Welcome to Corralon farmhouse, Castril, in the heart of Granada Geopark, southern Spain, where your hosts will turn your green vacation rental into an unforgettable FAMILY & FRIENDS´ECO-FRIENDLY ADVENTURE, CULTURE AND WELLNESS RETREAT, tailor-made just for you.
Alternatively, we invite you to HOST YOUR OWN RETREAT, workshop or conference hiring our venue.
Don´t worry – we will arrange your schedule, just for you, before you arrive so you just have to focus on enjoying your stay!
Welcome to the authentic Andalusia
Right in the heart of UNESCO´s Granada Geopark, in this fairytale whitewashed village of Castril, time really does stand still and people naturally care about this fragile ecosystem.
Full of beautiful panoramic views and phytoncides from the evergreen trees, Castril is the ideal place to retreat, re-energize and recover. Free from any pollution, this pure, mountain air is filled with music from goats´ bells at twilight, and the water is chrystal clear.
Castril villagers live up to a ripe old age, even with some still active centenarians. Their daily life shares exactly the same healthy habits as Dan Beuttner´s famous blue zones that promote longevity: no stress, moderate, regular exercise, plant-based diet of fresh, local produce, moderate calories intake, moderate alcohol intake (homemade wine) involvement in spirituality or religion, family and social life. Here community wellbeing is important and many festivities celebrate life throughout the year.
Castril has a fascinating history of Moorish and Christian heritage. Visit the 16th century church built in Renaissance style, or climb to the top of the 11th century Nasrid Castle, a curious strategic military fortress belonging to the last Muslim kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula. There are also spectacular local walks like over the suspended gorge.
Indulge in delicious tapas in quaint cafés and bars of the old historic quarter or lose yourself in the laberynth of artisanal cobbled streets. Savour the gastronomical delights of fresh traditional home-made cooking. Enjoy mouth-watering slow food sourced from the freshest local ingredients, accompanied by exquisite wines at local restaurants. Discover more..
For some 5 million years, Granada Geopark´s peculiar geology, geomorphology, archaeology and cultural legacy has shaped people´s lives since prehistoric times.
You can take a trip to beautiful nearby villages, such as Orce and its majestic Castle of the Seven Towers, its famous paleontological museum, exhibiting fascinating fossils including the much treasured ¨Orce man¨, a segment of a human skull from 1.5 million years ago (more info) . Here we remember how mammoths and sabre-tooth tigers roamed the neighbouring badlands together with the earliest settlers in Europe. You can also visit Orce´s oasis – its natural swimming pool, where the water emerges from an underground river source.
Or why not explore the original trogladite (cave) village of Galera, the archeological museum with the ¨Galera mummy¨, the oldest, best preserved known human remains (next to Ötzi) and an ethnographic room where centuries old wine-making, esparto grass, hemp and house construction techniques are explained. Also visit Galera´s Ibero-Roman ancient Tutugi city´s necropolis.
The surrounding landscape varies greatly within a small radius, from Castril´s mountains, evergreen forests and river with chrystalline waters, to the the desert dunes and badlands of Orce and Galera, only a short picturesque car ride away.
Castril Sierra Natural Park in the heart of Granada Geopark is set against a striking backdrop of majestic mountains, lush valleys and waterfalls, fragrant pine and oak forests. Its breathtaking scenery is home to Segureño sheep, deer, mountain goats, otters, trout, bearded vultures, griffon vultures and golden eagles. Castril nature reserve offers an abundance of awe-inspiring routes to explore, and things do with friends and family. See Castril to discover more…
Car rental to and from the airports of Málaga, Granada, Murcia and Alicante is cheap, with good roads and no tolls.
The drive up to Castril is extremely picturesque and easy driving.
Your hosts
Your Glasgow-born hostess, Alison, has been a fully qualified language teacher, masseur, yoga and movement teacher and teachers´ trainer here for over 20 years.
Julian, adventure sports enthusiast, yoga and Pilates teacher and Nature guide, returned to his native Castril, in the 1990s to make his home with Alison in this natural paradise.
With many years of satisfying experience working with sustainable, ecotourism in Castril, we invite you, your family and friends to join us to share our passions for this natural paradise and enjoy an unforgettable immersion in the healing powers of Mother Nature!
