Zahara de los Atunes

The village's great beach unrolls kilometres of pale sand between the mouth of the Rio Cachon and Atlanterra. As on Andalusia's supervised beaches, dogs face restrictions during the summer bathing season; from October to Easter, however, it becomes a vast low-tide walking ground, with the silhouette of Africa on the horizon on clear days.

At the heart of the village, the walls of the Medina Sidonia dukes' palace-chanca recall the days when almadraba tuna was salted here and Barbary raids had to be fought off. The precinct, which now shelters the church, makes a lovely on-lead walk along its walls, and the surrounding white lanes are made for a golden-hour stroll.

Beyond Atlanterra, towards the Camarinal lighthouse, the coast turns wild: coves of sand and rock backed by pine forest, sparsely visited even in summer. This is the stretch dog owners know as the most permissive zone around here for letting a dog romp off season; access is on foot along sandy tracks, so bring water and plan for shade.

From the last houses of Atlanterra, a coastal walk rounds the headland of Cabo de Plata, between villas, agaves and blocks of golden sandstone. This is Zahara's classic dog walk: on lead along the path, with superb views over the bay and, on clear days, towards the strait; keep clear of the rocky edge when the Levante blows hard.

Behind the village, the slopes of the Sierra de la Plata mix pine woods, sandstone boulders and spectacular viewpoints along the coast towards Trafalgar. The trails are walked with a leashed dog, ideally in the cool of the morning; it is the perfect fallback when the beach is off limits or the Levante makes the sand unbearable.

The little coastal river separating Zahara from the Barbate road is followed by a quiet promenade, past fishing boats, reed beds and the footbridge leading to the beach. It is the village's easy dog outing, flat and sheltered from the wind, perfect in the evening as the main street's terraces fill up around almadraba tuna.