Balcón de Europa

The Balcón is built on the platform of a coastal fort that once guarded this stretch, and it juts out far enough that the sea wraps around three sides of it. Palms line the walk, a white balustrade closes the end, and two small beaches — Calahonda and El Salón — sit directly below with fishing boats pulled up on the sand.

The classic frame is taken from the balustrade looking back along the palms, or from the steps down to Calahonda looking up at the terrace. Down on the sand there are arches cut through the rock and a jumble of old walls that give a completely different, more intimate set two minutes from the crowd.

It faces south, so the light is even most of the day rather than raking. Sunrise is the best hour by a distance: the terrace is empty apart from a few locals, the boats are still, and the sea is the colour of tin before it turns blue.

By ten in the morning it is a busy promenade, and in August it stays busy until midnight. Nothing here requires a permit, but a tripod in the middle of the walkway will not make you popular — a photographer who works Nerja knows the quiet corners of it.