Facts
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Townhouse
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5 bedrooms
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Sleeps 8
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2 bathrooms
Services
Lovely large holiday house for rent in the peaceful very traditional historic fortified hill town , Cehegin. Cehegin is situated in the region of Murcia the most fertile and beautiful unspoilt part of rural Spain famous for its wine, rice, almonds and fruit. Cehegin is less than an hour drive from Murcia airport and about 1 hour 30 Mins inland from Alicante.
The house is newly decorated and refurnished and sleeps eight over four floors. The accommodation comprises:
Ground Floor : Large dining / sitting room with pine table and eight chairs, sofa and television, kitchen and large pantry with gas cooker, fridge/freezer, and ironing facilities.
1st floor : Twin bedroom with pine furniture and beautiful views, single bedroom with fitted wardrobes, 1st bathroom with shower, WC and washbasin, door to rear courtyard area with large traditional integral brick barbecue and seating and outbuilding with washing machine.
2nd floor : Double bedroom with pine furniture and same lovely views, single bedroom with pine furniture, large main bathroom with four piece suite and shower.
3rd floor : Double bedroom leading to large traditionally tiled roof terrace with sun bed and conservatory furniture and beautiful views of Soledad church and surrounding hills.
The house is cared for by Jackie and bed linen is provided together with a welcome grocery pack of local fruit, bread, cheese, wine, beer, tea coffee etc.
" The Green House " is situated in the quiet picturesque old town and within walking distance of two or three lovely tapas bars and the renowned "El Sol" restaurant.
Cehegin is a very safe traditional Spanish town with only a sprinkling of non-Spanish visitors and residents, few people speak English but the residents are very welcoming, friendly and patient with "phrase book " Spanish.
The Grand Via (main street) down from the old town has lots of shops, banks, bars and restaurants and several (soundproof) basement discos and is very lively at the weekend.
Every Wednesday morning the roads surrounding the Grand Via are taken over by the local market with dozens and dozens of stalls selling fruit vegetables and herbs, shoes, clothes, traditional home furnishings handmade paella pans and kitchen ware. Cehegin also has a small tourist information office, a hospital, post office, beauty salon etc. and is very safe and unthreatening to walk around at all hours. There is also large open air swimming complex with two pools and bar, an indoor leisure centre, two or three large supermarkets and a bus station with regular buses to the nearby famous historic pilgrimage town of Carravacca de la Cruz, the city of Murcia and beyond. Cehegin is very hilly with narrow cobbled streets and most places are best reached on foot but it is advisable to hire a car at the airport (we like "solmar") if you wish to explore the area around Ceheghin, go to the pool, supermarkets etc.
Whilst you could happily spend a lovely relaxing holiday without leaving Cehegin there is lots to see and do in the surrounding area. Our favorite places are the rock church at Calasspara, another famous pilgrimage site which is also famous for the best paella rice in Spain, the natural hot mineral baths at Banos de Mulla, and slightly further a field the unspoilt beaches of Puerto de Mazzaron, the city of Murcia and Terra Miticca, a very civilized theme park set in beautiful gardens, based on the ancient world with street theatre and shows, and good food as well as lots of rides for all ages.
Easter is a wonderful time to visit Cehegin, the pavement tables are out and the air is filled with the scent of orange blossom. The Santa Semana - Holy Week processions are a well worth making a special trip for.
Each church in the town prepares a large float consisting of a sacred statue surrounded by flowers and these are paraded around the town late in the evenings on the shoulders of the men and women of Cehegin. The processions seem to go on for ever, the whole town is involved, the older people and visitors not marching lining the streets to watch and catch sweets thrown by the children.
The Good Friday procession, with hooded figures dressed in black, women in traditional dress and candlelit statues of Saints, and the Holy Family accompanied by solemn drums is a sight you will never forget. On Easter Sunday Morning the atmosphere is much lighter, the hooded black figures are gone and the procession is joyfull.
Easter is also a good time to visit the neighbouring town of Carravaca de la Cruz, where a fragment of the Vera Cruz -True Cross is kept in a shrine in the castle. Carravaca is a well known pilgrimage town and a lovely place to visit, the square below the castle has a variety of shops selling souveniers related to the cross, local wine, pottery and rugs, as well as some excellent restaurants and tapas bars.
A visit to the nearby grotto church at Calasparra is also a wonderful experience. The chapel is filled with candles and flowers and local people, and those from further afield, come to spend the day, especially on a Sunday, as the chuch is surrounded by pine woods and picnic areas and there is an excellent restaurant specialising in paella - Callaspara produces the best paella rice in the world.
In the Green House we have compiled an information folder with details of these and all the other wonderfull places to visit. Nearer the time leaflets detailing the events of Holy Week are distributed in shops, banks you should be able to pick one up.