Almería, chief town of the province of that name in southern Spain, was already an important Mediterranean port in Roman times (Portus Magnus), and was known to the Arabs as Al-Mariyya (''mirror of the sea''). It lies in the Gulf of Almería, which is enclosed on the west by the Sierra de Gádor (1,443m/4,
734ft), on the northeast by the Sierra Alhamilla (1,359m/4,459ft) and on the southeast by Sierra de Gata (513m/1,683ft) and the cape of the same name. Above the town are two picturesque castles. The port handles a considerable export trade in fresh grapes, southern fruits and esparto grass, as well as iron ore and other minerals from mines in the hinterland. This trim town of whitewashed houses nestling amid subtropical vegetation is one of the leading centers on the stretch of coast, so popular with holidaymakers, whose bountiful climate (with an average of 320 days of sun in the year) has earned it the name of Costa del Sol, the Sunshine Coast.
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