Valle de Lecrín

The Lecrin Valley (Spanish: Valle de Lecrín) is a comarca in the center-south part of the province of Granada, Andalusia, southern Spain. This territory borders the Vega de Granada to the north, the Alpujarra Granadina to the east, the Costa Tropical to the south, and the Alhama to the west.

Lecrin Valley

Valle de Lecrín  (Spanish)
Comarca
Location in the province of Granada and Andalusia.
CountrySpain
Autonomous communityAndalusia
ProvinceGranada
CapitalDúrcal
Municipalities
List
Population
 (2006)
 • Total22,497
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)

Lecrin derived from Arabic Iqlim, meaning "gateway": this refers to a small area of land situated between the villages of Mondújar and Talará, which controlled the access to the vast coastal areas of sugar production in Moorish times.

The Lecrin Valley consists of eight municipalities, of which the most populous is El Padul, and the largest is Albuñuelas, the latter being also the least populated. On the other hand, the municipality with the smallest area is Villamena. Its traditional and historical capital is the town of Dúrcal.

Apart from Dúrcal and Padul, agriculture and farming remain the principal occupation with pine, citrus, almond, olive and grape as the main crops. In more recent times, it has become a destination for Spanish and international holidaymakers looking for a quiet holiday amongst the orchards, but with easy reach to the Moorish city of Granada and the Costa Tropical. It is also an increasingly popular destination for walkers, bird watchers, cyclists and artists.

The Lecrin Valley is known for its verdant landscape (due to the melt-water run off from Sierra Nevada) and its views to lake Beznar and up to the Sierra Nevada mountains, its walks, birdlife and spring colours.

Map of the Lecrin Valley.

Municipalities

This comarca consists of the following municipalities:

MunicipalityAreaPopulation (2017)DensityCouncil (2011)CapitalParishes
Albuñuelas
140.05 km2
836 hab.
6.57 inhabitants/km2
PP
 Albuñuelas La Loma
Dúrcal
76.63 km2
7,028 hab.
95.08 inhabitants/km2
PP
 Dúrcal Marchena
Lecrín
40.49 km2
2,089 hab.
56.78 inhabitants/km2
PSOE
 Talará Acequias, Béznar, Chite, Mondújar, Murchas and Peloteos
Nigüelas
30.93 km2
1,195 hab.
38.90 inhabitants/km2
PSOE
 Nigüelas –
El Padul
89.15 km2
8,454 hab.
95.12 inhabitants/km2
PSOE
 El Padul El Puntal
El Pinar
38.01 km2
933 hab.
27.20 inhabitants/km2
PP
 Pinos del Valle Acebuches and Ízbor
El Valle
25.84 km2
938 hab.
44.19 inhabitants/km2
PSOE
 Restábal Melegís y Saleres
Villamena
20.18 km2
967 hab.
50.94 inhabitants/km2
PSOE
 Cozvíjar Cónchar
TOTAL
461,28 km2
23.392 hab.
50,71 inhabitants/km2

Road access
Tin Bridge, in Dúrcal.
Church of Santa María la Mayor, in El Padul.

Halfway between the city of Granada and the Costa Tropical, this comarca is traversed from North to South by the A-44 (Bailén-Motril) motorway, which serves all municipalities with the following ways out:

  • 144: El Padul, Otívar.
  • 153: Cónchar, Cozvíjar, Dúrcal, Albuñuelas.
  • 157: Dúrcal, Nigüelas.
  • 159: Lecrín, El Valle.
  • 164: Pinos del Valle, Lanjarón, Béznar
  • 169: Ízbor-Acebuches.

Other notable roads are: N-323, an old road that connected Bailén with Motril, connecting the cities of Jaén and Granada with the coast; A-4050, popularly known as Carretera de la Cabra, which links the mountain port of El Suspiro del Moro with Almuñécar to the west; and A-348, which connects the entire Alpujarra Granadina with the highway.

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