Júzcar: a Fairy Tale Town In The South of Spain
If you want to visit a real fairytale town you should go to Júzcar, in the South of Spain – a little smurf village where all houses are painted blue.
Previously, this Andalusian town was known only due to the fact that in the first half of the 18th century the first Spanish tin factory was opened here. An interesting fact is that in those days instead of common mules and donkeys, exotic camels were used to carry heavy loads. The reason is that they better coped with the rough and uneven local landscape.
Since then Júzcar continued to live its modest and peaceful life until 2011, when popular American company Sony Pictures chose this picturesque town for the promotion campaign of animated movie The Smurfs.
American cinema masters converted Júzcar into the world’s first Smurf town. Initially all 175 snow-white houses in town (including the city hall, the old church of the 16th century, the school and even the cemetery) were painted blue only for a while. After their massive promotional campaign, Sony Pictures were determined to return everything to as it was in the beginning. However, Júzcar and its residents clearly liked the new Smurfie image, and the mayor’s office freed the company from the need to return the snow-white color to the city walls. One reason could be that an estimated 95,000 tourists visited the village in the six months following the blue paint job and that the village had previously seen about 9,000 tourists annually.
Special Smurf hotels, bars and shops were not long in coming. One of the most striking manifestations of the Smurfie boom was the opening of the Bandolero themed hotel, which is regularly visited by travelers from Germany, France, Kuwait, China, Japan and Russia. It is said that in the first months of the Smurf Hotel’s operation, the owner of the establishment even dyed his hair blue to look more like the famous cartoon smurfs.
What to see
Among the non-standard entertainment of Júzcar, you should not lose the opportunity to do the most interesting sightseeing tours, during which the guides will take you through the most important historical sites of the surrounding area.
For example, the most popular route here is a half-hour walk among the ruins of ancient mills and a visit to the original Arab bridge over the Sua River. And avid naturalists will undoubtedly love the Genal chestnut grove, bordered by the majestic and delicate cliffs of Los Riscos.
What’s nice is that you don’t have to go far to find entertainment: the tourist information office (Oficina de Turismo) will meet you at the very entrance to the blue town.
Where to eat
There are few catering establishments in the town. More precisely, only three.
The Torricheli Bar is famous for its simple home-cooked food and affordable prices. The pride of the establishment is croquettes and traditional Andalusian miniature sandwiches – montaítos.
El Casarón Tavern particularly emphasises on authentic products. Also, the restaurant has its own souvenir shop – so that no one is left without their Smurf, be it a soft toy, keychain or backpack.
La Bodega del Bandolero is located in the Bandolero hotel and is known not only for its somewhat overpriced prices (compared to other bars in the town), but also for its typical provincial slowness in service. But only here for dessert you can try a slice of real Smurfi cake, and on a hot day enjoy the shade of lush vegetation of its terrace.
