Arrival and transportation


Larger map

Flights:
The closest airport is Almería. International direct connections exist from London, East Midlands, Düsseldorf (all Ryanair) and Brussels (TUI/Thomas Cook, charter), otherwise it is best to fly through either Madrid (Air Nostrum/Iberia), Barcelona (Vueling) or Mallorca (Air Berlin), see here for a map of destinations from different airports in Spain. You can also fly to Granada or Malaga and take a bus, travel times range from 2h15-4h from Granada and 4-5h from Malaga with several connections per day. Here is a search engine for connections, prices are around 20€ one way.

Arrival to the hotel:
Cabo de Gata has only very limited public transport. If you want to see many places in the park, we encourage you to rent a car at the airport. Costs are around 150-200€ per week for a compact car (5 people). For those coming by your own transport, here is a description and map how to get to the hotel, print it out and bring it if you don't have a GPS device.
To get to the hotel without your own car, take a taxi from the Almería airport, costs are around 50€ per taxi. Let us know your arrival date and time and we will put you in contact with other conference participants to share a taxi, check your email for an updated schedule of arrival times! Transportation to excursions and other activities will be provided by the conference and included in the registration fee.

Practical issues

What to bring: For the beach you only have to bring personal items: swimming clothes, shoes, etc., suncream and hat. If you plan to walk to other beaches or do some activity on land bring at least sneakers, better some light hiking shoes. Summer clothes for the day, (temperatures expected in the high 20ies) and some jacket/cardigan for the evening (in the low 20ies).
What you can leave at home: All other beach items will be provided (towels, bags, mats). Snorkling equipment is available from the hotel, only take it if you prefer to have your own, snorkling in general is great in Cabo de Gata, as is scuba diving (equipment for rent in Las Negras)!

Climate: Temperatures are very comfortable in late September, highs can reach up to 30° C during the day and lows are around 15-20° C. Cabo de Gata is often windy but there is usually less wind at the end of summer. Rain is not expected at that time of the year, but occasional thunderstorms can happen. Even after the equinox the sun is still quite intense in the south of Spain although you might not notice that much due to the wind, so bring suncream/hat etc. to enjoy the beach and not regret it afterwards.

climate chart Almeria


Internet: The conference hotels all provide free wifi both in the rooms and public areas. However the data rates will be on the low side since internet in Cabo de Gata is distributed via antennas, there are no landline connections. We therefore ask you not to download large data quantities in order not to block the internet for everyone else. We will have a few mobile internet USB sticks to distribute if you need some higher data rates for work reasons or if the internet is temporarily not working.

ATM: Unfortunately there are no ATMs in Las Negras, the next ATMs are in San José and Carboneras. However, most restaurants and bars take credit cards even for small amounts. The hotel bill can also be payed by credit card. If you don't come by car, please get some cash at the airport before you arrive to pay the taxi and some smaller amounts during the stay. In case you will need cash during the conference at some point, don't worry, we will find a solution!

Beaches: Beaches in Cabo de Gata are usually sandy although there are some with small stones (e.g. Playa de los Muertos). Most beaches only offer basic facilities such as toilets, most have no showers and only those in a village have restaurants nearby. Cabo de Gata is not a fancy tourist place, in return you get beautiful undisturbed nature. Be advised that beaches in Spain are usually rather liberal versus nudism and in a remote place like Cabo de Gata you can expect them basically anywhere. If you don't like it, just don't look. An overview of the beaches can be found here (you'll get a copy of the map at the conference, don't print it!)

Restaurants Here is a map of Las Negras with Restaurants/Bars etc. (do not print either!). For fresh fish we can recommend "La Palma" which also has a terrace out to the sea. Restaurants usually open around 13:00-14:00 for lunch and from 20:00 on for dinner although some places in Las Negras serve food almost all day long. Shops usually close from 14:00 - 16:00/17:00 for lunch!
Restaurants in other places: There are many options in San Jose along the main street and the beach. The restaurant of our conference dinner ''La Gallineta'' in El Pozo de los Frailes is serving different rices for lunch if you want to try it out before (directly on the main road in the small village on the right coming from Rodalquilar). La Isleta has a nice fish restaurant at the harbour, "Hostal La Isleta del Moro". Rodalquilar and Agua Amarga have a few bars and restaurants. Carboneras is a small city with several hotels, many shops and restaurants, close to Playa de los Muertos and it also has its own large beach. Unfortunately there is an ugly cement factory on the coast which spoils the view a bit and left the city outside the actual protected park area.