Punta Umbria
The closest beach to Huelva City, this town is the most popular resort along the Huelva Costa de la Luz.
During July and August it is overflowing with Spanish visitors and it's worth booking accommodation in advance at this time.
It sits on the banks of the Río Odiel river estuary and is surrounded by extensive salt marshes, which make up the El Paraje Natural Marismas del Odiel, the most important nature reserve in the area after the Parque Nacional Coto Donaña.
Historically, the first holidaymakers were the British employees of the Rio Tinto Mining Company who started to arrive here at the end of the nineteenth century. The mining company obtained permission in 1896 to construct a sanatorium. Instead, they built 12 colonial-style wooden houses, raised off the ground and with wide verandahs, for the convalescence of the company's miners and managers in the summer. This so-called Barrio Inglés has since been demolished, but the area retains the name Los Ingleses and a few houses in this style still stand today. One is opposite the harbour on the Paseo de la Ría opposite the harbour. In 2003 the town decided to resurrect its heritage with a reconstruction of one of these typical British houses, which is now a museum, the Casa Museo de los Ingleses.
In the 1920s Spanish visitors started to take their holidays here, when a ferry link from Huelva was established with steam boats crossing to carry tourists. During the summer, boats known as canoas still run today between Huelva and Punta Umbría at regular intervals.
There are some superb beaches running along the south side of the punta (point). The closest beach to the town is the Playa La Mata Negra, lined with many restaurants, bars and summer chiringuitos. This beach has the best facilities, including parasols and hammocks for hire, showers, toilets and lifeguard. Windsurfing, sailing and boat trips are among the activities offered locally. Just outside Punta Umbría on the A497 road to Huelva city is Camping Playa La Bota, claiming to be Andalucía's first ecological campsite, with wooden cabins for rent. From here there are several good walks over the Paraje Natural Marismas del Odiel and the protected area of La Laguna de El Portil.
The sunset over the harbour is worth seeing from one of the many bars that line the waterfront; the view is slightly marred, however, by Huelva's petrol refineries and factories that can be seen across the estuary. Running parallel to the waterfront Paseo de la Ría is the busy pedestrianised main shopping street, Calle Ancha. Here there is a good choice of bars and restaurants to sample some of Punta Umbría's great seafood, much of which is caught locally. In April there is the town's local Festival de la Chirla y la Coquina (clam festival) but these shellfish specialities of Punta Umbría are served in restaurants all over the town.
During the summer months there are many late-night bars and clubs open around Calle Ancha. Also worth seeing is the 15m-high Torre de la Umbría look-out tower, which was built in 1614 to watch for Berber pirate ships. If the boats were sighted, a fire would be lit on top of the tower to send out a warning signal.
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