The province of Cadiz is a Spanish province in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia. Located in the southwest of Spain, it is a region of exceptional natural beauty and rich cultural heritage. It stands out for its contrasts, 3000 years of history and 45 municipalities that hide incredible corners in its great variety of landscapes and cultures, with a coastline of 250 kilometres of fine golden sandy beaches, ranging from the urban to the extensive and almost virgin. With its spectacular white villages in the mountains and Cadiz being the oldest city in Europe, it is a wonderful destination.
Few tourists actually choose the province of Cádiz, opting instead to stay on the Costa Blanca or Costa del Sol, but it is a popular tourist destination for Spaniards who appreciate the beauty of the region.
Records indicate that the city of Cádiz dates back more than 3,000 years and was home to Iberian settlers. The region was occupied by the Greeks, the Phoenicians, the Carthaginians - for whom it was an important trading post, the Romans, who were later defeated by the Visigoths. Because of its location, so close to the African continent, it has always been seen as an important strategic and commercial region.
Cadiz, in the 17th and 18th centuries, was one of the most important cities in the world, on a par with London, Amsterdam or Paris. Through it passed 50% of the income of the Spanish empire brought by the fleets of New Spain (overseas trade with America) and Tierra Firme, whose weight in gold was multiplied by five because they also carried in their holds the funds of private individuals, which would grease the European economy and would be the seed of its world supremacy until almost the present day. Capturing a treasure fleet was the dream of every power, and so this strength attracted pirate attacks, from Drake's attack in 1587 to Nelson's in 1797. So did the sacking of the city in 1596, and the Spanish victories of 1625 and 1702, as well as the attempts to capture the treasure fleet in 1642 and 1656. All this led the town to fortify itself by building defensive bastions, castles and watchtowers on every rooftop.
The Pueblos Blancos are located in the Sierra de Cádiz, one of the six regions into which the province of Cádiz is divided. Its extension coincides to a large extent with the Sierra de Grazalema Nature Reserve and the Alcornocales Nature Reserve.
The Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park is considered one of the greatest natural treasures in Andalusia for its wide variety of flora and fauna. It is also home to an endemic species of conifer, the Spanish fir, which occupies more than 400 hectares.
The Natural Park of Los Alcornocales is the other environment in which the Pueblos Blancos are located, as well as one of the largest in the Peninsula. Considered as a cradle of millenary cultures and a place of settlement of different civilizations, its space is almost entirely occupied by native Mediterranean forests.
