Spain is situated in southwestern Europe, occupying 85% of the Iberian peninsula. The mainland is bordered to the south and east almost entirely by the Mediterranean, to the north by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay, and to the west by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean.
Flat in very few places, Spain features the Cordillera Cantabrica and rugged Sistema Iberico in the north, the massive Pyrenees in the northeast, the rocky Sierra de Cuenca in the east and the lower Montes de Toledo and Serrania de Cuenca in southern central areas. Further south, the mountains of the Cordillera Betica and Sierra Nevada dominate the landscape. The Sierra Nevada features mainland Spain’s highest point, Mulhacen (11,421ft / 3481m). There are 10 designated national parks in mainland Spain, protecting the countries most scenic areas.
You can read our guide on the safest cities in Spain here.
Capital city: Madrid
Highest Point: Pico de Teide, Tenerife (12,198ft / 3718m)
Lowest Point: Atlantic Ocean (0ft / 0m)
Land Area: 192,657 sq. mi (498,980 sq. km)
Water Area: 2467 sq. mi (6390 sq. km)
Total Area: 195,124 sq. mi (505,370 sq. km)
Coastline: 3084 miles (4964 km)
Bordering countries (5) Andorra, France, Gibraltar, Portugal, Morocco
The enigmatic Penon de Ifach stands proudly at 332m at the head of Calpe, surrounded by the shimmering blue of the Mediterranean Sea. It is a huge calcareous rock, joined to the mainland by a detritic isthmus. With a protected surface area of just 45 hectares, Penon de Ifach is one of the smallest nature…
In the days of sail, long before the advent of global positioning systems, sailors used to rely on landmarks to check their positions and, for seafarers heading across the Atlantic towards Europe, or towards Spain from northern Europe, the high mountain peaks of the Picos de Europa (Peaks of Europe) were often the first sight…
The Gorge Desfiladero de los Gaitanes is about 40 minutes drive North of Malaga city in Southern Spain. The River Guadalhorce cuts through the rock and forms a long and spectacularly deep (700m) Gorge which ends at El Chorro. The gorge is around 3km in length and at points, it is only 10 meters wide….