Rodalquilar is located in the heart of the Natural Park, in the center of a valley bearing the same name, surrounded by hills that in spring are dyed green and in summer, much drier, make the village as an oasis with trees, plants and flowers.

Rodalquilar is ideal to relax and enjoy the peace and quiet of its streets, where the old buildings and the newer, modern architecture, merge into a single architectural style ground floors and white walls. Rodalquilar was an old mining town, in ancient was mined alum of the mountains, and in the nineteenth and twentieth exploitation focused on its gold mines. The mines, today, are not exploited because of the high cost of obtaining the mineral . At the entrance of the village still retains the old houses of the miners, now abandoned, on which there is a future restoration project.

Botanical Garden El Albardinal in Rodalquilar is a must visit for a true feel of be in an oasis, with 9 hectares it's home to numerous plant ecosystems, both native species like cacti, palm trees and tropical plants. You can also visit the museum of mining and the old mines.

Near the village, a mile or so, there is the beach of El Playazo, a luxury for bathers. Road to the beach we can see the tower of Las Alumbres, a former defensive tower built in the sixteenth century, is the oldest building in the nature reserve, and that served to protect the people of attacks by pirates. During the Middle Ages in the village of Rodalquilar mines were exploited to get Alum, a mineral that was used to fix the colors in fabrics that had a high economic value in antiquity. The Barbary pirates took advantage of mineral transport to the beach to steal it, that is why the tower was built on the road from the beach, to store and protect the mineral in its transport.

About 5 miles of Rodalquilar is the Cortijo del Fraile (Farmhouse of Friar), although their status is abandoned, is the best representation of large farmhouse or manor farmhouse in this area. This location also receives many visits from people who are drawn to the aura of mystery about this place, because of the tragic events immortalized by Federico Garcia Lorca in his work Bodas de Sangre (Blood Wedding).

Beach of Rodalquilar

One of the most beautiful beaches in this reserve is located near Rodalquilar. With 400 meters long and 30 meters wide is hard not to find here the ideal place to put the towel. The sand is fine and golden, the water is calm and the slope to plunge is progressive, so it has some excellent swimming conditions. In summer it is true that the ease of access and the goodness of the bath in this beach can massify it a bit.

On one side is surrounded by mountains and the other side by the San Ramon's Castle, a former defensive bastion built in the eighteenth century, part of a battery of four guns defending the coastline of Almeria from muslim pirates. This castle during the war of independence was heavily punished. The castle is built on a beautiful fossilized dune has excellent views of the cliffs of La Molata and the beach of Playazo . Between the dunes there is a very nice little cove where you can take bath more sheltered from the wind than in The Playazo. On this side of the beach begins the path of Molata.

A road that runs parallel to the right side of the beach will lead to Cala Bergantín beach, the road is very bad for the cars so we recommend making the 1.4 kilometers from the parking area to the cove walking. Cala Bergantín despite being very sheltered from the wind is very bad for the bathroom because it is full of bowling and stones, its waters are part of one of four integral reserves off the coast of Cabo de Gata so fishing or diving are not allowed.