Some artisans in Casares are third- or fourth-generation makers. Skills are passed from parent to child, often without written instructions, maintaining a strong oral and tactile learning tradition.
Why Casares? Casares doesn’t sell itself like Marbella or show off like Puerto Banús. It doesn’t have to. The whitewashed village perched above the Mediterranean is a place that trades in the quiet confidence of craft. The kind that lasts longer than trends. The kind made by hands that know what they’re doing.
The village has Roman roots, Moorish architecture, and the kind of hilltop silence that makes you think slower. Julio César is said to have bathed in the sulphur springs nearby, and the same winding paths lead you past lime-painted houses today. The setting itself is part of the experience—steep climbs, the scent of wild herbs, and views that roll all the way to Gibraltar. It feels old in the best sense of the word.
Walk down Calle Villa and you’ll pass old men on benches, nodding slowly at the sun, and shops where everything inside has a story—often older than the shop itself. This is a place for people who want to own something real. Not mass-produced. Not algorithm-approved. Real.
- Entre Arcos: Where Craft Meets Legacy
Entre Arcos is a good place to start. Tucked into a cool corner of the village at Calle Villa 58B, this shop looks modest from the outside. Inside, it’s a shrine to the handmade. Leather sandals with weathered soles. Carved olivewood bowls. Handbags with stitching straighter than your life plan. They offer everything from wooden toys to home décor.
The store is located near the Puerta de la Villa, part of the old city entrance where traders and families once passed through daily. The stone walls are thick, cool, and echo a kind of dignity that suits the objects sold within.
- Address: Calle Villa, 58B, Casares, Málaga, Spain
- Phone: +34 630 955 744
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: Entre Arcos on Turismo Casares
- Casares Craft Club: Creativity in Conversation
Next is the Casares Craft Club, less of a shop, more of a low-key creative rebellion. Local makers set up tables here with prints, candles, ceramics, preserves, you name it. No pushy pitch. Just proud creators who’ll happily tell you how they made it—usually over coffee. Events often happen at Sunset Restaurant near Casares Golf.
They host themed events from time to time—spring flowers, autumn olive harvests, or even Christmas crafts with mulled wine and carols sung in Spanish and English. For visitors, it's a casual but rich way to connect. Ask questions, and you might get a recipe, a story, or an invitation to a workshop.
- WhatsApp: +34 621 357 898 (Linda)
- Instagram: @casarescraftclub
Facebook: Casares Craft Club
Visiting in November or February allows for longer conversations with artisans, who are less busy and often more open to sharing stories or even spontaneous demonstrations.
Degusta Casares: A Festival of Senses
Then comes spring, and with it, the Degusta Casares Festival. Part food, part art, part people-watching goldmine. It’s not for influencers. It’s for those who like cheese made by someone whose name they’ll remember, or honey you can still taste the orange blossoms in. There are tastings, live music, open studios. Workshops on how to make goat’s cheese or throw a pot that doesn’t collapse on the wheel.
Historically, this festival grew from local fairs that focused on olive oil, goats’ milk, and other agricultural products. It was the town’s way of celebrating what they did best. Now it’s a curated mix of those roots with a modern, collaborative twist. If you visit, wear good shoes—Casares’ streets aren’t flat—and bring cash. Many vendors don’t take cards.
Everyday Artisans: The Village As Workshop
But you don’t need to wait for a festival. Wander any day and you’ll find ateliers down side streets where people still paint tile by tile. Woven blankets folded on chairs that look like they’ve held the same posture since 1840. A ceramic vase that reminds you not everything needs to be minimalist to be beautiful.
Visitors should take their time. Start with a morning coffee in the main square, ask a local where to find the painters or weavers, and go without a map. The unexpected finds tend to be the best ones. Many shops open late morning and may close for siesta—so plan accordingly.
Taller de Arte Casares: Watch Craft Happen
For serious collectors or the newly converted, Taller de Arte Casares is another stop worth making. A small working studio where you can see local artists in the act of creation—whether it’s hand-formed pottery, fine woodwork, or mosaic tiling rooted in Moorish tradition.
- Location: Casares, Málaga, Spain
- Note: Best visited in person or via local tourist office due to limited online presence.
Don’t be shy about walking in. The artists often welcome respectful onlookers, and many will chat if they’re not in the middle of a glaze or a delicate carving. Some sell directly from the studio at prices better than what you’d find elsewhere.
Saturday Market: Where Life is Bartered and Bought
The Saturday Market in the town square is another layer to Casares’ appeal. You’ll find vintage items alongside fresh figs, local cheese next to oil paintings, and someone who’ll tell you which hill to walk for the best sunset while they weigh your oranges. It’s tactile, talkative, and uncurated in the best way.
Arrive early for the best selection. Bring a bag and don’t be afraid to haggle gently—it’s expected, within reason. For foodies, the cheese stands and local wine sellers are standouts.
Why Craft Still Matters
Casares does this thing, quietly. It keeps craft alive without turning it into performance. And you, as a visitor or new local, get to be part of it. You get to support the person who made your kitchen table bowl or the painting above your new fireplace in the finca outside town. Not out of obligation. Out of a kind of mutual respect.
It’s also a practical decision. These pieces are one-offs. You won’t find them anywhere else. And as more of the world speeds up, there’s something grounding about buying an item that took days—or even weeks—to finish. You’ll look at it differently. You'll probably keep it longer. And if you live here, you’ll likely meet the person who made it again in the café, eating a tostada and watching the world go by.
A Lifestyle Rooted in the Real
Buying local in Casares isn’t a trend. It’s what people here have always done. It’s how things are passed down. It’s how people stay. If you’re moving to the Costa del Sol and looking for more than sun and square footage, Casares offers that other kind of wealth: community, craft, and continuity.
Come See It For Yourself
If you’re curious, come up for the day. Or make a weekend of it. Stay in a guesthouse where the water tastes of the mountains and the walls are cool in summer. See what’s being made. Speak to the makers. Take a notebook, take your time. And take something home that won’t need replacing next year.
Interested in Moving Here? Want to live in a place where life is still made by hand? Let us help you find a property in Casares or nearby that makes it possible. Visit ultimate-lifestyles.com to browse listings that offer not just homes, but a way in.
- Email: [email protected]
- Phone: +34 951 12 07 12