Antigua Venta de San Antonio

HIDDEN below one of the ancient coaching routes inland from Malaga - and miles from any town - you miss this lovely old chestnut at your peril. A classic throwback to the past, the antigua venta was apparently once patronised by Cervantes when he worked as a roving tax inspector for the Spanish government.

It is certainly one of the last original coaching inns left exactly how it was. Beautifully restored by its Malaga-based owners, it is atmospheric in the extreme.

Everything is as it once was, from the enormous wooden doors, to the courtyard filled with feeding and drinking troughs where the travellers tethered their horses. The ancient floors, windows, fireplaces and arches are all still here, and the place stays incredibly cool in summer.

Beside a river, bubbling through the winter, and some enchanting rolling hills, this is also a good place to also stop for the night, with cheap and simple rooms upstairs.