andalucia/costa del sol - are they the same?
 

When people refer to the white villages of Andalusia..where is the cut off? Is Ronda in Andalucia? What about Marbella and Malaga? Where does Andalucia end and Costa del Sol begin?

Andalucia is the southernmost part of Spain, consisting of several provinces. It's the part of Spain that was occupied by the Moors, whose name for the entire Iberian peninsula (Al-Andalus) was the origin of Andalucia. Costa del Sol is a part of Andalucia, the coastal area along the Mediterranean - the term may properly only apply to a part of the coast, but I'm not sure. Ronda (not a white village, by the way) is definitely in Andalucia - and Marbella and Malaga are definitely on the Costa del Sol as well as in Andalucia. I don't think that either area has firmly fixed boundaries.

Spain is divided into 15 Autonomous regions, a bit like the US being divided into states. Andalucia is one of these regions. (Others are for example Catalonia, Valencia, The Basque country etc). Andalucia is made up of 8 provinces, a bit like an American state being composed of counties, one of which is Malaga. The Costa del Sol is the name given to (roughly) the coast of Malaga province. Ronda is in the province of Malaga and so is also of course in Andalucia. The Costa del Sol is part of Andalucia.

So where and what exactly are these "white villages" and how far are they from Ronda? Why isn't Ronda considered one? I read where you do day trips to them from Ronda - would th is be right?

The so-called white villages are dotted around Andalucia. They are called white villages because basically, that's what they are; all the houses are painted white. Ronda is not a village, it's quite a large town, and it isn't painted white.

Where would one base oneself to visit the white villages? Would this be similar to Provence and the villages there-could you stay in one place and do day trips to the white villages? What is considered the nicest area to visit the white villages?

We have visited many of the white villages while we were based in Marbella. <BR>Within half an hour drive are Oj&eacute;n, Monda, Co&iacute;n, Mijas (bit of a tourist trap), C&aacute;sares, Benahavis. These are all very small villages. <BR>Further west, in the province of C&aacute;diz, between Ronda and Jerez, is Arcos de la Frontera. This is abt. 1.5 hour drive from Marbella.<BR>The most beautiful 'pueblo blanco' however (IMHO) is Frigiliana, in eastern Andaluc&iacute;a, 6 km uphill from Nerja. Must be about 1.5-2 hour drive from Marbella.<BR>If you're interested in my pictures of the villages, please let me know.