The Cabo de Gata-Nijar Natural Park is an area of special environmental protection that goes from San Miguel in the headland of Cabo de Gata to the town of Carboneras, and includes the villages of San José, La Isleta, Rodalquilar, Las Negras and Agua Amarga, among others... From Níjar all these areas are easily accessible by car (20-40 minutes drive).

The Natural Park contains spectacularly unspoilt beaches such as the ones at Genoveses, Monsul (San Jose) or El Playazo (Rodalquilar) and untouched little coves surrounded by rocky cliffs where you can bathe during the hot season (May-October) in extraordinary surroundings.

It's also an area which is ideal for walking and hiking, especially in the cooler seasons ( November-April) thanks to its temperate climate and special light. You can enjoy excursions by the coast or inland, discovering a very singular semi-desert landscape and vegetation including palm-trees and dwarf-palms, agaves, prickly pear cactus, thyme and a great variety of plants adapted to the arid conditions.

The Natural Park also conserves a very interesting legacy of the human habitation of the area, with water-wheels (for well extraction), wind and water mills, and underground water reservoirs as well as emblematic buildings such as the farm of Cortijo del Fraile, the church at Las Salinas, the castle of San Pedro or the Tower of Alum, among others.