Activities

We believe there are few places in the world better for hiking than in our area. There is a great variety of landscapes, terrain, vegetation and difficulty levels so you will find something that is perfect for you.

What will it be, a half hour walk to the Guadiaro River to watch the fish jump the waterfall or an 8 hour climb to 1500 meters and see the views to North Africa? Or somewhere in between?

Molino offers you a wide range of options from the hotel door, all with clear descriptions so you don’t have to worry about getting lost. All these directions are available to hotel residents, free of charge of course.

When you have booked with us, we will give you a password so that you can access many more trails if you want to plan ahead.

If you would like to go with a guide, Eva Bratek offers a very professional service. She tailors her routes to all abilities and is very friendly – all clients who have hiked with her recommend her 100%. Contact us to find out more about her.

In many places walking through a field of wildflowers is a long-forgotten pleasure. In the area around Molino del Santo this is still one of the biggest attractions for a walker and a nature lover. Some flowers bloom as early as January: the lovely Paper-white Narcissus (Narcissus papyraceus) or the bright blue and yellow Broad-leaved Iris (Iris planifolia) are just two examples. April and May is an explosion of colour and scent. In the summer the Cork, Holm and Portuguese Oak forests can keep your inner naturalist happy while you walk in their shade. Late spring and summer is also a great season for butterflies: the large and showy Common and Scarce Swallowtails, the iridescent Cardinal or the cheerfully bright Spanish Festoon. Several exciting species of Dragonflies hover around the stream at Molino and the nearby river. Flowers Andalucia Hotel Sawfly Orchid (Ophrys tenthredinifera) There are over 1800 plants described in the Ronda region, 40 of which are unique to the area, such as the Spanish Fir (Abies Pinsapo) or the delicately wrinkled orange Grazalema poppy (Papaver rupifragum). The Pinsapo trees can live several hundred years and the older they get, the more beautiful they look: gnarled and wizened, with candelabra-like split trunks.

If you like trains, Molino is just the place for you. We have a sleepy railway station just 300metres from the hotel where four trains stop each day in each direction. Cheap, reliable, air-conditioned and comfortable – this is how train travel should be and we are proud to support the service as much as we can by promoting its delights. Hotel Rural Ronda This is the Algeciras to Granada line serving mostly small villages and towns. It passes through wonderful scenery so is ideal for a slow day letting the train take the strain. Or use the rails to visit the stunning beaches of Tarifa – click here to see an example of a day out to this fantastic area. Alternatively the historic delights of Gibraltar can be easily reached via San Roque station – we have carefully prepared details if you need them. The trains also serve Ronda and Antequera as well as Granada.Hotel Rural Ronda The trains work well for combining with a walk to the next station – a still totally unspoilt river valley walk of a couple of hours. If you are more adventurous you may like to use the Altaria trains from Ronda – twice a day service to Madrid calling at Cordoba en route. Getting to other Andalucia capitals by train is also possible but time-consuming – Sevilla, Cadiz, Almeria for example – better suited to a real train buff. For details of using trains rather than road transport to get to Molino see our directions page.

Ubrique At 1:15h by car is the town of Ubrique, which is dedicated to the manufacture of leather goods. All are made in Ubrique and are of good quality, sometimes they manufacture for the big designer brands. From time to time it is possible to see the process by which bags, shoes, jackets etc. are made. A fun day out if you like leather. Ronda In Ronda there are various shopping options. The main pedestrian street is Calle de la Bola (very near the bull ring) and is where most of the shops are situated. Here you can find international clothes shops such as Mango as well as Spanish brands such as Adolfo Dominguez. There are lots of cheap shoe options, including La Bomba and Marypaz (although these mainly cater for women) whilst Gody offers better quality shoes for men and women . If you are interested in buying ham or cheese, there are many shops in Ronda and we can advise you on the best ones. Near the bull ring there are lots of souvenir shops. Costa del Sol You will be able to find anything you need on the Costa del Sol. El Corte Inglés in Marbella, Mijas and Málaga is a big department store which sells designer labels, as well as a wide range of shoes. There are other department stores along the coast in Marbella and La Cañada shopping mall, where all the big names in fashion are, especially cheap Spanish brands selling on-trend clothes. Zara seems to be a particularly popular choice of stop-over point. In Puerto Banús are the haute-couture shops, and is a great place to window shop and also marvel at the big marina filled with enormous yachts. Here you may also see older men with much younger companions holding on to their arms … it might be advisable for these gents not to walk too near the quayside on a dark night. This shopping is about an hour away and, if you need some retail therapy, well worth the drive.