Abanilla Today

Rural Murcia, colourful traditions, rich gastronomy and striking scenery

Abanilla is a small municipality in the north-east of the region of Murcia, bordering on the province of Alicante. It is currently home to approximately 6,500 inhabitants, a figure which has fallen over the last forty years from almost 9,000 as its neighbour Fortuna has grown correspondingly.

Despite the small population, though, Abanilla occupies 236 square kilometres, and the area is sub-divided into 23 outlying areas, the most heavily populated of which are Barinas, Macisvenda and Mahoya.

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Historically, the town’s origins lie in the time of the Moorish occupation of southern Spain between the 8th and the 13th century. Indeed the name Abanilla itself is derived from the Arabic “Al Banyala” or “Al-Bayada” (white town), and in the 13th century, following the Reconquista of Murcia, the Christians adapted the name to Favanella (in Valenciano) and Havanilla (in Castilian Spanish).

Little is left of that Early Middle Ages settlement, although the layout of the town centre recalls the typical narrow, winding streets of the time and there are remnants of the old Arab fortress in El Lugar Alto (the hill above the town on which the statue of Christ now stands). Abanilla The Town Hall building dates from 1762, and other recommended stops on a tour round the town include the Casa Pintada and the Casa de la Encomienda, where the local governors used to live and collect taxes, the baroque church of San José, which was built by the military and religious Order of Calatrava, the fountain in the Calle Mayor , the only operational public wash house in the whole of the region and the Casa Cabrera.

The church is also home to the Santa Cruz of Abanilla, a religious relic consisting of a fragment of the cross on which Christ was crucified. This is an object of great devotion in Abanilla, and is central to the annual fiestas which are held in late April and early May. On 1st May the “Kábilas Moras y Mesnedas Cristianas” parade is held, with around a quarter of the population taking part, and two days later this is followed by a Romería in which the Santa Cruz is taken up to the small church in the outlying district of Mahoya where it is believed to have appeared miraculously centuries ago.

These buildings make a walk around the town centre a pleasant and interesting experience, but no visit to Abanilla is really complete without a trip out into the countryside. The climate here is among the warmest in the south-east of Spain, with an average year-round temperature of 19ºC, and the landscape is among the most spectacular in the Region of Murcia. The River Chícamo, for example, still contains water Abanilla but also acts as a floodwater run-off channel, starting in the outlying area of Macisvenda, and among the most spectacular parts of it is the El Cajer canyon. Visitors are strongly advised to take a camera: you won’t be disappointed by this “desert river”, or by the “badlands” which lie on the other side of the town and can be enjoyed as part of four areas popular with walkers!

The same rocks which make the Chícamo such a unique place to visit have traditionally provided the backbone of the local economy, and according to some estimates as much as a third of the Region of Murcia’s building stone is extracted from the numerous quarries in the area. These also supply arids and marble-related limestone.

At the same time, there are plenty of hostelries to enjoy the local cuisine, which specializes in roast meat, locally-grown beans and artichokes and a variety of desserts and sweets. Wine and olive oil are also produced in Abanilla, and they can be enjoyed not only in bars and restaurants in the town and outlying villages, but also in some of the converted cave houses which lie alongside the Chícamo.

Located just a 25-minute drive from the regional capital and 50 minutes from the beaches of the Mar Menor and the southern Costa Blanca, Abanilla is within easy reach for those who are interested in seeing the “other side” of the Region of Murcia.

Where is Abanilla?

Click for map, Abanilla, Murcia

Abanilla Tourist Information Office

Calle Pío XII, 12b

Telephone: 968 684 075

Click to contact the tourist office via email

Images: Murcia Today and Ayuntamiento de Abanilla (Joaquín Zamora)

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14th June Free nocturnal star watching activity in Abanilla Route name: ABANILLA, UNA VENTANA AL CIELO A free nocturnal visit to the area known as el Lugar Alto where the Moors built a castle to protect the surrounding area and location of the monument of the Sagrado Corazón de Jesús, which occupies..

