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HOME > MURCIA MAR MENOR & CARTAGENA > LA MANGA DEL MAR MENOR
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La Manga del Mar Menor Today
La Manga del Mar Menor – an introduction
It seems incredible now, but until approximately 60 years ago La Manga del Mar Menor was of interest almost exclusively to geographers, who knew it as a 22-kilometre spit of land which protrudes from the headland of Cabo de Palos and encloses the Mar Menor, the saltwater lagoon which, with an area of 170 square kilometres, is the largest in Europe.
When the Civil War ended in 1939 there was barely any evidence of human activity on La Manga, apart from a couple of windmills and the archaeological remains, both on land and offshore, which provide evidence that humans have lived in the area for thousands of years.
How times have changed. In the 1960s the first tourist infrastructures and high-rise blocks were built, and in the course of just a couple of decades La Manga went from an all but unknown landscape feature to one of the busiest beach reports in Spain, attracting tens of thousands of summer visitors from all over Spain every year.
At the same time, La Manga Club, which is not on the narrow spit itself but near the village of Los Belones, close to Cabo de Palos, made sure that the name of La Manga was known internationally, and at the end of the twentieth century the number of foreign residents living on the “strip” rose and the year-round population increased as a consequence. By 2013 the population was reported to be just over 17,000.
La Manga today is without any doubt one of the most cosmopolitan places in the Region of Murcia and the Costa Cálida, with the only possible exceptions being La Manga Club and the airport! The permanent population is sufficient to support a variety of businesses and there are both primary and secondary schools, and despite the administrative ambiguity caused by it falling into the territories governed by two Town Halls (San Javier and Cartagena) it is a town in its own right, albeit an unusual one.
The main north-south road which runs the length of La Manga is an essential part of life here, and is the spine which joins all of the community together (although it becomes very crowded in summer). The geography of the spit is such that inevitably the southern end receives more visitors and was the first part to be developed, simply because it’s the first area where visitors arrive from the mainland. The first developments here included the Torre Varadero and the Torre Zeus, which are still the two tallest buildings in the municipality of Cartagena, and shopping centres and a plethora and bars and restaurants arrived with the first summer visitors. These are still in evidence and are replicated in varying styles all along the spit, although with less intensity at the far northern end where the land peters out opposite the regional park of the wetlands and salt flats of San Pedro del Pinatar.
The resort still attracts hordes of visitors every summer, and will continue to do so for as long as it resists the threat posed by global warning and rising sea levels. The reasons for this are various, but the most important are without a doubt the beaches and the water sports on offer in the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean.
The choice between the calm water of the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean just a short walk away is one which offers something for practically everyone, and all along its length the beaches of La Manga are sandy and clean. At the same time three marinas in the Mar Menor provide mooring for over 2,000 boats, and for those learning to sail, water-ski or become an expert in countless other aquatic sports the Mar Menor is an ideal training ground: not only are high waves unknown, but at the same time there is normally a strong breeze throughout the year, although of course there are days in summer when this is absent.
It has to be said that La Manga is not liked by everyone. The fact that it was born as a town so recently means that it inevitably lacks the historical importance and traditions of other parts of the Costa Cálida, and of course there are no old buildings or quaint winding streets to give the place what is often referred to as “character”.
But on the other hand, La Manga del Mar Menor has a character of its own, and it makes an important contribution not only to the tourism sector of the regional economy but also to the variety of the Region of Murcia and the Costa Cálida: no-one should claim to have seen Murcia if they haven’t visited La Manga!
La Manga del Mar Menor – an introduction
La Manga del Mar Menor is one of the most important summer holiday destinations in the Murcia Region.
It seems incredible now, but until approximately 60 years ago La Manga del Mar Menor was of interest almost exclusively to geographers, who knew it as a 22-kilometre spit of land which protrudes from the headland of Cabo de Palos and encloses the Mar Menor, the saltwater lagoon which, with an area of 170 square kilometres, is the largest in Europe.
