This post is also available in:
Perched on the edge of a breathtaking 80-meter vertical limestone gorge (Los Tajos) cut by the Alhama River, Alhama de Granada is one of Andalusia’s most atmospheric and historically romantic towns. Renowned since Roman and Moorish times for its natural thermal hot springs (from the Arabic al-Ḥammām, ‘The Baths’), it was the strategic western fortress guarding the kingdom of Granada.
When the town fell to the Catholic Monarchs in a surprise night raid in 1482, Sultan Boabdil lamented its loss in one of the most famous medieval ballads in Spanish literature: “¡Ay de mi Alhama!” (Woe is me, Alhama!).
1. The Ancient Hot Springs (Baños Árabes)
Located just 2 kilometers outside the town, natural thermal waters emerge from the earth at a soothing 47°C (116°F). Visitors can experience:
- The Historical 12th-Century Moorish Baths: Located inside the historic Balneario hotel, featuring original horseshoe arches, vaulted ceilings, and star-shaped skylights identical to those in the Alhambra.
- The Free Outdoor Thermal Pools (Las Pozas Termales): Located right outside the hotel gates in the riverbed, three stone pools of warm mineral water are completely free and open to the public year-round.
2. Los Tajos Gorge Hiking Trail
A spectacular walking path winds through the bottom of the Tajos de Alhama gorge, passing historic abandoned flour mills, weeping willows, and sheer vertical rock faces favored by nesting birds of prey and rock climbers.
