Whitish limestone mountains with rugged relief are juxtaposed to undulating, reddish hills in the Sierra de las Nieves Nature Park, located to the east of the city of Ronda (Malaga province).

Mountaineers coming to the park make a beeline for Pico Torrecilla, at 1919 metres, while caving enthusiasts prefer caverns such as the GESM which reaches 1101 metres in depth. Both on the surface and underground there are weird and wonderful karst formations created by the erosion and subsequent precipitation of limestone. At lower altitudes peridotite rocks give the landscape a reddish hue. This rock is far more impermeable than limestone, and its special composition favours the appearance of interesting species of flora.

The name of the park hints at the presence of snow ("nieve" in Spanish) on the peaks, which was once present all year round. Local people would store snow in these areas and bring it down at night on mules to distribute to the villages, towns and cities of the region.

Another attraction of these mountains are the Spanish fir forests to be found here. This Mediterranean fir species can be found in cool, moist shady areas, a botanical relic of the glacial period on the Iberian Peninsula. Nowadays this species can only be found in these mountains, and in the Sierra de Grazalema and the Los Reales de Sierra Bermeja Mountains, with Sierra de las Nieves being home to the largest areas. Some of these trees are around 500 years old, such as the one called La Escalereta, which is a designated Natural Monument. Heading down to lower areas, forests of holm oak and cork trees predominate on the hills of Istán and Monda, along with some areas of carob and chestnut trees on those of Tolox and Parauta. A pleasant way to explore all this forest is to do one of the cycling routes such as that of Monda-Istán. The nature park is home to mammals such as the mountain goat, easy to see in the higher areas. Other interesting species are deer and otters, that can be seen on the rivers. Bird life includes major birds of prey such as golden and Bonelli's eagles, as well as the Eurasian eagle owl. There are also forest birds such as goshawks and sparrow hawks.

This area was settled by many cultures. However, it was definitely the Moors who left the greatest legacy here. The castles and defensive walls in Monda, El Burgo, Istán and Tolox are an example of this. Moorish influence is also present in its gastronomy; flour porridge with honey, almond cheese, and "siete ramales" soup. Another recommended visit in this area is to the town of Ronda, famous for its gorge and being the site of Spain's oldest bullring.