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Boutique hotels in Tarifa

Holidays in Tarifa, Spain

Tarifa Overview

Spain

Coastline
Rugged edge of Andalucía
Coast life
Social surf scene

Down at the southernmost point of Europe, where you can spot Africa over the straits from the coast road, Tarifa is laidback and friendly, even in Spanish terms.

With an itinerant population catching up on the number of natives, this Moorish-tinged town makes outsiders feel welcome the minute they enter the cobbled centre, one of its tiny tapas bars – or the wind-whipped surf. If you hear people round here talking about the levante or poniente, they’re talking serious sea breezes; it was the fierce winds that transformed Tarifa from sleepy port to cool destination. This surfers’ paradise embodies the chilled vibe of the Costa de la Luz, Andalucía’s unspoilt, beach-crammed seaboard. By day, you can join the gust-worshippers on the beach or colonise a sunny plaza; by night, the social scene runs from brightly painted bars and hip-hop hang-outs to trad tapas joints.

Typically Tarifa

Whale-watching and dolphin-spotting in the strait with ecologically sound, comfortingly uncommercial FIRMM (Foundation for Information and Research on Marine Mammals), 4 Calle Pedro Cortés (+34 956 627 008; www.firmm.org), from €27 for a trip. Windsurfing, kitesurfing, kiting, surfing with Club Mistral, Carretera N340 (+34 956 684 919).

Local knowledge

Taxis
Tarifa old town is eminently walkable, and even the surf shops and watering holes in the modern quarter don’t call for a cab. If you’re carless and need a lift to a beach or club, ask the hotel to book you one, or head to the rank on Avenida de Andalucía.

Tipping culture
Service is often included, but leaving an extra five or ten per cent won’t go amiss.

Packing tips
A jumper for the evenings. Sunglasses, shorts, sandals; leave the heels at home and bring Birkis instead. If you forget anything sporty, you can buy (and hire) all kinds of gear in the surf shops on Calle Batalla del Salado.

Recommended reads
Moorish Spain by Richard Fletcher; The Fabled Shore by Rose Macauley; The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho.

Cuisine
Tasty tapas with North African influences; fresh fish at beach-shack lunch spots; robust rustic fare at the ventas (country-style taverns) studding the coast road; anything from pizza to sushi around town. It’s usual not to dine until about 22h, but that’s what tapas were invented for…

Currency
Euro.

Dialling codes
Country code for Spain: 34. Cadíz province: 956.

Do go/don't go
High season sees the beaches packed with surf kids, though it’s laidback compared with the other Costa dels. The coastal wind tends to keep summer temperatures from blazing too fiercely, but spring’s nicer if you can’t take the heat. The fiesta season around Easter is fun. Autumn is good value; winters are mild.