Mazarrón beaches: Playa de la Reya

Also known as Playa de la Rella and Playa de Junta de dos Mares

The Playa de la Reya is an urban Mediterranean beach, one of a line of 33 along the 35-kilometre coastline of Mazarrón between the municipalities of Cartagena and Lorca. 

It is a long, curving semi-urban stretch of sand which adjoins Playa Bahía, Playa de la Pava and the Cabezo de Gavilanes viewing point, located 1.9 kilometres from the centre of Puerto de Mazarrón and is easily accessed from Avenida D. José Alarcón Palacios, which forms part of the long coastal road linking the town to Bolnuevo.

This area is lined with residential houses and apartments, with a number of small dead-end streets running off the main road down to the edge of the beach. These provide plenty of parking, although during the summer, when the population of the municipality swells from 30,000 to 150,000, space does become limited. There are also bicycle racks and some spaces allocated for disabled parking, although during the summer there’s very little chance of finding one unoccupied.

The beach is also serviced by the urban bus on the urban Mazarrón-Murcia route. For the latest timetable and further information go to the dedicated Mazarrón municipality section (see Tourist info for bus timetables).

This beach is also sometimes referred to as Playa de Junta de dos Mares, as it is alongside this residential area, known as Dos Mares.

The Playa de la Reya is a Q for Quality beach, which indicates that  it has been recognised by the Spanish Tourist Board for the quality of the services as well as the cleanliness and quality of the water.

Playa de la Reya is classified as being a high occupation beach, as many of those in the residential blocks which lie inland, on the other side of the main carriageway, walk across to this lovely sandy stretch of shoreline. However, it never really feels like high occupancy beach due to its swize: it is 400 metres long and an average width of 30 metres gives it a spacious and open feel.

Facilities:

There are bars and restaurants along the road behind the first line of accommodation, within easy walking distance.

The beach has a drinking water tap, toilets for both able bodied and disabled bathers, rubbish collection and recycling bins, foot washes, a children’s play area, access ramps where necessary, and walkways down onto the beach.

It is a popular family beach with fine, soft sand and a pebbled fringe. During the peak summer months there are a number of facilities, including windsurf hire, and paddeloes, as well as the hire of small one man sailing boats, and other sporting equipment.

This is a popular beach for surfing, as on windy days the rollers tend to funnel into the Bahía bay, and you´ll often find surfers and bodyboarders here on "good wave days" although there are no lifeguards or Red Cross here during the winter months. There is another popular surfing point on Playa Mojón.

At the top part of the beach is the viewing point of the Punta de Gavilanes, an important archaeological site used by successive cultures, with remains dating back as far as the Argaric period, and 1900 BC.

This rock was used to smelt minerals which were traded by the Phoenicians 600 years before the birth of Christ, some of which were recovered 2600 years later when the wreck of one of these Phoenician boats was found beneath the waters of the Playa de la Isla.

There is little to actually see today of the archaeological sites, but the viewing point itself offers superb views across the coastline, so is well worth making the effort to walk up from the beach.

Click for an overview of all 33 beaches in the municipality of Mazarrón, or for more information relating to Mazarrón.