The neighbourhood is serviced by easy to negotiate motorways into the Costa de la Luz with its year round sunshine, beautiful scenery and unspoilt towns. It’s great for those that love nature, peace and beauty. The area is full of unspoilt beaches that stretch largely unbroken from Ayamonte to Tarifa and then across into Portugal through to the western parts of the Algarve.

Costa de la Luz is a region of great serenity with the occasional Roman ruin and sleepy little fishing villages. Popular with Spanish and Portuguese tourists, Cost de la Luz offers luxury hotels, first class golf courses and marinas, lovely historical cities, picturesque villages and country areas with the rich atmosphere of Spanish culture. Large tracts of nature reserve protect this region from too much development.

The island is a great base to explore the local neighbourhood. Just up the road is Ayamonte on the Guadiana river facing its Portuguese counterpart Vila Real de Sainte Antonio. This frontier town has pretty little squares, decorated facadas and chequer board styled pedestrian streets dotted with cafes and tapas bars.

A quiet and unspoilt fishing village is El Rompido located near the town of Cartaya. El Rompido sits on the Rio Piedras river estuary, a stretch of water sheltered from the sea by a spit, known as the Flecha del Rompido and the beach here is reputed to be one of the best in Andalusia.

Good motorways provide easy access to Portugal and Seville and beyond so even though it’s a peaceful area of orange groves, strawberry fields, pastures and nature reserves one is never too far away from services, airports and Andalucian and Portuguese charm.

The Costa de la Luz is in the Andalusian region - Spain’s most southerly region. Named after the Muslim empire of Al Andalus, Andalusia still bears colourful evidence of its past, making it one of the least European parts of Western Europe.

The Huelva region is one of the most traditional. Relatively untouched by mass tourism and development, the area is still a Spanish region of agriculture, fishing and industry and lots of local fiestas.

The Sierra de Aracena mountain range in the north of Huelva is an area of mild climate and temperate vegetation that in places looks more like France than Spain. Here the vegetation shifts to chestnut trees. The black pigs that forage amongst the chestnut trees will be turned into the renowned cured hams of Jabugo.

On the north side of the Sierra stands the small town of Aracena fanning out along the base of the ruins of the Moorish fortress and a rock face pockmarked with caves. The Gruts de las Macravillas (Cave of Marvels) is the most spectacular - it houses underwater lakes which are lined with vividly coloured rock formations accentuated by stalactites and stalagmites. The cave was used as the set for the epic film - Journey to the Centre of the Earth.

The Cota Donana on the eastern edge of Huelva province is the Donana Nature Reserve, a large expanse of sand dunes, wind-swept coastal pines and saltwater lakes where thousands of birds - including flamingos - gather to breed and stop on their annual migrations to and from Africa. Here you will also find wild horses, badgers, wild boars, eagles and falcons.

Southwards are the copper ore mines of Rio Tinto. Famous in ancient times drawing traders from Phonecia and Rome. Today the mines are depleted and Rio Tinto has become a tourist attraction. There is a museum and an old railway that runs at weekends. The most spectacular feature of Rio Tinto is its river which is coloured in the many hues of minerals it contains.

In Huelva at the Monastery of La Rabida is where Christopher Columbus stayed and assembled his crew to find the Americas. Visit the brilliant three replica ships from the 1492 voyage.

Travelling east, engage in the beauty and sophistication of the Algarve.

Sample the interesting town of Tavira with its old Roman bridge and XVI century town houses.

As an alternative take a tranquil ride down the River Guardiana on a cruiser. Trace the Guardiana’s meandering course upstream, the waterway forming a natural frontier between Portugal and Spain. Visit Alcoutim on the Portuguese side, a delightful gem of a town perched over steep winding streets, cobbled squares and a splendid 14th century castle.

On the opposite side of the river sits Sanlucar de Guadiana with its 12th century castle set above the town.

Further inland is the region of Extremadura, an area peppered with plush buildings once frequented by the heavyweights of Spanish history. The land of kings and conquistadors. The area has some wonderful Paradores to enjoy. These are hotels housed in spectacular historic buildings such as castles, convents, towers and forts. Worthy of a visit and accessible from Isla Canela.