Check Out These Must Visit Cities During Your Stay at Palatinum Golf Spa and Sport Resort

Cartagena
Cartagena can be found in the central area of Costa Calida and is just beginning to boom in the tourism industry. While visiting Cartagena be sure to visit its very busy harbor, and although it’s not the most conventional tourist attraction, you will definitely be amused by the vast amount of nets on the wharf, the many different vessels of fishermen, and the amounts of fish caught fresh from the sea, which are later served in the city’s hundreds of restaurants and houses.

One of the best times to visit the City of Cartagena is during a festival. If you visit during Holy Week you will see the streets of Cartagena come alive as the whole town transforms to carnival mode. Another festival to watch for is Cartagineses Y Romanos. During this festival, the local people reenact the historical battles between the Carthaginians and Romans by dressing in costumes and building a whole camp that resembles the Old Cartagena.

While in Cartagena also be sure to stroll through the remarkable parks and plazas, learn the history of the area in the local museums, and enjoy the area’s culinary specialties in one of the many restaurants or cafés.

Lorca
Lorca is the third largest city in Murcia, after the cities of Murcia and Cartagena, and has a population of about 90,000 inhabitants. It is located on the southwestern part of the province of Murcia, close to the boundary with Almeria. It is also close to the Guadalentin River and is known as the City of the Sun.
The Romans founded the city with the name of Eliocroca and during the Visigothic rule, the name changed to Lurga.

The Moors then took over the area until the city was conquered by Alfonso X. During the re-conquest, Lorca was a border city between the Kingdom of Castile and the Moorish Kingdom of Granada. After Granada was conquered, the city of Lorca became prosperous.

The city is dominated by the Castle of Lorca, which was built by the Moors in the 13th century, and is situated on the highest hill overlooking the city.

Aguilas
The City of Aguilas, once known as Urci in the Roman times, is located in the southern part of Murcia and close to the border. It has a population of about 28,000 inhabitants.

The City of Aguilas began to prosper at the end of the 18th century, due to the fact that the City of Lorca needed a port to ship its products, so Aguilas was used for this purpose. Then at the end of the 19th century, the port was used to ship iron ore that a British mining company was exploiting. In 1903, the British South Easter Railway Company built a special pier to load the ships with the iron ore.

If you are looking for some great sites in the city of Aguilas be sure to check out the many fine beaches, as well as the hill overlooking the city which is occupied by a castle called the Castle of St. John of the Eagles. Another particular point of interest is the Archaeological Museum.

Mazarron
The City of Mazarron lies between the cities of Aguilas and Cartagena, which has a population of about 19,000 inhabitants. The city is very well known for its production of garum. The town houses a museum called the Factoria Romana de Salazones de Mazarron, which shows how the Romans first made the garum.

This museum even still has the original pits used to make this sauce that the Romans loved! In order to make garum, first the insides of some types of fish were cut into small pieces and allowed to decompose partly, which was helped by the digestive enzymes of the fish. Salt was then added to prevent decay. The pits and tanks were used to transform it to a sauce and then the sauce was filtered to separate the liquid, which was called garum. This was a very big business along the Mediterranean coasts.