Our story

We are Raquel and Marcos.

We spent much of our lives in big cities across different countries. Travelling and meeting people from different backgrounds have always been part of who we are.

Raquel at the finca

Raquel

Marcos beside the pomegranate tree

Marcos

For a long time, we imagined a different rhythm of life closer to nature, with more freedom to use our time with intention.

That search brought us to an old finca in southern Spain. When we first saw its terraces, mountains and open views of the sea, we felt that the life we had imagined could be possible here. We arrived with little experience and no set plan. Since then, the finca has become our greatest classroom, teaching us what it means to tend a place that was here before us and will remain long after us.

Caring for this place has changed us, and sharing it with others has become part of its purpose. Today, we welcome people to spend time together, learn from the land and bring their own perspectives. We hope everyone leaves with something of their own: a fresh perspective or a small seed that grows in its own time.

The contoured agroforestry terraces seen from above

The land

Regeneration, lived on the land.

Cielo Andaluz sits on old agricultural terraces in the hills of Granada’s Costa Tropical. When we arrived, much of the land was an abandoned almond grove. The ground was often bare, and few other plants grew among the trees.

We are gradually transforming the terraces through syntropic agroforestry. We plant different species together, keep the soil covered and return pruned material to the ground. In a dry climate, this work takes time and careful use of water. We are learning what grows well here as the land changes.

The same approach shapes how we welcome people. We do not reshape the finca around tourism; we shape the way we host around the reality of the place. We keep hospitality small in scale and invite people into a working landscape rather than creating a separate version of it for visitors.

On the terraces

The old almond grove on the terraces
The almond grove
Cut material returned to the ground to keep the soil covered
Keeping the soil covered
Vegetables growing between the trees
Growing food
Habitat taking shape among the planting
Creating habitat
Different species growing together on a terrace
Improving biodiversity
Fruit picked on the land
Harvesting fruits
What the season gives, gathered from the finca
What the season gives