Almuñécar is set to make a major leap in luxury tourism with the construction of its first five-star hotel, the Daia Slow Beach Hotel La Herradura. Mayor Juan José Ruiz Joya has officially signed the building permit, clearing the way for this landmark project on the “A” plot of sector MP-96 along the scenic Paseo Andrés Segovia.

A historic milestone for La Herradura tourism

The approval ends more than two decades of administrative delays and complex procedures. Ruiz Joya called it “a historic day” for La Herradura, adding that the hotel proves the municipality’s potential as a world-class destination. The project is expected to attract international tourists while generating long-term economic benefits for the local community.

Luxury amenities and sustainable design

The Daia Slow Beach Hotel will offer 220 rooms and a host of luxury amenities, including a state-of-the-art spa, large swimming pools, poolside bars, and private palapas for massages and relaxation. The design emphasises integration with the surrounding natural environment, featuring 3,600 m² of green spaces, 3,917 m² of pedestrian-friendly roads, and 2,000 m² dedicated to cultural and educational facilities.

Boosting local economy and employment

With a budget nearing €14.7 million, the project is expected to create over 100 direct jobs during construction, with hundreds more in hospitality, retail, and maintenance. It has received approvals from health, environmental, agricultural, and tourism authorities, ensuring compliance with all regulations. Construction is scheduled for completion within 36 months, bringing a new era of high-end tourism to the Granada coastline.

Tourism, culture, and community benefits

Beyond luxury tourism, the hotel will act as a catalyst for local culture and community engagement. Plans include hosting events, cultural workshops, and wellness programmes open to residents and visitors alike. By combining tourism, leisure, and cultural initiatives, the Daia Slow Beach Hotel promises to enrich both the visitor experience and the quality of life for La Herradura’s community.

A new chapter for La Herradura hotels

The Daia Slow Beach Hotel La Herradura promises to position the area as a premier destination for luxury travellers in Spain. Residents and visitors alike can look forward to world-class facilities, transformative urban development, and a boost to the local economy.

Authorities in Alhaurin de la Torre have approved a wild boar hunt (batida) in the local sierra to address overpopulation of the species, which is causing major environmental, agricultural, and safety concerns.

Organised by the Sociedad de Cazadores ‘La Torre’, the hunt will take place on Saturday, January 17, between 7.30am and 4.30pm in the public hunting ground MA-10769 (La Mezquita–Arroyo Blanquillo, known as Sierra Llana). The council has warned the public to avoid the area, including paths such as Arroyo Blanquillo, Arroyo Zambrana, Jabalcuza (Pozo Povea zone), and Arroyo del Pinar, as well as any trails or access points used by hikers, cyclists, or nature enthusiasts. All recreational or sporting activities in the affected zone are prohibited during the event for safety reasons.

What is a boar “batida”?

A batida (also known as a driven hunt or battue in English) is a popular form of collective hunting in Spain, particularly for managing species like wild boar (jabalí), roe deer, or other game in wooded or mountainous areas. In a batida, a group of hunters divides into two main roles:

• Batidores (beaters): These participants move through the terrain, often with or without dogs, making noise to flush out and drive the animals from cover.
• Postores (shooters): Stationed in fixed positions along a line or perimeter, they wait to take shots as the game is pushed toward them.

This method is typically carried out in a single direction over a smaller area than other Spanish hunts like the montería (which uses more dogs and larger teams). It’s especially common in northern Spain

This action is authorised by the Junta de Andalucia under the framework of a temporary hunting emergency (emergencia cinegética temporal) declared across the entire Comunidad Autónoma de Andalucia. The measure targets overpopulation of wild boars (jabalíes) and feral pigs (cerdos asilvestrados), which have been causing substantial damage to agriculture, ecosystems, and road safety, alongside health risks including the prevention of African swine fever.