When the Civil War ended in 1939 there was barely any evidence of human activity on La Manga, apart from a couple of windmills and the archaeological remains, both on land and offshore, which provide evidence that humans have lived in the area for thousands of years.
How times have changed. In the 1960s the first tourist infrastructures and high-rise blocks were built, and in the course of just a couple of decades La Manga went from an all but unknown landscape feature to one of the busiest beach reports in Spain, attracting tens of thousands of summer visitors from all over Spain every year.
At the same time, La Manga Club, which is not on the narrow spit itself but near the village of Los Belones, close to Cabo de Palos, made sure that the name of La Manga was known internationally, and at the end of the twentieth century the number of foreign residents living on the “strip” rose and the year-round population increased as a consequence. By 2013 the population was reported to be just over 17,000.
La Manga today is without any doubt one of the most cosmopolitan places in the Region of Murcia and the Costa Cálida. The permanent population is sufficient to support a variety of businesses and there are both primary and secondary schools, and despite the administrative ambiguity caused by it falling into the territories governed by two Town Halls (San Javier and Cartagena) it is a town in its own right, albeit an unusual one.
The main north-south road which runs the length of La Manga is an essential part of life here, and is the spine which joins all of the community together (although it becomes very crowded in summer). The geography of the spit is such that inevitably the southern end, which starts at Km0 by Cabo de Palos receives more visitors and was the first part to be developed, simply because it’s the first area where visitors arrive from the mainland. The first developments here included the Torre Varadero and the Torre Zeus, which are still the two tallest buildings in the municipality of Cartagena, and shopping centres and a plethora and bars and restaurants arrived with the first summer visitors. These are still in evidence and are replicated in varying styles all along the spit, although with less intensity at the far northern end where the land peters out opposite the regional park of the wetlands and salt flats of San Pedro del Pinatar.
The resort still attracts hordes of visitors every summer, and although the reasons for this are various, the most important are without a doubt the beaches and the water sports on offer in the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean.
The choice between the calm water of the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean just a short walk away is one which offers something for practically everyone, and all along its length the beaches of La Manga are sandy and clean. At the same time three marinas in the Mar Menor provide mooring for over 2,000 boats, and for those learning to sail, water-ski or become an expert in countless other aquatic sports the Mar Menor is an ideal training ground:
not only are high waves unknown, but at the same time there is normally a strong breeze throughout the year, although of course there are days in summer when this is absent.
There is also a regular ferry service from La Manga across to San Pedro del Pinatar and San Javier.
It has to be said that La Manga is not liked by everyone. The fact that it was born as a town so recently means that it inevitably lacks the historical importance and traditions of other parts of the Costa Cálida, and of course there are no old buildings or quaint winding streets to give the place what is often referred to as “character”.
But on the other hand, La Manga del Mar Menor has a character of its own, and it makes an important contribution not only to the tourism sector of the regional economy but also to the variety of the Region of Murcia and the Costa Cálida: each summer thousands of visitors flock to this area enjoying the combination of the calm waters of the Mar Menor and just a few metres away, the open beaches of the Mediterranean.
Where is La Manga del Mar Menor?
La Manga del Mar Menor is divided between the municipalities of Cartagena and San Javier, located on the southern coast of the Region of Murcia. The La Manga "strip" is 21 km long, and hotel locations will be labelled, for example Km6. This means the hotel is 6km from the start of the La Manga strip at Cabo de Palos.There are regular bus services to Cartagena and ferry services across to San Pedro del Pinatar and San Javier.La Manga del Mar Menor has beaches in both municipalities ( Click San Javier beaches and Cartagena beaches) with Mar Menor beaches on one side and Mediterranean beaches on the other.
Click for map, La Manga del Mar Menor
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LA MANGA DEL MAR MENOR
Local news and Whats On La MangaMar Menor, things to doProperty Mar Menor areaHistory and local informationShopping and marketsLocal services, facilitiesTourist Information OfficesMedical and Doctors informationWhere to Eat La Manga StripChurches, fiestas and traditionsBeaches La Manga del Mar MenorShopping and marketsAccommodation La Manga del Mar MenorSports facilities and eventsTransportPolice, Town hall, Useful InfoBeaches La Manga del Mar Menor Webpage

