Cartama is a traditional market town of 18,000
people located around 17 kilometers north of
Malaga and a popular location for both foreign
residents and as a dormitory town for Malaga
workers. Cartama is effectively split in two
(Cartama Estacion and Cartama Pueblo) by a major
road that connects Malaga to the town of Campillos
though there's nine other smaller urban areas.
It makes is a good central location to explore
both inland and coastal Andalucia.
Cartama Pueblo is by far the more interesting
of the two areas with some attractive traditional
Spanish architecture, and several historical
sites to see. From Cartama Pueblo you walk up
to the top of the hill and enjoy panoramic views
across Cartama and the Guadalhorce valley.
Cartama Estacion has built up over the years
from the railway station that goes directly
to Malaga. Most of the shops are also located
in this part of the town and there is a very
popular Sunday market that draws visitors from
many surrounding villages. The area lacks the
character of older part of the town though it
does have an attractive river walkway.
Cartama, like many inland towns in Andalucia
has seen a massive growth in the foreign population
during the last five or six years who have mainly
chosen to live in the outlying countryside having
bought land from local smallholder's who've
decided that they can gain more from construction
than growing olives, lemons and almonds. 90%
of smallholder's have nobody in the family to
pass on the land to as the younger generation
have higher expectations and chosen to move
to the cities or seek other types of better
payed employment.
The two nearest golf courses are Lauro Golf
and Alhaurin Golf in Alhaurin el Grande.
