The Alpujarra’s biggest draw is the spectacular mountain scenery and the opportunities it offers for hiking and cycling. However, the villages themselves also have a fascinating history and culture. We’ve done VoiceMap audio tours of two of the most popular villages – Pampaneira and Capileira – to give visitors a better insight into their unique history, food, architecture, traditions and festivals.
Textiles and Tinaos: A Tour of Pampaneira
Nestled in the dramatic Poqueira Gorge, Pampaneira is one of Alpujarra’s most picturesque villages.
This audio tour starts and ends outside the village church on Plaza de la Libertad. As well as meandering through Pampaneira’s most picturesque streets and alleyways, we’ll stop at some breathtaking viewpoints and pass a weaving workshop with a traditional loom that uses flying shuttles.
During the course of this 45-minute tour, Ben will tell you about local food and customs, as well as explaining what acequias, tinaos and lavaderos are, and their roles in village life.
You can purchase Textiles and Tinaos: A Tour of Pampaneira for your smartphone from the VoiceMap website or through the VoiceMap app, which you can download from iTunes or Google Play.
COMING SOON: Capileira
Capileira clings to the side of the narrow Poqueira gorge, looking down on the neighbouring villages of Bubión and Pampaneira.
Starting from the Servicio de Interpretación de Altas Cumbres, this tour heads up to the very top of the village for a bird’s-eye view of the box-shaped houses with their characteristic grey roofs. Next we wind our way through some charming alleyways, passing some great viewpoints along the way, before finishing our journey in the main square of Capileira.
During this tour, Ben explains the rich history of the area, including the Rebellion of the Alpujarra and the role of the silk industry, shows you some of the best hiking trails, and gives you an insight into the local food, handicrafts and architecture. He also explains why the flora and fauna of the Sierra Nevada are so diverse and unique.
VoiceMap is an innovative app that uses your phone’s GPS to automatically play you audio based on your location. Once you’ve bought the tour, you can listen to it as many times as you like. The app uses GPS to navigate, rather than your phone’s data. If you download it in advance somewhere you have access to WiFi, you won’t need to use data roaming at all. If you’re not in the Sierra Nevada at the moment, you can also listen to it as a virtual tour.
If you do the tour, we’d love you have your feedback, so please write a review on VoiceMap.
It’s also very helpful for us to get reviews on TripAdvisor – even if you haven’t booked through them, you can still leave a review there.