Júzcar, the blue village

In the beautiful region of Andalusia, you will find typical white villages, which are trademarks of the area and a great tourist attraction. However, among the many white villages, the surprise is the small Andalusian village of Júzcar, covered in blue. (1 hour's drive from Marbella and one and a half to two hours from Malaga.)

London-Malaga, 24 £, (27 EUR) in April (8 nights)

Júzcar (and around Júzcar) from 43 £ (48 EUR)/2 person/night

April: 68-70 °F (20-22 °C)

Meal, inexpensive restaurant: 7 £ (8 EUR)

Júzcar was a traditional Andalusian white village until 2011, when Sony Pictures chose it as the filming location for the movie Smurfs. The locals didn't like the idea at first, but in the end they voted for it, on the condition that the village be painted back to the original white color after filming. With tourism booming in the meantime, the locals finally decided to keep the blue colour, which opened new doors for the small village in terms of tourism revenue.

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flickr.com fotó: Marbella Escapes

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flickr.com fotó: Pueblo Pitufo

Life here is typically slow-moving for Mediterranean villages.

Children - or adults with a child spirit - will have a particularly fun time visiting the village. Even though the models of the former large smurf figures have been removed, which has reduced the number of visitors, it is still - or rather mainly - worth a visit, with a large playground for children at the entrance to the village. There are also a number of hiking trails around Júzcar which are also worth trying or combining with a visit to the village.