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Calblanque’s beaches are the most beautiful in Murcia. Long stretches of golden sand are interspersed with small coves, overlooked by rippling dunes and cliffs. Most popular – yet still uncrowded – are Playa de las Cañas, Playa Calblanque, and Playa Larga.

Wooden walkways traverse Calblanque’s fragile dune system, fossilized over millennia and sculpted by wind and sea into spell-binding shapes. The best back onto Cañas, Larga and Negrete Beaches.

The entire 13 km (8 mile) length of Calblanque’s coastline is pocked with dozens of tiny coves, where the turquoise waters are perfect for diving and snorkelling. Even in the height of summer you can pick your way across the rocks to find one all to yourself.

The Calblanque Natural Park is covered by a network of walking and mountain-biking trails outlined in leaflets available at the park information office.

In spring, the hills of Calblanque are carpeted with wild flowers. Among the pine forests are rarer trees, including one of the last surviving cypress groves in Spain. Foxes and badgers are common; you may even spot the endangered tortuga mora (sea turtle).

Calblanque is particularly rich in bird life. Among the species you may encounter are Bonelli’s eagle, the eagle owl, Audoin’s gull and the green woodpecker, as well as flamingoes and several varieties of heron and plover.

Still used for commercial salt production, the salt lakes of Rassall are a major nesting area for aquatic resident and migratory birds. The waters contain the brilliantly striped Fartet, an unusual and endangered fish.

On the outer fringes of the park you will see the ghostly remnants of abandoned tin, silver and copper mines.

Calblanque’s rugged yet ethereal cliffs offer spectacular views along the whole coastline.

The mountains of Calblanque rarely rise above 300 m (984 ft), yet they offer breathtaking views across woods and out to sea.