golf course, Real Club de Golf de Sotogrande. A year later in 1965 McMicking's nephew, Enrique Zobel inaugurated the Sotogrande Polo Club's fisrt polo field, close to Guadalquitón beach.
The old fishing village of Guadarranque takes its name from the river as it is situated at the river mouth. The original part of the village founded in 750 B.C. is very close by at the Carteya Archaeological Site. A large number of ancient civilisations inhabited this place. It was also the first Roman colony to achieve the title from the Senate in Rome. The city was involved in the 2nd Punic War and the Civil War in which Caesar and Pompey feuded at the end of the Roman Republic. Strabo, Pliny and Pomponius Mela wrote about this city, which even minted its own coins.
San Roque is in a privileged location, next to mountains and lakes, resulting in extensive forests and natural landscapes, such as:
A wood nature park with over 360 hectares, mainly of pine trees, cork oak trees and wild olive trees. There are picnic and barbecue facilities in the recreational area as well as a Nature Centre in the middle of the park. The Alhaja Stream runs down the wood's eastern boudary and the Alhaja Drinking Foundation is located near the park gate.
In addition there are four marked ecological trails with information panels: Big, Ugly Bird Gorge Ecological Trail, Eagle's Hill Ecological Trail, Alhaja Stream Ecological Trail, and Pinar del Rey Ecological Trail.
A 27 hectare nature reserve. The mouth of the river is a wonderful example of a thick river bank vegetation and ending in a sand bar before meeting the sea. It is a highly important conservation area, not only for its scenery, but also beacuse of the variety of flora and fauna, particulary migratory birds. After all we must not forget the Straits of Gibraltar is the most significant migration route in Western Europe and North Africa.
The Torreguadiaro Lagoon is another 2 hectare nature spot with information panels and birdwatching huts.
A lovely nature spot from which you can admire a breathtaking view of the sea and the mountains. There is a lake in the centre in a fissure which makes the mountains look like an ark. It is said that the mountains have the shape of an ark due to a meteorite impact. It is an ideal place for hiking, horse riding and riding mountain bikes.
San Roque also has 15 kilometres of beaches that are located in the Bay of Algeciras and the corresponding area of the Mediterranean Sea.
In the Sotogrande area you will find the Valderrama Golf Club, world famous for having been the only venue on European Continental soil for 1997 edition of the Ryder Cup, not to mention the American Express World Championship or the year 2000 edition of the Volvo Masters Tournament.
Many consider San Roque to be the Eurpoean Golf Capital as the borough can boast of having eight golf clubs: La Cañada Borough golf Club with 18 holes, Almenara Golf with 27 holes, The San Roque Club with 18 holes, Real Club de Sotogrande with 27 holes, Alcaidesa Links with 18 holes, La Reserva de Sotogrande with 18 holes, San Roque Club II with 18 holes and the previously mentioned Valderrama, also with 18 holes. The borough has a total of 182 holes at present.
San Roque has several typical annual celebrations of the municipality:
- Foundation Anniversary
This festival is celebrated on May 21 to establish the first town hall built in 1706 after the loss of Gibraltar.
- Royal Fair
Held every year since 1852 during the second week of August. The Royal Fair in August should be visited when the town is teeming with people dressed in colourful flamenco dresses, riding thoroughbred horses, singing and dancing fandangos. The people from San Roque are kind, friendly and fun-loving.
- Neighbourhood fairs
At the beginning of summer every neighbourhood of San Roque celebrates its own fair.
San Roque can be considered a hub of road communication in the Gibraltar Region and is a municipality along which passes everybody who is planning to visit Cadiz or the National Park of Alcornocales from Malaga.
If you need a rental car in Malaga to visit this and many other places in Cadiz don´t hesitate to consult our offers. Another option is a taxi from Malaga to San Roque, contact us for more information.
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