The road from Cabo de Palos to Cartagena passes below a range of scarred, oddly coloured hills: the Sierra Minera. Carthaginians and Romans mined silver and lead here on a vast scale, and a second boom in the nineteenth century created the town of La Unión almost overnight. The last mines closed in 1991, leaving headframes, chimneys, washing plants and open pits scattered over the landscape.
La Unión has turned part of that legacy into a visitor attraction, and it makes a worthwhile half-day, especially combined with Cartagena.
Top things to do: La Unión Mining Park
Parque Minero and the Agrupa Vicenta mine
A road train carries visitors up a valley of restored mining remains to the Mina Agrupa Vicenta, where a guided walk leads through large underground galleries to a small lake coloured by minerals. Visits are guided and at fixed times; book ahead in busy periods and bring a layer, as it is cool below ground.
The Old Public Market
An iron-and-glass modernist market hall of 1907, the town’s finest building. Each August it becomes the stage of the Festival Internacional del Cante de las Minas, one of the most important competitions in flamenco, which grew out of the songs miners brought here from Andalusia.
Mining Museum
A small museum in the town centre with minerals, tools and models that explain how the mines worked.
Portmán bay
Over the hill, the fishing village of Portmán looks out on a bay that was filled in by mine tailings pumped into the sea between the 1950s and 1990 — one of the Mediterranean’s worst cases of industrial pollution. The original shoreline is now hundreds of metres inland. Restoration has been planned and started more than once.
How to get to La Unión Mining Park
- La Unión is about 20 kilometres from Cabo de Palos, just off the RM-12, some 20 minutes by car. The mining park entrance is signposted on the edge of town.
- A scenic back road continues over the hills to Portmán and on to the western end of Calblanque.
Insider tips
- The mine visit involves walking on uneven ground; closed shoes are required.
- Check opening days: the park does not run every day out of season.
- Do not explore abandoned workings on your own. Shafts are unmarked and spoil heaps are contaminated.
- Festival tickets for the August flamenco finals sell out; book well ahead.
Best tours: La Unión Mining Park
These top-rated experiences are the easiest way to see La Unión Mining Park:
Combo ticket from €20 Cartagena: Roman Theater, Forum, Castle and Panoramic Lift
One ticket for four of Cartagena’s main sights: the Roman Theatre and its museum, the Roman Forum Museum, the panoramic lift and the Concepción Castle on the hill above the port. With close to 900 reviews it is by far the most-booked product within reach of Cabo de Palos, and the obvious choice for a windy or cloudy day.
- Roman Theatre Museum
- Roman Forum Museum
- Panoramic lift and Concepción Castle
Day trip from €55 From Murcia: Cabo de Palos and Cartagena with Entry to the Roman Theater
The only bookable day trip that actually brings you to Cabo de Palos from elsewhere: a coach excursion from Murcia that combines Cartagena, including the Roman Theatre, with time by the sea in Cabo de Palos. A new listing without reviews when we checked.
- Transport from Murcia city
- Roman Theatre entry included
- Free time in Cabo de Palos
Sightseeing bus from €8 Cartagena, Spain: Panoramic Double-Decker Bus Tour
A sightseeing bus circuit of Cartagena with commentary, useful for reaching viewpoints and outlying sights without walking uphill in the heat. Ratings are good rather than great.
- Open-top double-decker
- Commentary on the city
- Free time in the historic centre
