No more driving range anxiety: with an extensive service network, taking your Tesla on a road trip to discover Andalucía is now not only viable, but completely stress-free. We’ve put together a list of the most spectacular destinations that double as charging points for your electric car.
Article by Anastasia Sukhanov
Just weeks ago Tesla, the luxury electric vehicles company, opened its fifth Spanish showroom on the MA-20 in Málaga. The superstore follows Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and Sevilla who already have their own Tesla dealerships. Closely associated with its controversial visionary founder Elon Musk, Tesla’s brand is synonymous with the spirit of invention, pushing of boundaries and the sooner than expected arrival of the future.
The Costa del Sol is one the main markets for Tesla in Spain with three models currently on offer. Moreover, Tesla Model 3 is the best-selling electric car in the whole country, having already sold over 1,000 of them in 2021 and overtaken Renault, KIA, Seat and Volkswagen.
With Tesla cars no longer being a sight akin to a spaceship, its charging station network is being rapidly expanded too. The longest driving range Tesla can provide is just under 450 km, which is already quite a reasonable distance for any adventure. Better still, Andalucía is dotted with charging points, including several Tesla superchargers, which can recharge up to 300 km in just 15 minutes.
We have put together a list of Tesla charging points which can be linked together into a full-fledged road trip or visited separately, showing just how easy it is to explore the hidden corners of Andalucía from the comfort of your luxurious and environmentally friendly vehicle.
Sevilla
Tesla Supercharger: Calle Camino de los Descubrimientos
Sevilla is a feast of colours, a city that feels metropolitan despite the heavily layered Spanish history. It’s a place to linger in and explore, despite its relatively small size. To give just the short list, Sevilla is home to: the Royal Tobacco Factory, where Prosper Mérimée’s Carmen was a cigar maker; Palacio de las Dueñas, residence of Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, the scandalous Duchess of Alba, now opened to the public; Alcázar, a registered UNESCO World Heritage Site that is recognized as the oldest royal palace in Europe still in use, which portrayed the capital of Dorne in the Game of Thrones series; and Cerviceria Giralda, possibly the most epic casual eatery where one can grab a beer within the walls of the recently discovered 12th century Islamic hammam.
Mijas
Tesla Supercharger: Higueron Hotel Malaga, Avenida del Higueron 48
The village of Mijas consists of three urban centres: Mijas Pueblo, located at the foot of the Sierra at 430 metres above sea level, Las Lagunas, which is the modern part of the town along Fuengirola and La Cala, located on the seafront with more than 12km of coastline. Unlike the leisurely beaches of Marbella and Tarifa, Mijas features a lot of small bays with tricky access points, making it completely possible to have a stretch of coastline entirely to yourself. Meanwhile, the town itself is the birthplace of the donkey-taxi, offering must-do tourist rides around its narrow streets, especially beloved by kids. Fittingly, one of the main streets also houses a small chocolate factory, offering hour-long courses to children as young as two years old. Not much can rival the process of decorating a couple of your own chocolate bars with a dozen different toppings and getting to eat them afterwards!
Jerez de la Frontera
Tesla Supercharger: Ronda Aurora Boreal
Steeped in sherry, horses and flamenco, the city of Jerez de la Frontera should not be missed if you’re travelling to southern Spain. The town is home to the Tío Pepe winery, one of the most recognised Spanish brands. Today, the fifth generation still run the company as a family business, spreading their passion for wine to over a hundred countries all over the world. The tour and tasting sessions at the winery might take up an entire day, so if you want to explore the old town, it makes sense to stay the night. Next day you might want to visit barrio of Santiago, the gypsy neighborhood that gave birth to several flamenco stars, or watch an equestrian ballet staged by the Real Escual Andaluza del Arte Ecuestra with its finest pure-bred Spanish horses. If you wanted to know what Andalusia is like in just a day, Jerez de la Frontera would be the place to savour its essence.
Ronda
Tesla charging point: Hotel La Fuente de la Higuera
The town of Ronda is just over an hour – and a whole world away – from the beach resorts of Costa Del Sol. Ronda is one of Spain’s oldest towns, first settled by the Celts and later by the Romans and Moors. It was a favourite with the 19th century viajeros romanticos (romantic travellers) – Orson Welles, Alexander Dumas and Ernest Hemingway have stopped by in their search for inspiration in Europe’s less travelled destinations. At the heart of Ronda is the El Tajo gorge, a rocky drop plummeting over 100 metres to the Guadalevín River. It is this natural phenomenon that serves a backdrop for Puente Nuevo, the bridge that is Ronda’s most famous postcard shot with columns stretching 120 metres down into the depths of the gorge.
A few minutes’ walk away and built by the same architect is Plaza de Toros – one of Spain’s oldest and most impressive bullrings. With a capacity for 5000 people, it almost seems fit for gladiator fights, although its real modern history is no less impressive: it was here that Madonna filmed her “Take a bow” music video portraying the bereft lover of a famous bullfighter. For a stunning view of the bullring, head to Hotel Catalonia’s rooftop bar, situated directly opposite the bullring’s main entrance.
For an idyllic getaway, you might consider staying at Hotel La Fuente de la Higuera. This hidden oasis of green is based in a centuries-old millhouse surrounded by olive groves. With sweeping Tuscan-like pool views and breakfast croissants tastier than in a Parisian boulangerie, this elegantly furnished hotel also has two Tesla charging points. Tradition meets tech, what more could one ask for?
Find the full list of Tesla charging points, services stations and showrooms here.
