Small Town Espana: Gems in the countryside

I really believe in the idea that to truly enjoy a place, you need the freedom of movement—the freedom to choose your own itinerary, and most importantly, the freedom to adapt, change, and do things on a whim, without friction. In other words, you should definitely get yourself a vehicle. Whenever I am in Europe, I always try my best to get a car because I am a big fan of exploring the countryside, finding spots (that’s no surprise) and stopping in places that might seem unremarkable to most eyes. All of this becomes possible only when I have control over where I want to go.

Just to give you an example off the top of my head, this place in Granada: we were traveling out of the city toward our next stop, Las Peñas. On our way, we stumbled upon this really beautiful spot—not many people were around; just one solitary car parked against the backdrop of an incredible view of the sunset. The highway was on a hill, so we could actually overlook the entire city from there. Such a fantastic place to pause 😩.

The road with the view of the city and sun, at the right time. Open in Google Maps ↗

Sunset from our side mirror — The sunset from our side mirror as we drove along this pretty highway. And some commentary from Ritvi that you can't hear because, thank god, this is a picture.

At that moment I realized, man this is the whole point - to just park here, watch the sunset, let time freeze for a little while, and enjoy good company. But anyway, let’s get back to my story.

Throughout this trip, I had several special moments I’d love to share with you today in this article. Here you’ll find everything that fascinated me along the way, most of these spots being hidden gems scattered across the Spanish countryside. Honestly, I didn’t know exactly what to expect beforehand, but I did know what I wanted to do. I wanted to immerse myself in nature, experience first-hand what Spanish geography truly looks like, and gain a deeper feel for Spain itself. For me personally, cities tend to feel pretty similar no matter where you go. But when you go outside the city, that’s when you start seeing the authentic nature of a place—how it really shapes its people. I think geography, in my opinion, has a massive influence on people’s character, outlook, and even thoughts, making it incredibly important to experience directly.

Pinares De Oromana

I’ll start with this forest because it was one of the first places I got to experience what spring is like in Spain. Everything I saw left me in awe, from the colorful flowers growing in the wild to the beautiful rocks that sat comfortably among soft bushes and lush greenery. This nature reserve is built on a gentle hill, and as you make your way up, you can spot a church in the distance, perfectly complimenting the scenic view. Towering, prominent trees stand on the banks of the stream that flows between the city and the hill, making this a great location for sightseeing.

A church in the distance, and a lone bright red flower embellishing the scene.

The stream and a magnificent tree — The stream that runs between the city and the hill, and a magnificent tree standing tall.

I took my time wandering around here, appreciating tiny details—picking up rocks, admiring flowers, clicking a ton of pictures, and then just relaxing in the grass beneath a tree to reflect about life. The weather was incredible—classic spring—soft breeze, an occasional bird or two. In the distance, I could see a dog being walked by someone, making me daydream a bit about how wonderful daily life might be living here, having regular access to such beauty.

Picking wildflowers — Whatchya say we go picking wildflowers?

For the sake of completeness, I was here because Ritvi and I stayed a night in Alcala de Guadaira, just outside Sevilla. This town, with all its warmth, quiet, and natural beauty, reaffirmed our choice of staying in the countryside instead of cities for the rest of our trip.

Alcala de Guadaira

Just outside Sevilla, we arrived in this town late at night on a Saturday. Immediately, we were greeted by a lively gathering of young folks hanging out around the bars, laughing and enjoying themselves so vividly that it seemed as if the whole town had come together. We were so surprised by the gathering that we drove by the square twice (and of course, not because we couldn’t find parking for our Airbnb which was a stone’s throw away from the square).

The place we stayed at felt like a masterpiece of traditional Spanish architecture; I had never seen anything like it. I am a huge fan of houses, architecture and such, and take my time to ponder about the story that they tell. This particular house, next to the San Sebastian Church, featured some interesting elements: a double gate, a small open-roof courtyard, an airy kitchen opening onto that space, and a lot of second spaces to unwind.

If you observe all the houses through the satellite view, you will find that courtyards are a prominent feature of most houses and being a diehard courtyard-in-the-house fan, I loved it!

The Roundabouts

One distinct feature I remember while traveling through the countryside is that most towns have roundabouts designed to tell a story. For example, if you’re approaching a town which has a bunch of olive farms, then you’ll find an enormous basket of olives placed right at the roundabout, complete with a few olives artistically spilling out.

