The small town of Soportújar can be found high up in the Apujarras region, on the south face of the Sierra Nevada mountains, about an hour’s drive from Granada. It’s a dramatic drive up from the A-44 motorway with many twists and turns giving incredible views and panoramas. It’s a mountain village unlike any other as it’s full of witchcraft and wizardry, and the locals are very proud of their magical ancestry.
No matter where you wander through the narrow streets you will encounter witches, wizards, cats, snakes and dragons. Look up, look down, and be prepared for anything around any corner! Keep a special eye out for the colourful Hansel and Gretel House. We nearly missed it! One thing you can’t miss though it the giant head of Baba Yaga at the entrance to the town.
The town needed something unique to enable it to compete for tourists with other spectacular mountain villages in the region. It turned to its history, dating back to the time of the reconquest of Spain. Soportújar played an important role during the Revolution of Las Alpujarras but its population was decimated. This meant that the village had to be repopulated with new inhabitants. Most of them came from Galicia bringing along their own myths and legends. It is said that these settlers from the north brought with them customs and pagan legends about witches, covens and rituals on dark nights. Their neighbours believed these new inhabitants of Soportújar were sorcerers.
As you make your way into Soportújar you’ll notice the Centro de Interpretación. It only costs a couple of Euros to go in, but be aware everything is in Spanish only. There are many bewitching displays and some pretty gory paintings from Francisco Goya. Some of the audiovisual displays are very impressive
One thing that’s quite easy to miss as you wander the narrow streets is the narrowest street! Zanjilla may even be the narrowest street in the whole of Spain. If you know otherwise, please let us know!
We would love to hear your thoughts if you’ve been to Soportújar. If you haven’t been, you need to go!
