Refurbished holiday apartment in an Andalusian farmhouse in The Lake District

Top rated by guests
Refurbished holiday apartment in an Andalusian farmhouse in The Lake District Apartment in Valle del Guadalhorce
Food and drink
Interior
Private kitchen
Outdoor dining
review stars
9.4Outstanding
(75 Ratings)
Guests praised the perfect location, cozy accommodation, lovely hosts, and stunning views, recommending El Arpa for a peaceful and memorable stay.
From real guest reviews summarized by AI
Don't miss out! Price and availability may change
9.4 / 10.0
Outstanding(75 Ratings)

Apartment in Valle del Guadalhorce

2 guests · 1 bedroom · 1 bath

Reasons to book

Guests love it hereGuests give this property a top rating
Well priced for this locationPriced under area average
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About this apartment rental

Be tantalised by turquoise lakes flashing in and out of view on the way to this old
farmhouse. It stands alone amid wild flowers, and borders the National Park where
golden eagles soar, and olives and peppers ripen in the sun. Rikke and Michael (who
live round the back) have created a little beach by the lake and there’s magical footdangling
to be had from the pontoon. These spotless open-plan studio apartments with
their kitchenettes, shower rooms and terraces are cosy, bright and functional; three are
upstairs and three are down. Bag one of the bigger ones on the first floor for
mesmerising views over one of the three lakes. The apartments are simple but there are
some individual touches too: hand-stitched quilts, family paintings. Listen out for the
baker who brings deliciously fresh bread three times a week, and note the onsite shop
for bare essentials. Lap up the unspoilt outdoorsy flavour with fantastic walking,
kayaking, biking, swimming and fishing – or just relax.


Activities: By the lake you will find different restaurants and picnic sites as the area is a quite popular excursion spot. Here you have the option to do different water sports such as kayak or canoeing. You can even fish in the lake, we have a couple of fine fishing rods for free disposal. Do you enjoy walking or mountain biking you will find several marked walking paths across the fields. And the mountains behind our finca have some of Spain's best possibilities for mountain climbing. Paragliding and Repelling is also very popular. The beautiful lakes and the amazing mountains are just outside the door of your holiday apartment. Kayaks and water bikes are rented out at 3 different places by the lakes. Here you also find different picnic places where you can enjoy yourselves for a whole day. Paragliding points are only 1,5 km. from the finca and the mountains behind gives you some of the best climbing or rappelling challenges in Spain. Also endless kilometers of hiking and biking routes.


Nature: The nature reserve by our finca is called Desfiladero de los Gaitones and has an area of 2.016 hectares situated between the municipalities of Ardales, Antequera og Alora. The area is characterized by its many funny and fascinating stone structures which have evolved through thousands of years by water and wind. A dramatic and lovely tourist attraction is La Garganta del Chorro; a 3 kilometer long and 400 meter high gorge, which connect the three lakes; Embalse de Gaitanejo, Embalse del Conde de Guadalhorce og Embalse del Guadalteba-guadalhorce by the river Guadlahorce that runs to the coast of Málaga. The area's flora is a true pleasure for everyone. There are lots of aromatic pine, eucalyptus, olive, oak tree, cactus and cypress. Smaller vegetation as rosemary, thyme, wild roses and different flowers make small bushes up to 40 cm high. No matter the time of the year the nature is always covered in the most beautiful colors and the air is fresh and clean.

Culture: El Arpa is close to Malaga and some of the World's most appreciated cultural treasures such as the impressive Alhambre Palace in Granada, the big Moorish mosque in Cordoba with the beautiful columns, La Giralda cathedral in Seville and not to forget the bullring and the impressive bridge in Ronda. Malaga has been going through a huge development both cosmetic and cultural during the last 10 years. In 2003 the opening of the impressive Picasso Museum took place and today it exhibits more than 200 pieces of his art. Also a visit to the village museum by the Alcazaba-Gibralfaro- fortress and the roman theatre is very interesting. Picasso's native home and the magnificent cathedral. Or maybe just a walk through the city with all its life, small alleys with busy coffee bars and modern shops on the renovated main street Calle Marques de Larios. Everywhere lots of life and joy. Antequera is a very historic city and the city with the highest amount of churches per inhabitant in Spain (200).

