The village of La Herradura lies to the eastern end of the bay where the main N340 road comes closest to the sea. To the west of town, heading towards the mouth of the Rio Jate, development is not so built up and there are fewer services. Then there is a narrow road off the paseo leads 100 m to the Castillo de la Herradura where you can find Watchtowers & Coastal Defences. At the end of the beach, in the shadow of Cerro Gordo, there’s a camping, dive centre, hostal and a few restaurants.
Here the Rio Jate winds quickly into the hills past occasional clusters of farmhouses and a few holiday properties. There are few residential developments inland of the road, but they include two of the oldest and best known urbanisations – San Antonio and San Nicolás, both built in traditional pueblo style. Small orchards pocket the narrow valley floor as it twists and rises off the coast towards the beautiful inland area of El Rescate and Peña Escrita.
