Let us first dispel the myth that living in a modern cavehouse is living in a hole in the ground with only basic amenities.
Modern day cavehouses are individualistic and contain all the amenities you would find in a villa or town house and are well insulated against noise. You would never hear your neighbour's TV or them going up stairs in high heels.

Cave houses have been carved out of the rocks of Andalucia since the Moorish invasion. For the last few centuries, right up to the 1960s, tens of thousands of cave houses gave shelter to farm workers, their families and their livestock. But just why were cave houses so popular?

There were many reasons: The land cost them nothing or almost nothing, and the rock formations lent themselves to the hand excavation of cave homes. The rock type consists of a type of sedimentary limestone with layers of hard, almost horizontal rock inter-spaced with much softer layers which could be dug by hand. The harder rock formed a layer impervious to water and provided the strength needed for a safe, secure roof to the caves.

The climate in this area can readily be described as extreme, being well below zero on those cold winters nights and in the upper forties on those hot summer afternoons.

The cave homes, enveloped by a vast heat sink of surrounding rock maintained a near constant temperature of sixteen to eighteen degrees Centigrade summer and winter.

They were easy to extend, when the wife knew she was pregnant her first job was to dig a new room for the baby. Sometimes today you can find a small hole, about thirty centimeters in diameter, connecting two rooms. These are said to be the first baby alarms, enabling mum to hear her baby's cries when they were sleeping in adjoining rooms

In the late sixties, with the advance of farming and the advent of mass coastal tourism the local population saw a drastic decline and many cave houses were abandoned. Happily, today, that decline is being reversed. Caves are being rediscovered and refurbished like never before and market is booming.

In the north east of the Granada Province cave houses over the last few years have become big business. From Guadix to Huescar and all across the Altiplano area, there are some incredibly beautiful houses carved out of the Andalucian mountainous rocks.

Cave dwelling is becoming very much more popular in Spain particularly, with British, Netherlanders and other expats settling in Spain and seeking a totally different lifestyle.

Cave dwelling is safe. They are not prone to collapse, fires, or earthquakes. Their number one enemy can be an accumulation of water or excess moisture. Caves survive earthquakes and fires. They can also be reinforced if the need be but once again, this is usually not a problem.

Moreover, by their very nature, they are energy-efficient dwellings, making the most of nature. For those of you who take pride in being “green” and care about reducing your carbon footprint, a cave house might just be the eco friendly house for you.

As a rule they tend to be cheaper than a conventional dwelling of the same size and amenities and are better value for money. You get a lot more property for what you pay and you retain a view as it is virtually impossible to build directly in front of you unless, so to speak, you opt for the ground floor

Our Managing Director lives in a cavehouse with a frontage of well over a 100m of outbuild with stunning views over the Spanish countryside.
Let us also dispel the myth put forward by some estate agencies that you do not need heating in a cavehouse in winter.The outbuild on any cavehouse is the same as any conventional dwelling and during winter some form of heating is required for comfort.
What makes cavehouses unique is their individuality for no two are the same. They can vary between small cottage style units to luxury five or six bedroom dwellings complete with swimming pool and jaccuzi with several internal bathrooms as well as living rooms and kitchens.
The difference between a cavehouse and a normal house is that there is normally no back door although you may well have four or more front doors depending upon the size of outbuild.

Also bedrooms do not normally have windows although they tend to be airy and none claustraphobic. Always take an alarm clock to bed if you need to get up early in the morning because it is not unheard of for people to oversleep as they cannot determine whether it is day or night.

One thing is true however and that is that when you enter into the actual cave part of a cavehouse during the summer months, when in Spain, the temperatures can soar to over 40C, it is a lot cooler and you can sleep at night without the need of air conditioning.

Contrary also to popular myth they are not insect and snake infested.A cave that can breathe is a healthy one,ventilation is important, just give a cave the opportunity to breath during the summer months and warmth in the winter and you will find cave living a pleasurable experience.
We as a company are pleased to promote cave living as a vital part of tourism development is Spain and to give our clients the opportunity to sample this unique experiance. Take a look at some of the cavehouses featured in our properties section and try the experience.    

Watch a video clip of what its like living in a cave............