Amenities at Refurbished holiday apartment in an Andalusian farmhouse in The Lake District

Non-smoking
No pets allowed

Map of Valle del Guadalhorce


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Ratings and reviews

9.4 / 10.0
Outstanding(75 Ratings)
review starsSummary of reviews
Guests praised the perfect location, cozy accommodation, lovely hosts, and stunning views, recommending El Arpa for a peaceful and memorable stay.
From real guest reviews summarized by AI
10.0 / 10.0
Excellent accommodation in a beautiful location :)
Excellent accommodation in a beautiful location :)
Myself and my partner had a wonderfully peaceful 9 days at El Arpa finca. Situated in the mountains just outside Malaga with private access to a lake, it is the ideal location for a quiet getaway. We felt well looked after both before and during our visit - the hosts were always easily contactable and went as far as to suggest activities and local restaurants that we may like to book before our holiday. The apartment itself was neat and tidy. It was clean and had everything we would need, and included a welcome bottle of wine and tostadas (thank you!). We were impressed with the effort the hosts are making to offer environmentally friendly accommodation, and think the store room is a great idea as it is not easy to quickly nip to the local shops. The room was homely and in keeping with Spanish tradition. It is not a “new build” type of accommodation, which is perfect for us as we like to stay places that have a bit of character. For those seeking a 5* luxury hotel this probably isn’t the right place to stay, but be assured it was certainly beautiful, charming and kept very clean. The location of El Arpa is very tranquil. The other people staying in the apartments were respectful of each other and as the apartments are for 2 people maximum the atmosphere during our stay was calm and relaxing. The apartment had a fan, which was much needed in the Spanish summer heat! And mosquito repellent. But no air conditioning, which was ok as the evenings were quite cool. There was a book filled with lots of information and suggestions on places to go during our stay and we did visit several places based on these suggestions. The surrounding area is perfect for people who like exploring; although having a hire car is a must. We were busy most days and would still come back to explore more. There are several national parks within an hour or so driving. We also went rock climbing, visited the local wolf sanctuary, went quad biking and of course visited the caminito del ray - so there is plenty to do! But El Arpa is also a perfect place to stay and relax during the day for those wanting to wind down. All in all, we can't speak highly enough of El Arpa, we had an amazing holiday and would happily come back in the future. We also felt the price was very reasonable, hence why we were able to stay for 9 days instead of a week. Thank you to Rikke and Michael for being so accommodating and kind and providing such a lovely place for people like us to enjoy :).
10.0 / 10.0
Nature and silence
Nature and silence
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at El Arpa. The old farmhouse is located in the middle of nature without a house in sight. The view from the terrasse is wonderful and it is only a 2 min. walk to take a dip in the lake in front of the house. There are lots of beautiful walking trails nearby and also some nice restaurants within short driving range. After a week we felt refreshed and energised. Thank you to Rikke and Michael for their hospitality and greetings to Hugo too.
10.0 / 10.0
Traumhaft schöne Finca
Traumhaft schöne Finca
Es war alles perfekt!
10.0 / 10.0
Erholung pur
Erholung pur
Es war wunderbar hier! Die Infos perfekt Gastgeber sehr nett Unterkunft gemütlich Komme gerne wieder....
