TUCKED away in the mountains of Malaga is a tiny village that was abandoned for five decades.
El Acebuchal was only rediscovered in the late 90s and brought back to life.
The little white-washed village was once used by travelling merchants for hundreds of years as a place to meet and transport goods between the Costa del Sol and Granada.
The village was small and home to around 200 people.
But in 1949, the village was officially closed by the Spanish leader at the time, Francisco Franco.
He believed that those who lived there opposed his regime, so he sent officials in to disperse the village residents.
It remained a ghost town until 1998 when Antonio Sanchez or ‘El Zumbo’, who once had ancestors in the village, moved there.
He and his family began to rebuild houses where everything was restored by hand.
The village didn’t even have running water or electricity until 2003.
Now, the village has around 30 homes, a chapel and restaurant called Bar El Acebuchal which is actually run by Antonio Sanchez himself.
It’s slightly off the beaten track according to diners, but well-worth it for the food.
Lots of the homes are holiday rentals – there’s also a B&B in the village called ‘The Lost Village el Acebuchal’ which is highly-rated on Tripadvisor.
It has just three rooms along with a roof terrace, seasonal outdoor pool and there are even spa services.
One visitor described it as “a 1950s movie scene” and another described it as a “hideaway”.
The village isn’t overly modern with limited phone signal.
A popular hiking route is between Acebuchal and Frigiliana which stretches on for about eight miles.
Frigiliana is another place to add to the list, as it is considered one of the most beautiful villages in Spain.
It has white-washed buildings, bright blue accents, terracotta tiled rooftops and mosaic streets.
The steep paths are lined with colourful plant pots full of greenery with blooming flowers like the classic Mediterranean pink bougainvillea.
The town was built on top of a hill so it has incredible views of the Costa del Sol and Mediterranean Sea.