Grazalema

Human activity around Grazalema goes back to prehistoric times, but the town's clear historical starting point is Roman. The settlement of Lacilbula was founded on the Loma del Clavijo hill, its name linked to the ancient word for the nearby Guadalete river. The Arabs occupied the area from 715, renaming it after the Banu al-Salim, Berber settlers who farmed, raised livestock and worked in textiles.

In 1485 Rodrigo Ponce de León took the town, then called Zagrazalema, for the Christian forces, along with six neighbouring villages that became known collectively as the Siete Villas. After the Granada War ended, the Catholic Monarchs granted Ponce de León lordship over these seven villages in 1490. Formal repopulation of Grazalema itself followed under his heir in 1520.

The town prospered through the production of its famous woven blanket. The Napoleonic wars brought looting and destruction, and the Civil War caused further damage to buildings and historical records. Today farming has largely given way to tourism tied to the surrounding natural park.

Grazalema also holds a meteorological distinction: it is the wettest municipality in Andalucía and the southern half of the Iberian Peninsula, recording an average of 1,962 mm of rainfall annually, and a national record of 4,343 mm in 1963.

Grazalema has several points of interest in and around the town. The Ermita de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles and the Iglesia de San Juan are the main religious buildings, alongside the Casa Consistorial. A textile museum dedicated to the traditional Grazalema blanket documents the town's manufacturing past.

Two walking routes also carry official status: the path from Benamahoma to Zahara de la Sierra, declared public domain by the local council in 2020, and the route from Grazalema to Benaocaz via the Salto del Cabrero and Puerto del Boyar.

Los Amarillos buses connect Grazalema to Ubrique and Ronda. The nearest train station is Ronda, about 35 km away, on the RENFE line between Bobadilla and Algeciras. The airports at Gibraltar, Jerez de la Frontera and Seville are all roughly 120 km away.

By road, Grazalema sits on the A372 between Ronda and El Bosque; from Ronda take the A376 toward Seville, turn left after about 15 km, then left again onto the A372 through cork oak forest for 14 km. Two banks, both with ATMs that accept foreign cards, are on the central Plaza de España. Plenty of restaurants are in the centre.