Algatocín
Written by Geoff Forster
Algatocín: Just off the A369 Algeciras to Ronda road. Algatocín is one of the larger Genal valley pueblos.
The village is close to Benarrabá and has a 24hr medical centre with an ambulance and doctor.
There is a good electrical goods/gas bottle shop as well as the usual small corner shops. A Bakery (Pandería), Pharmacy, Bank ...
The photograph below was taken one morning after a one hour + walk from Benarrabá via a well marked track (nearly all uphill).
The photograph below was taken from the ridge between Algatocín and Benarrabá looking to a distant Algatocín. There are Sweet Chestnut trees in the foreground and Cork and Holm Oaks on the wooded slopes of the Genal Valley.
This area is has some superb views with steep wooded hillsides, craggy outcrops and more distant sierras rolling away to the horizon.
A fantastic area for walking and hiking holidays. 
This next photograph is of the small plaza lined with orange trees.
There is a market in Algatocín on Wednesdays. There are a number of good bars around the plaza and the area is lovely to sit in. 
This is a pretty street most of the houses have plants on their balconies. The Ayuntamiento (Town Hall) of Algatocín is on the left. 
Algatocín is a lovely Spanish Pueblo. There are a lot of beautiful houses and side streets many with stunning views of the Genal Valley and beyond to the Sierra Bermeja.
The next few photographs were taken around the streets of the pueblo. 
The next house has an incredible roof garden. The house must have some of the best views in Algatocín. 
The church in Algatocín has a lovely tower with a cobalt blue tiled dome. It is quite similar in design to the church in Benarrabá. 
The next three photographs are of shrubs.
Jane finds the best bougainvillea in Algatocín.
The second was taken in May of a Philadelphus 'Belle Etioile'
The third was taken in August outside the same house but the other side of the Philadelphus, I think it is a Datura? 
A lot of the pueblos have natural spring water fountains many are very old and at one time provided the community with its water.
Algatocín is no exception, in fact there is a tiled plaque about the fountains in the pueblo. 
This little niche has a crucifix and candles burning in it. It was down an narrow back street. 
This is a view of Algatocín. As you can see Algatocín is a very pretty pueblo and well worth a visit. It is around ten minutes drive from our self catering apartment which we have for rental in Benarrabá from 2005. The photograph was taken from the excellent A369 road that runs between Algeciras and Ronda. 
For those who enjoy a pleasant walk along wooded tracks with wild flowers and grasses, orange trees and prickly pears. There are lots of well signposted walks between the pueblos of Andalucía.
This one indicates a pleasant 1 hour and thirty minutes walk from Algatocín to Benarrabá.
The reverse journey from Benarrabá to Algatocín is also indicated in Benarrabá as being 1 hr 30 min's but it is mostly uphill to Algatocín (very good for the heart and lungs in the fresh pure air of the region). 