La Viñuela

 Interesting facts
Area: 27,28
Number of inhabitants: 1.241
Descent: Viñoleros
Monuments: Church of San José, Shrine to the Virgen de las Angustias, Torre de la Atalaya, La Viñuela Reservoir
Geographical situation: In the Axarquía, 14 kilometres from Vélez-Málaga, at 151 metres above sea level.
Tourist information:
Town Hall, C/Vélez-Málaga, 23. 29712. Phone: 952 519 002 Fax: 952 519 088

The town of La Viñuela is situated at the crossroads between two of the most important roads in the province: that of Alhama and Casabermeja. The landscape is low hills, covered mostly in olive and cereal plantations, and conditioned almost always by the presence of the reservoir. From the reservoir one can see right across to the Sierra Tejeda and the Boquete de Zafarraya mountains, and below it flows the river Guaro. As one moves closer to the Axarquía mountains, the landscape gets rougher, with hills covered in oak trees, olives and the occasional vineyard. Apart from the nickname "Viñoleros", the people of La Viñuela are also known locally as "Polacos", meaning Poles, due to a dispute between this and a neighbouring town in the past. The town itself, sometimes referred to as "The oasis of the Axarquía," dates from the 16th century, growing around an inn on what was then the royal road between Vélez and Granada. The venta, or inn, is still in existence on the main street of the town, and it stood in a small vineyard known as "La Viñuela". In spite of being one of the newest towns in the Axarquía, we know, from archaeological remains found here, that people have lived in this area from middle palaeolithic times, at least, up to the time of the Roman settlement. The principal remains were at the Río Guaro area, these being adobe and cane cabins with ovens for making bronze, along with olive oil mills and Roman pots for the transportation of olive oil. The Romans left most evidence of the their presence at the Pantano de la Viñuela area, where the local people still live by agriculture.


Outstanding visits
Church of San José
This church dates from the 16th century, built to a simple rectangular ground plan and with a decorated timber ceiling. It was restored in the 18th century, when a small steeple was added.
Shrine to the Virgen de las Angustias
This is situated on the outskirts of the town on the carretera comarcal 335, ordered to be built by the Granada man responsible for the building of the road at the end of the 19th century. It appears that a small cave used for devotion to the Virgen de Las Angustias had to be destroyed to make way for the road, and in compensation, the builder replaced it with the shrine.
Torre (Tower) de la Atalaya
This tower dates from Moorish times, and according to local legend was built overnight with materials from the surrounding area and the riverbed. Its purpose was to communicate with the vigilance towers on the coast and the Castle of Zalia.
Pantano (Reservoir) de la Viñuela
Just a few metres from the town is the reservoir of the same name, the principal source of water for the eastern part of the Costa el Sol. It is fed by water from the River Guaro and its tributaries, the Sabar, the Benamargosa, the Salía, the Bermuza, the Almáchar and the Rubite. It was built on the bed of the Guaro at La Viñuela, which was left on its right bank, with the Barriada de los Romanes on the left. Covering 700 hectares of the municipality, it holds 170 million cubic metres of water, and apart from providing fresh water for the Axarquía, it allows the irrigation of more than 2,700 hectares of land.