Stopping at a spot — I like stopping at every spot that intrigues me slightly, even at the cost of making a 2 hr trip, 3.

In another town, well-cut cut rocks were methodically arranged on their roundabout, signifying the area’s mining heritage. It seems like such a great idea to show what the town is all about, and people there, go out of the way to make this a pretty sight to see.

Las Penas

We were on the lookout for a scenic, expansive place somewhere close to the hills, but also along our path as we traveled from Granada to the east coast of Spain. After some careful terrain map observations, I stumbled across this nice Airbnb in Las Peñas, nestled in the mountains.

It checked all of our boxes: removed from major cities, had hills close by, and was the right distance from the east coast that we wanted to hit the other day. Plus, the property itself was visually stunning, with a hot tub, outdoor cooking options, and everything we wanted to celebrate Johnny’s birthday in style.

Serene countryside — Serene, quiet, rural countryside.

View of the rugged hill — Right outside the house, a view of the rugged hill.

When we entered the property, it was already around 3 in the morning (a separate story in itself). However, as the sun rose and I woke up and went outside to see what was around the place, it blew my mind. I could see hills on two sides, stray dogs running wild, and a great view of the geography of the area.

After a long night of driving, this was all I wanted.

Driving northwards from Las Penas through Pinoso

The Las Peñas region is mountainous and rugged, and the drive from Las Peñas north towards Barcelona would take us through much of that terrain. We deliberately chose our path in a way that we could see more of the rural side of the country, even if at the risk of being at the edge of our car’s battery.

Open in Google Maps ↗

On the way, I could also see small villages with sparse houses and a bunch of tractors which indicated some farming at least. In some places, mountains bore scars from mining activities, which honestly made me a bit sad 😢. All in all, it was a pretty arid terrain with narrow, curvy roads and some interesting vegetation to check out.

Since we had an EV, we planned our trips to stop in small towns for lunch. We would keep the car for charging for as long as we recharged ourselves, and it would last us for the rest of the day, pretty much. We chose our stops rather randomly, stopping at whichever town showed up next on the route—and this strategy brought us to the charming town of Pinoso (to be honest though, every small town had something enticing to offer, no favorites 😉).

We stumbled upon a Michelin restaurant right down the road from the charging station. As we walked in from the deserted street we could see a whole lot of people inside, almost like entering another dimension. Nice warm vibes, wine cellars, and a strong smell of good food followed. The fact that it all happened on Johnny’s birthday made it even sweeter. This was my first Michelin experience, and it turned out pretty well. I had a local wine and an amazing burrata salad (because that’s the only veg option they had 😊).

The restaurant — It felt like the restaurant had the whole town in attendance.

A basket of wine on a bright sunny day; good lord!

Fish Therapy at Coma Ruga

Among the main towns we stopped at one was Coma Ruga, a charming coastal town just outside Barcelona, where we dropped Ritvi off for her work calls.

I’m fascinated by pretty houses, especially those on the coast, and houses in Coma Ruga had some insanely nice architecture. Even earlier, in the town of Oropesa del Mar, we saw great houses in the coastal districts along with a well-built seafront. I’m just in awe of these and would want to own a home in an area like that.

The houses, the trees, the colours - argh!

Once I was done admiring the houses, I walked up to the beach. There was a small stream that flowed into the ocean, and it was a popular spot for children learning to swim. I was drawn to it because I saw a bunch of people standing barefoot in the shallow waters amidst excited shouts of astonishment, which piqued my curiosity. Turns out the stream has a huge number of fishes that nibble at your feet—provided you remain still, patient and pass their careful assessment. I got lucky with a school and I think it was also the first time I had experienced fish therapy—weird feeling at first but you start enjoying it.

Clear water of the hot spring — Clear water of the "hot" spring.

Swimming shorts while travelling — I always wear my swimming shorts when I'm travelling 😼

Until Next Time

Traveling through Spain the way we did, matching our pace to the countryside, was incredibly satisfying. In one single journey, we moved from deserts and mountains to forests, hills, and beaches, giving me a deeper understanding of Spain’s diverse geography. Stopping at small villages and random towns allowed me not just to observe but truly understand the unique cultural nuances and differences that vary across different parts of Spain as you travel further.

There were, of course, many smaller moments and memorable encounters along the way that I haven’t included here. But I came away from this trip full of ideas and inspiration about where I’d like to explore next, and all the beautiful terrains out there waiting for me to discover them.