Campillos

What to See in Campillos

The Nuestra Señora del Reposo church is the most noticeable monument in this village. It was built in the early sixteenth century (1506) and modified in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Its magnificent baroque façade is considered one of the most interesting and showy of the entire Antequera region. The interior is divided into three naves, with exuberantly decorated chapels. The main altar is remarkable. It is made of pine, with eight Ionic columns, and is overlooked by the statue of the Virgen del Reposo (Virgin of Repose), a notable figure by the seventeenth-century Granada School. The clock in the bell tower was made in 1631 by the Carmelite Friar Miguel del Santísimo Sacramento of Antequera.

The San Benito chapel, built to honour the patron saint of the municipality, dates from the seventeenth century. Construction work took twenty years. The eighteenth century witnessed the renovation of the building. The San Sebastián chapel, from the seventeenth century and financed by the local livestock producers, complete the historic and artistic itinerary of Campillos.

People who are interested in archaeology can make a visit to the sites of Capacete (a Roman villa and bathhouses), Castillón de Gobantes (from the Roman epoch), Cortijo La Cuesta (a Roman necropolis) and Los Castillones, where there are ruins of a Roman town.

Campillos’s Fiestas and Gastronomy

Cultural activities occupy a preponderant position in Campillos’s ample array of festivities, which is one of the most intensive in the Antequera region and whose most representative days are during the Certamen de Bandas de Música (Musical Band Competition), the Feria del Libro (Book Fair, which has been presented without interruption for nearly fifteen years) and the "Isidro Carbonero Villa de Campillos" Theatre Competition (January and February), which is the prelude to the theatre week "Candilejas de Verano" (second week in July). During their relatively short existences compared to fiestas "that have always been around" these celebrations have acquired the stature of traditions.

The purely entertainment festivities that in the villages of Andalusia are customarily attached to religious themes begin with the Cabalgata de Reyes (Three Kings Cavalcade) and reach their popular zenith during the Semana Santa (Holy Week). The San Benito patron saint fiestas take place on 10 and 11 July, and in mid-august the local Fair is held. It goes on for four days, with a crowded agenda of events intended exclusively for fun and for revitalising folklore, which in this village is based on the fandango and malagueñas (traditional music in Málaga).

Throughout the months of January and February, on Fridays, Campillos plays host to the "Isidro Carbonero Villa de Campillos" Theatre Competition, which has been staged for a decade and has drawn classic theatre plays from Spain like those by Federico García Lorca.

In Campillos, the Semana Santa (Holy Week) is of great importance even at the provincial level and has been designated Fiesta of National Tourist Interest. This celebration got its start in the sixteenth century, but it is known that there were already processions starting in 1492. Five cofradías (botherhoods) with ten thrones take to the streets between Palm Sunday and Good Friday, and while they all have a splendid heritage and enjoy the utmost popularity perhaps the one that best exemplifies this locality’s processions is the brotherhood of El Santo Entierro y María Santísima de las Angustias (The Holy Burial and Holy Mary of Anguish). Its entrance into the Plaza de España on Good Friday, with the lights along the route extinguished, and amid an absolute silence, heightens the fervour of the people, which is further intensified by the funereal tolling of the church bell.

The José María Hinojosa park plays host to the Ham Fair in June. Some 40 stands showcase and offer visitors pork products like ham, of course. Campillos has a long cold meat making tradition, and this fair provides evidence for considering Campillos as one of the leading producers of pork products in the province.

In August, Campillos runs the "Paco Rabal" Short Film Festival, Cortema. For two days, locals and out-of-towners can choose from nearly a hundred short films of different categories and competing for three professional awards, three amateur awards and a consolation prize.

More Information About Campillos

Nature in Campillos

The area covered by the municipality of Campillos has eight lakes of great geological importance and are part of Las Lagunas de Campillos Nature Preserve. All eight lakes run southbound except for the Laguna Salada, from which salt was extracted until the mid-twentieth century. The largest of them all is Laguna Dulce, which according to a manuscript dated 1833, was a sport fishing site. Currently, birdwatching is its main attraction, as visitors can watch flamingos, common stilts, teals and shelducks. The Laguna del Toro and Redonda have dried up, but the El Lobo, Laguna de Capacete, Laguna de Camuñas and Cerero have survived. As to the flora, wetland vegetation is typically found in the area –giant reed, reed, bulrush. Surrounding the lakes there grow herbaceous plants and olive trees.