Sunday 2nd June Abanilla: Free guided tour of the historic town centre of Abanilla The historic centre of Abanilla retains a number of important historic buildings Route name: VISITA GUIADA POR EL CASCO HISTÓRICO DE ABANILLA The Region of Murcia offers a series of free guided walks and visits to places of historical and..

Folk dancing festival in Abanilla, first weekend of August Grupo de coros y danzas Stma. Cruz de Abanilla Folk dancing is a core element of Abanilla traditions Abanilla is a municipality which still retains many of its customs and traditions, linked to the agricultural farmlands which are such an essential..

Tourist Information Office Abanilla Oficina de Turismo de Abanilla The tourist information office in Abanilla is centrally located in the heart of the old quarter of Abanilla, just a one minute walk from the town hall. The office is manned by English speaking staff, who are able to..

The Parque de la Ermita in Abanilla This public garden was formerly home to one of the churches of Abanilla The Parque de la Ermita on the western edge of the town of Abanilla, alongside Calle Juan Carlos I as it heads out of town towards Fortuna, is so named because it used to be.. 03/08/2017

1.3 million year old fossils at the Quibas site in Abanilla 1.3-million-year-old fossils can be seen at an interpretation centre in the town of Abanilla In late 1994 a group of walkers in the Sierra de Quibas, in the north–west of the municipality of Abanilla, stumbled across a collection of fossilized bones..

The public washhouse in Abanilla Abanilla boasts one of the few remaining operative wash-houses in the Region of Murcia The “lavadero” of Abanilla is one of the last public wash-houses to be in full working order in the Region of Murcia, and although it is used by only a..

Police and Guardia Civil in Abanilla Emergency telephone numbers in Abanilla The Guardia Civil headquarters is located in an impressive old building at the top of the Calle Mayor, as it reaches the pleasant square of Plaza de la Lonja. Address: Calle Lonja, 2, 30640 Abanilla (Regió..

A history of Abanilla The Moors and the Order of Calatrava shaped the historical development of Abanilla In terms of surface area, Abanilla is a relatively small municipality in the north-east of the Region of Murcia, sharing a border with the province of Alicante, and covering..

The Santa Cruz, the Holy Cross of Abanilla The fragment of the Holy Cross is believed to have appeared in Abanilla in the 17th century One of the defining elements in the character of the town of Abanilla and its inhabitants is the existence in the parish church dedicated to San José of..

The source of the River Chícamo, a 3-kilometre walk in AbanillaThe Chícamo provides a geology lesson taking in the last ten million years! The River Chícamo in Abanilla is one of the best known beauty spots in the landscape of Murcia, and is of special interest not only to walkers but also to naturalists..

A walking tour of Abanilla Spend a morning in the characterful town of Abanilla Abanilla is an attractive and characterful town, its compact nature making it the perfect destination for a morning visit, followed by a good lunch and an optional walk in the countryside afterwards..

The fountain on Calle Mayor in AbanillaThe Fuente de la Calle Mayor was the main water supply of Abanilla from 1792 to 1880 One of the most attractive spots to stop on a stroll around the town centre of Abanilla is the Plaza de las Cortes, just 30 metres or so up the Calle Mayor from the Plaza..

Property in Abanilla Countryside villas and well-appointed cave houses prove popular with British buyers in Abanilla The majority of the 6,000-plus population of the municipality of Abanilla live in the town itself, where there is a mix of old townhouses and low-rise apartment..

The castle, the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Lugar Alto in AbanillaPanoramic views and the historical origins of the town of Abanilla On the top of the hillside behind the town of Abanilla is an area which is known simply as the “Lugar Alto” (the high place), and which is a must for visitors on account of the..

The Casa Cabrera in Abanilla This huge residence illustrates the wealth generated by agriculture in Abanilla in the past The Casa Cabrera is a palatial baroque residence in the centre of Abanilla, next to the parish church of San José, which was either built or widely remodeled..

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