Algeciras: the beaches “between two waters” and flamenco guitar

Article by Jose Angel Cardelo, Tourist Information Office Algeciras

Off the beaten tourist track, Algeciras offers beautiful beaches and crystal-clear waters that once inspired the legendary flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucía. These same shores now make the city an appealing alternative destination for sun, outdoor guitar concerts and remarkably good value.

As a child, Paco de Lucía played football barefoot on the sands of El Rinconcillo, swam and dived in its clear waters, and later shared plates of fried sea anemones and anchovies at Bernardo’s, the beach bar of his youth, with lifelong friends. He never stopped returning to his hometown, and Algeciras still feels the absence of the man who placed flamenco where it belonged and carried it to every corner of the world.

Known as the “City of the Beautiful Bay”, Algeciras offers a walking route that traces the places most closely connected to Paco’s life and music, from the house where he was born to the old cemetery where he is buried, where fresh carnations still appear on his grave. The highlight of this pilgrimage for guitar lovers is the Paco de Lucía Interpretation Centre, a new interactive museum where visitors can listen to his recordings, admire his guitars up close and discover many of his personal belongings. The city’s soundtrack remains Entre dos aguas, the timeless rumba inspired by the vast, magical place where the Atlantic and Mediterranean meet.

To the south of the city, Getares Beach continues to fly the European Blue Flag, guaranteeing high standards of cleanliness, services and accessibility, and it is home to a nautical activities centre. Travellers with dogs will appreciate La Concha Beach, easily reached from the historic centre via a breezy clifftop promenade and specially equipped for pets.

After a day of sunshine and superb food — the Ingeniero Torroja Market is an excellent spot for fresh seafood — the evening belongs to music. Each July, the Paco de Lucía Guitar Festival brings together the finest flamenco guitarists, singers and dancers for open-air performances in the city’s beautiful park.

Algeciras’s hotel offering grows every summer, yet prices remain far more affordable than in nearby destinations such as Tarifa or the Costa del Sol. Occupancy can approach 100% at peak times in July and August, even though around half of all overnight stays are now in comfortable, beach-style holiday apartments. Spending a summer in Algeciras is increasingly seen as both cool and smart: whether hopping over to Tangier in under an hour or hiking along crystal-clear streams in Los Alcornocales Natural Park, at the heart of an International Biosphere Reserve, these are experiences not to be missed.