On this post I will highlight the best things we did on our visit to Setenil de las Bodegas and Ronda in a very limited time.
We left the lovely Granada (see my posts Granada Day 1 and Day 2) and Hotel Sercotel Palacio de los Gamboa after breakfast and headed to Setenil de las Bodegas, Spain.
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We took the A-92 going west, passing through Antequera and arriving in Setenil in just about two and a half hours.
If you are planning a trip to the south of Spain and prefer to have everything organised by a tour, you should check the tours Tourradar offers to many places in Spain.
Tourradar has tours that suits every length of time and budgets and if you use my links to book your trip and enter code RoseG50 you will get a discount on your booking.
Below is a map showing the places we visited while in Setenil de las Bodegas and in Ronda:
The drive was pretty scenic, the roads were empty and easy to drive. Likewise to what we found during the entire trip.
Most of the motorways in the south of Spain have the middle strip planted with colourful flowers. It looks very beautiful and well looked after.
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SETENIL DE LAS BODEGAS
Setenil de las Bodegas is another town that the Christians captured in 1484. In other words, that was when the Christians expelled the Moorish occupants from the town.
It is famous for its white dwellings built into the rock that overhangs above the “Rio Guadalporcún”.
These dwellings are cave houses built in the space between the rocks and forming a unique and beautiful town.
The name Setenil de las Bodegas came from the time when the town was thriving in the wine trade.
“Bodegas” mean “wineries” in English, but nowadays not as many exist.
A plague attacked the vines in 1860 and destroyed most of the vines. Therefore, since then, wine production has not picked up again.
Nowadays, Setenil is famous for its meat products, especially the “chorizo” sausage .
In addition, the “pasteles” (pastries) are also very popular.
VISITING SETENIL DE LAS BODEGAS
When we arrived, we firstly concentrated on looking for a place to park the car.
That was not an easy task, and we ended up going up and up the hill trying to find a parking space.
We eventually found a car park high up and walked down to the town.
However, this was a mandatory uphill walk back, in short, something we are not very keen on.
The town is very picturesque, and we went straight to the main street in Setenil called “Calle Cuevas del Sol” (Caves of the Sun).
We looked for a nice bar to have a drink to refresh ourselves from the walk down in the hot sun. Afterwards, we walked up and down the road and took many photos of the pretty street.
We also walked in some of the back streets, but subsequently we had to leave as we still needed to drive to Ronda, which is about half an hour away.
Setenil de las Bodegas is not very big and there is not much to see.
However, if you have time, there are some nice restaurants in the main street for a spot of lunch.
Exploring a bit more of the town on foot should be nice too.
In addition, you can also visit the remains of an Arab Castle called “Nazari Castle”.
If you are based in one of the towns in the south of Spain and doesn’t have a car, you can still visit Setenil de las Bodegas and Ronda with a tour. Here are a few options:
From Malaga: Full day Bus trip to Ronda and Setenil
From Seville: Ronda and Setenil de las Bodegas Day trip
Other towns on Costa del Sol: Ronda and Setenil de las Bodegas
Our visit only took us about an hour and then we had to climb back to the car park up the hill.
It was a very hot day, we didn’t fancy the climb up in the sun, so we just caught a taxi and less than 5 minutes later, we were there.
In conclusion, we are very lazy when it comes to climb up hills, towers or anything that involves more than a couple of steps!
Back in the car we continued the trip to the lovely Ronda via an olive tree lined road, just about half-an hour away.
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT RONDA
When I think about Ronda, the view of the bridge, the cliff side and deep canyon are the first things coming to my mind. This is Ronda’s postcard, and it is just exquisite.
As one of the oldest towns in Spain, the surrounding areas were inhabited since Neolithic times.
Between the 5th and 7th centuries CE, Ronda was part of the Roman Empire conquered by Germanic tribes, then the Visigoths, and then the Moors.
Like all other towns in Andalusia, the Christians conquered it in 1485 and it became a refuge place for the Muslims in the mountains.
UNESCO awarded heritage site status to Ronda due to its historic importance.
Ronda is an amazing place and there is a lot to explore in there.
Ronda deserves at least 2 full days to visit all the nice places and take in all the gorgeous views.
VISITING RONDA
We were short in time, therefore unfortunately it was going to be another lightning visit for us.
On arrival we found space to park the car in one of the back streets not too far from that famous bridge “Puente Nuovo” (New Bridge) and that was the first thing we went to see.
