Hot Coast Costa Cálida

The main center of tourist activities is the Mar Menor northeast of Cartagena. This is a large lagoon (area 180 sq.km/70 sq.mi), with water of high salt and iodine content, which is cut off from the sea by a narrow spit of land, La Manga, 22km/14mi long and between 50m/55yd and 150m/165yd wide, which is traversed by several channels. The water of the lagoon, which has an average depth of 7m/23ft, is so warm that bathing is possible almost all year round. La Manga and the strip of coast on the mainland side of the lagoon are lined with facilities for bathers, hotels and tourist centers. The most important of these on the mainland are San Pedro de Pinatar, San Javier (which is also a military air base), Los Alcázares, Los Urrutias and Los Belones. The last of these has one of the longest and most beautiful 18-hole golf courses in Spain, the Campo de Golf La Manga. The most important tourist resort on La Manga itself is La Manga del Mar, with houses built on piles over the water and high apartment blocks. At the south end of La Manga Cabo de Palos falls steeply down to the sea.

The coast of the Golfo de Mazarrón, to the south of Cartagena, is rather quieter than that of the Mar Menor. Here N 332 runs some distance inland, only occasionally coming down to the coast but linked with the coastal resorts by numerous side roads.