Shangri La

Explore the extensive gardens & pick your own oranges, lemons & when in season avocados ... or relax closer to home under the shaded terrace overlooking the large pool. There are lots of areas within the gardens to find little private place of your own. There are grassy areas for children to play but young children will require supervision as the perimeter is in places unfenced & the terrain below steep.

With in excess of 320 days sunshine a year, you are practically guaranteed perfect weather for a BBQ. Have a long leisurely lunch sampling some of the best food and drink the Mediterranean has to offer.

Next to the pool is a lovely dining area ... a place to enjoy time together sharing a BBQ'ed lunch. Iberico pork is particularly good here and ribs in BBQ sauce a particular favourite of mine. Fish is also plentiful and fresh, the fish & sea food counter in the supermarket at Corte Ingles has a fabulous choice. The wines of Spain are fantastic and they like to keep the best ones to themselves, what a better way to spend an evening than to sample different Riojas and Cavas.

If cooking is too much like hard work there are many excellent restaurants in the area to try. The Mirlo Blanco (see our restaurant guide) takes pride in the food it serves and the service is second to none. Recently I enjoyed a whole crab served hot in it's shell followed by their famous house speciality Souffle.

You can work up an appetite or burn off those extra holiday calories by walking into the village, it takes about 20 minutes. A pretty route on a quiet road with great views but up a steep hill for most of the way .... at least it is all downhill on the way home!

If you feel like even more exercise a hundred meter stroll from Shangri-La will take you to the large private tennis court (shared by only three of your neighbours).

A short distance inland is Alhaurin golf and country club which also offers horse riding & tennis; several more nearby golf courses include Mijas Golf Resort, La Cala, Santa Maria, Rio Real etc ... all within a 20 minute drive. Sophisticated Marbella with its designer shops and jet-set Puerto Banus (the best place to people watch!) are only a 25-minute drive.

Shangri La is also well situated for those seeking a cultural holiday ... the drive to the historic town of Ronda is one not to be missed, and the famous Alhambra Palace in Granada is an interesting 2 hour drive. Cordoba and Sevilla are also both easily accessible with a hire car or by coach.