Declaration of emergency formally declared

The emergency was formally declared through a joint resolution on Friday, December 5, published in the Boletín Oficial de la Junta de Andalucía (BOJA), making it an approved local bylaw. It applies province-wide, including Malaga, and remains in force for the 2025/2026 hunting season, allowing exceptional methods such as batidas with no capture limits in many cases.

Similar controls have been implemented elsewhere in Malaga province. For example, within the city boundaries of Malaga, authorities have captured dozens of wild boars using archers and anaesthetic darts as part of urban control efforts, combined with monitoring and barriers to prevent animals from entering residential areas.

Official reports and news confirm that 45 wild boars were captured in Malaga city over one year using these methods.

In Mijas, hunters’ societies have conducted batidas in rural zones like Mancha El Molinillo to curb expansion, also under the regional emergency framework. The actions reflect a decade-long strategy by the Junta to manage growing wild boar populations across Andalucia.

The question has been hanging over Brussels for years, and now Spain’s foreign minister has put it back firmly on the table. Catalan, he says, will become an official language of the European Union – sooner or later.

Speaking on Catalunya Ràdio, Foreign Affairs Minister José Manuel Albares struck a calm but confident tone. He avoided giving deadlines and made it clear that talks are still ongoing, but his message was simple: recognition for Catalan, Basque and Galician is not a question of if, only when.

That confidence, however, comes against a backdrop of slow progress, quiet resistance from some EU countries and political tensions back home in Spain.

Why Spain is pushing the issue now

Albares’ argument is one he has repeated several times in recent months. Catalan is spoken by around 10 million people, he pointed out – more than some languages that already enjoy full official status within EU institutions.

From Spain’s point of view, that makes the current situation increasingly hard to justify. If Maltese or Irish can be used in European debates and documents, Madrid argues, then Catalan deserves the same treatment.

Behind the scenes, Spain has been holding meetings with countries that remain unconvinced. Albares acknowledged that some member states still have “doubts”, but asked for discretion, saying negotiations are delicate and ongoing.

What he did not do was name the countries blocking the move – a sign that Madrid is trying to avoid turning the issue into a public standoff.

Politics at home complicate the picture

While Albares avoided pointing fingers abroad, he was less restrained when it came to domestic politics. Without naming names at first, he criticised Spanish political actors who he says are actively working against the proposal.

Later, his remarks were widely understood to be aimed at the People’s Party (PP), which he accused of pressuring conservative-led governments across Europe to oppose the plan.

“That hurts me,” Albares said, adding that blocking Catalan’s recognition ultimately works against Spaniards themselves.

The issue is closely tied to Spanish parliamentary politics. The push to make Catalan an official EU language forms part of a political agreement between the Socialist Party and the Catalan pro-independence party Junts, which supported the election of Francina Armengol as Speaker of Congress.

For critics, that link weakens the credibility of the proposal. For supporters, it simply reflects the reality of coalition politics in Spain.

Why it’s taking so long

Making a language official at EU level is not a symbolic gesture. It carries financial, legal and administrative consequences, from translation services to parliamentary procedures.

Crucially, the decision requires unanimous approval from all 27 member states. That means a single country can stall the process indefinitely.

Some governments are wary of the costs involved. Others fear that recognising Catalan could encourage similar demands from regional languages within their own borders.

That helps explain why, despite Spain’s lobbying, progress has been slow – and why Albares was careful not to promise quick results.

What happens next

For now, Catalan remains outside the EU’s list of official languages. Albares offered no timeline and no guarantees, only a clear sense of direction.

Spain will continue negotiating. Resistance will likely remain. And the final decision, whenever it comes, will be as political as it is cultural.

Still, the message from Madrid is clear: this is not a passing demand. Whether it takes months or years, Spain intends to keep pressing until Catalan – along with Basque and Galician – finally gains a seat at Europe’s linguistic table.

And in Brussels, where patience is often the currency of progress, that may be exactly how change eventually happens.

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