Decomposed body of a woman washes up on beach in CartagenaThe corpse was found on the shore in La Manga del Mar Menor, in the Region of Murcia The body of a woman in an advanced state of decomposition has washed up in La Manga del Mar Menor, Cartagena, and police believe the corpse could have been in the.. 08/08/2022

Fur flies over new Cartagena dog beachesResidents are concerned that owners won’t pick up after their pets, further jeopardising the Mar Menor While animal lovers across the Region have welcomed the decision to open up two of Cartagena’s beaches to dogs at the end of the summer.. 08/08/2022

5 Mar Menor chiringuitos to be forcibly closed down for only serving customers who don’t use the beachThe five beach bars are accused of not opening in the mornings to beach users as they should, and of polluting the Mar Menor The coastal authority ‘Costas’, which rules on matters relating to Cartagena’s coastline and beaches, has.. 05/08/2022

Revealed: list of the 100 most expensive places to buy and rent in Spain (and some of them may surprise you)A billionaire’s playground on the Costa del Sol where Putin has a house tops the ranking, but five coastal towns in Murcia and Alicante also make the list A recent ranking of the 100 most expensive towns and cities to buy and rent a home in.. 04/08/2022

Cartagena chiringuito among the 25 best beach bars in Spain, according to ForbesLa Cangreja, located on Galúa beach in La Manga, is among the 25 beach bars selected by Forbes magazine One of the most popular summer destinations is the beach. Enjoying a swim, the sand and the sun is one of the most best bits of summer.. 04/08/2022

Are house prices really falling around the Mar Menor because of pollution?A new report has found that the poor state of the Mar Menor has not affected property prices in the area, but they are still below pre-pandemic levels Contrary to the rumour mill, the problems of pollution in the Mar Menor do not seem to have affected.. 03/08/2022

Cartagena police arrest drunk driver, 64, who hit cyclist in La MangaThe 64-year-old was over the limit when he drove into a cyclist on the La Manga strip The Cartagena Local Police have arrested a 64-year-old driver who hit a cyclist with his car on Gran Vía de La Manga. Officers reported that.. 03/08/2022

The Lagomar ghost building in San Javier will finally be demolished over a decade laterEyesore in La Manga will be slowly dismantled piece by piece over the next six months to avoid damaging the environment The Lagomar building, the so-called ‘edificio fantasma’ or ghost building in San Javier, could finally be demolished.. 02/08/2022

52-year-old drowns on La Manga beachEmergency services were unable to save the man from going into cardiorespiratory arrest on the beach this weekend A 52-year-old man drowned on the beach of Las Amoladeras in La Manga del Mar Menor yesterday, Sunday July 31. The Emergency.. 01/08/2022

Cartagena opens two more dog-friendly beachesTwo beaches in Los Nietos and La Manga will soon allow owners to bathe and swim with their dogs There is more good news for animal lovers in the pet-friendly Region of Murcia as the beaches of La Lengua de la Vaca in Los Nietos and Los Alemanes in.. 01/08/2022

The Mar Menor is hotter than it has ever been beforeThe temperature of the lagoon has reached 31.25ºC – the highest since 2016 The temperature of the water in the Mar Menor is already well above the maximum values recorded in this current historical series and now stands at 31.25º.. 01/08/2022

Top beaches to visit in Murcia, Spain: Ultimate Costa Calida beach guideVisit the top beaches on Spain’s Costa Cálida in Murcia The Costa Cálida on Spain’s southeast coast has hundreds of the highest quality beaches in the country, if not in Europe. The Costa Cálida – which literally..

San Pedro, San Javier and Los Alcazares will have bus connections to the airportThere will be a bus line between the Mar Menor towns and Corvera airport, but no date has been set yet Bus company Movibus has announced this Friday, July 29, that it will include a new bus connection between San Pedro del Pinatar, San Javier, Los.. 29/07/2022

Fish are dying: No water at the UGOLF Mar Menor Golf resort in Torre PachecoThe Murcia golf course is closed and the lakes drying up after the water supply was cut, but it is not clear why Mar Menor Golf Resort Lake, Monday July 18, 2022 The Mar Menor is no stranger to mountains of dead fish. We all remember.. 21/07/2022

ANSE receives backing to re-open salt production in the Mar Menor flats of MarchamaloThe Resalar project aims to reactivate salt production in Marchamalo and restore the natural environment When the naturalists organization ANSE purchased a plot of land in the old salt flats of Marchamalo at the southern end of the Mar Menor in 2019 the project..

Micasamo Realty is coming to the UK for 1-on-1 meetings about moving to Spain and buying propertyBook your slot to sit down with the property experts and find out everything you need to know before purchasing a home in Spain Micasamo Realty, the top real estate company on the Costa Cálida and Costa Blanca in Spain, will be coming to the UK..
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