Casarabonela: Fiesta, Cactus Garden and Hiking Trails

For a stay in Casarabonela, you can consider culture, the botanical collection and hiking as separate highlights. The festival has a fixed date, the cactus garden stands out for the size of its collection, and the hiking trails offer different route formats.

Fiesta de los Rondeles on 12 December

The annual Fiesta de los Rondeles in Casarabonela is celebrated on 12 December. During the procession, burning rondeles soaked in oil are carried through the town’s central streets. If you want to plan your trip around the festival, check the specific programme in advance. The Fiesta de la Virgen de los Rondeles in Casarabonela was declared a Fiesta de Interés Turístico Nacional de Andalucía by a resolution dated 12 December 2001. During the fiesta, participants gather in the village square and enjoy buñuelos, “tostones” made from bread with oil and garlic, hot chocolate and other dishes. The specific food on offer may vary from year to year.

Monument and interpretation centre

The castle in Casarabonela is a monument listed as a B.I.C. and is also known as the Fortaleza del Rey Chico. The Castillo Árabe houses an interpretation centre with a model and several themed panels about life in al-Andalus. If you would like to include the interpretation centre in your plans, check access arrangements in advance.

Botanical Cactus Garden

The “Mora i Bravard” Botanical Cactus Garden in Casarabonela contains more than 11,000 specimens from 2,500 species of cacti and succulents from around the world. These collection figures may change as the collection develops. For those interested in botany, the garden offers a distinct highlight alongside festival culture and hiking.

Hiking trails and stages

Two trails in Casarabonela, each 2.5 kilometres long, are designated for shorter hikes. The SL-A 310 Casarabonela–Tajo San Francisco is a linear hiking trail. The SL-A 309 Puerto Martínez–Fuente Madrid is classified as a circular trail. The same distance can therefore be compared across different route types if you want to choose based on the trail’s format.

A longer route is the GR 340 Camino Geológico Malacitano: it is 144 kilometres long, comprises nine stages and passes through nine inland towns in Málaga province, including Casarabonela. The eighth stage covers 12.7 kilometres from Carratraca to Casarabonela. When planning an individual stage, the distinction is important: 144 kilometres refers to the entire route, while 12.7 kilometres refers to the section mentioned. Check local conditions before setting out on any of the hiking trails mentioned.

Getting there

An official route sheet from 2018 listed regular passenger transport to Casarabonela operated by Autobuses Sierra de Nieves. Before your trip, check whether the operator and service are still current.

Discover more destinations: Archez, El Sexmo, Álora, Valdés, Carratraca, Sayalonga, Parauta, Torre de Benagalbón

For the main travel overview: Málaga.