Both visully and historically, the province of Huelva is a multicoloured mosaic. Visually, the sights range from thousands of pink flamingoes nesting in the Fuente de Piedra salt lakes to the delicious ruby-red strawberries piled high in the marketstalls, from the greens and browns of the woodlands and pastures to the whitecapped waves of the Atlantic, and from the golden beaches of the seashore to the vivid greens of the golf courses.
Historically, too, this is a very special land. Archeologists have found evidence of neolithic settlements in the Caves of la Mora and artefacts dating from the Bronze Age in nearby Becerro. It was from Palos de la Frontera in Huelva that Christopoher Columbus set sail on August 3, 1492, on his historic first trip to the New World.
As an intesresting historical footnote, it was in this province that the first game of golf was played in Spain, by British mining engineers at the Rio Tinto mines. The makeshift course they built was moved several times until it was sited on what is now the nine-hole Corta Atalaya course.
Huelva's greatest natural treasure -and one of the greatest treasures of all mankind- is the National Park of Doñana which in 1980 was declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. This enormous park at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River comprises many distinct ecosystems made up of dunes, mountains and wetlands. Understandably visits to the park are strictly controlled and those wishing to visit the Doñana should book ahead by calling the reservations centre in Acebuche.