10.0 / 10.0
Wundervoll gelegene Finca direkt am See
Wundervoll gelegene Finca direkt am See
Wir hatten 10 wundervolle Tage in der Finca El Arpa. Sehr liebenswerte Gastgeber, die sich um die Bedürfnisse iher Gäste bemühen. Wir waren mehr als zufrieden und können die Unterkunft nur empfehlen.
10.0 / 10.0
super FEWo *****
super FEWo *****
Es war alles super auf EL ARPA....Lage, Ausstattung, alles sauber und vorhanden, sowie klasse Empfangskorb mit leckeren Sachen, ruhige Lage, nette - sich um Alles kümmernde , betreuende - Vermieter! Guter Ausgangspunkt für viele spannende Unternehmungen, wie bspw. Caminito del rey, El Torcal, Vogelbeobachtungen, Wanderungen oder die hinterm Haus liegenden Felsen mit ihren Geiern. Wir empfehlen El Arpa an alle Naturliebhaber wärmsten weiter! Rike und Wolfgang
10.0 / 10.0
El Arpa - ein Paradies
El Arpa - ein Paradies
Ein wunderbarer Ort in paradiesisch schöner Landschaft, eine Sicht von der eigenen Terrasse, die zum Träumen einlädt, ein See, den man beim Schwimmen meistens ganz für sich hat, eine Stille, die einem zu sich kommen lässt, ein Sternenhimmel, der einen vom Schlafen abhält, eine Unterkunft, die äusserst liebevoll und sehr praktisch eingerichtet ist, zuvorkommende und herzliche Gastgeber, bei denen man sich rundum willkommen fühlt: El Arpa war DAS Highlight auf unserer siebenwöchigen Reise durch Andalusien!
10.0 / 10.0
...ein schönes Fleckchen Erde...
...ein schönes Fleckchen Erde...
Auf El Arpa haben wir vergessen, dass es eine Welt da draußen gibt. Beim Ankommen merkt man schon die alles umgebende Ruhe dieser Finca & dieser ursprünglichen Umgebung; die Finca ist wunderschön gelegen am See; der Blick von den oberen Appartements ist traumhaft zu jeder Tageszeit; man kann die Fische springen hören & sehen; wer Stille aushalten kann, maximale Ruhe & Entspannung sucht, ist hier genau richtig; das Appartement ist gemütlich eingerichtet (Liebe zum Detail), sauber & mit allem ausgestattet, was man braucht; wir haben nichts vermisst; die Bettmatratzen waren sehr gut; Michael & Rikke sind freundliche Gastgeber & Fragen wurden gerne beantwortet; der Charme der Finca & der Außenanlage macht die weitestgehende Ursprünglichkeit aus; allerdings auch gepflegt; zu empfehlen ist auch der Rundwanderweg von der Finca aus sowie Ausflüge nach El Torro; Ronda oder Antequerra; überhaupt hat uns in Andalusien die Ursprünglichkeit & Freundlichkeit sehr gut gefallen; alle von Michael & Rikke eingestellten Bilder entsprechen der Realität; Lieber Michael und liebe Rikke, wir hatten von A - Z einen sehr gelungenen, erholenden Urlaub, an den wir sehr gerne zurückdenken (auch Dank der authentischen Beschreibung Eurer Finca, Eurer Ehrlichkeit und der guten Empfehlungen). Wir kommen sehr gerne wieder; es gibt noch viel zu sehen für uns und wir möchten nur zu gerne die Stille bei Euch wieder geniessen...liebe Grüße Sylvia & Hubertus

FAQs

Is parking included with this apartment?

Parking is not specified as an available amenity at Refurbished holiday apartment in an Andalusian farmhouse in The Lake District. For more information, we encourage you to contact the property about where to park.

Is there a pool at this apartment?

We didn’t find pool listed as an amenity for this apartment. It may be worth double checking if a pool is important for your stay.

Is Refurbished holiday apartment in an Andalusian farmhouse in The Lake District pet friendly?

Unfortunately, this apartment is not pet-friendly. Try searching again and filter for "Pets Allowed"

What amenities are available at Refurbished holiday apartment in an Andalusian farmhouse in The Lake District?

We found 2 amenities for this rental. This includes non-smoking, and no pets allowed.


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