Soon we arrived at “Puente Nuovo” and enjoyed the breath-taking views of the deep gorge and the countryside surrounding it.
The bridge was designed by the architect José Martin de Aldehuela and constructed between 1759 and 1793.
It took about 42 years for the bridge to be completed. The “New” on its name is a contrast to another local bridge called “Puente Viejo” (Old Bridge).
There is a third bridge called “Ponte Romana” (Roman Bridge) as well.
The three bridges link the two parts of the city over the Guadalevin river and the “El Tajo” canyon.
“Puente Nuovo” is the highlight of any visit to Ronda. The views of the gorge and buildings around the cliffs from the “Mirador” are spectacular.
We crossed over the bridge to have different views from various angles and all of them were amazing.
After that , we walked around the historic old town and in the direction of the Plaza de Toros de Ronda, the oldest bullring in Spain.
The bullring building was designed by the same architect that designed the “Puente Nuovo”, José Martin de Aldehuela and it was built in 1785.
It was closed for visits when we were there, but a visit to the bullring to admire the construction is very desirable.
On the other hand, to watch a bullfight is something I’m not very keen on.
If you are staying in Ronda or will get there by car or public transport you can have a historical walking tour that includes a visit to the bullring building. You can book it HERE.
If you are in Marbella or other towns in the Costa del Sol you can book a Full Day Wine Tour including Ronda HERE.
Or you can have a private walking tour if you are already in Ronda by booking this one HERE.
By them we were quite hungry and decided to have some tapas at a bar we saw near where we parked the car in the back street.
We sat at “El Coto” and we enjoyed a cold sangria and various pieces of a delicious tortilla to keep us going until dinner time.
After eating, it was time to leave and we just got the car and drove in the direction of Marbella, about 1 hour and 10 minutes drive from Ronda.
I hope this post helps you to plan your own itinerary to Setenil de las Bodegas and Ronda in a very limited time too.
HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR SETENIL DE LAS BODEGAS AND RONDA TRIP
Below you will find a list of what to visit, where to stay and where to eat in Seteneil and Ronda. I classified each place as follows:
BOLD – Visited, tried and recommended
NOT BOLD – Not visited or tried, but planning to visit or try and heard very good reviews
RED – Visited and tried but do not recommend, avoid or be cautious
*** – Excellent
** – Good
* – OK
£££ – Expensive
££ – Fair and affordable
£ – Cheap
THINGS TO DO
ATTRACTIONS
1 – Walk on “Calle de Cueval del Sol” – ***
2 – Explore the back streets of Setenil
3 – Visit “Nazari Castle
4 – Enjoy the views of “Puente Nuovo” – ***
5 – Visit “Plaza de Toros de Ronda” bullring – ***
WHERE TO STAY
HOTELS
1 – Casa Cueva “El Refugio en la Cueva – 3* – Setenil – ££
2 – Casa Cueva Un Rincón en la Roca – 3* – Setenil – ££
3 – Salvatierra Guest House – 4* – Ronda – ££
4 – Hotel Palacio de Hemingway – 4* – Ronda – ££
5 – Hotel Soho Boutique Palacio San Gabriel – 4* – ££
6 – Hotel Dom Miguel – 4* – ££
If you prefer to look for your own accommodation just search and book via the widget below:
WHERE TO EAT
RESTAURANTS
1 – Restaurante El Mirador – ££ – Setenil
2 – Restaurante Vizcaino – £ – Setenil
3 – Las Maravillas – ££ – Ronda
4 – Mesón El Sacristán – ££ – Ronda
5 – Bardal – £££ – Ronda
6 – Abades Ronda – £££
If you tried any of my recommendations above, please send me a message and tell me about your experience good or bad, so I can update the list accordingly. Thanks!
If you enjoyed reading this post you might also like to read:
On this trip to Spain:
1 – Experiencing Gibraltar -Day 1
2 – Experiencing Gibraltar – Day 2
3 – Cádiz, The Jewel of Andalusia, Spain – How to spend Day 1
4 – Cádiz, The Jewel of Andalusia, Spain – How to spend Day 2
5 – How to Explore Jerez de la Frontera and Seville – Day 1
6 – Seville – Day 2
7 – Córdoba
8 – Granada – Day 1
9 – Granada – Day 2
10 – Setenil de las Bodegas and Ronda –
11 – Marbella
12 – Gibraltar – Day 3
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