If you,ve ever spent any time in Murcia itself, you'll know it's a totally charming, congenial Spanish city, packed with tapas bars , flowerfilled squares and the friendliest of locals with no shortage of things to do.

Choose from the Baroque cathedral or the Monasterio de Santa Clara de la Real, a monastery where you can buy cakes from nuns, or the Museo Salzillo which displays the incredibly life-like figures used in Murcia's famous Semana santa processions.

It's a town in which to dine in style and shop with flair, a place that pulses with life long after dark. However with all the sporting delights and spas of La Manga to enjoy or the prospect of a couple of weeks flopping in the sun with the quiet coves on the rocky coastline to savour, it's quite possible

you,ve never explored inland at all.

But take a tip, now's the time to do it. Over the past couple of years "rural tourism" has been quietly seeping into Murcia's long overlooked interior. Before the masses arrive, now is the time to discover a region that's deeply Spanish, with scores of sleepy, castle topped villages, lit-up by colurfull fiesta, where you'll be the only Brit in town.

Lorca is reckoned to be the prettiest town in the region, lying on the main road to Almeria southwest of Murcia. This is archaeology heaven; its history goes way back to paleolithic times and its settlers up to and beyond the s have left a trail of architecture in their wake. It's nestled under the ruins of castles and buzzes with life year round. Hub of the town is the Plaza de Espana, peered over by the Ayuntamiento and Barque Coleegiata de San Patrico from where cobbled streets fan out.

Lorca is littered with palaces and baroque stately homes, churches and convents. and you could pace all the way up to the castle, but one of the most pleasant pastimes here is simply basking in a sunny square, relaxing over an indolent lunch. try El Teatro, plazade Colon, for Murcian cuisine - mountainous fresh salads, lamb in wine sauce, lemon sorbet with creamed figs - or visit Casa Candido, Calle Santa Domingo, for Mediterranean seafood.

In fact the region of Murcia is called the market garden of Spain and uses locally grown produce almost exclusively in its cooking. It's a classically Mediterranean diet and enormously healthy. While you're here lokk out for prawns from Mar Menor, Jumilla pears, salted fish, rice dishes and meaty sausages. If you're short on time, tapas bars are often the best way the best way to experiment, there are always olives, breads, cheeses, and ham choices, but try oyster mushrooms in walnut sauce, eggs and chorizo, lemon artichokes or prawns in mayo.

And while you're feeling adventurous, discover some new wines. Murcia has nearly 100,000 hectares of vineyards and is Spain's fastest growing wine region producing popular reds, whites and roses. Top three names to look out for are Jumilla, Yecia and Bullas.

Heading west from Murcia and passing a clutch of the aforementioned pretty, sleepy village, is Caravaca de la Cruz, a dramatic sight, with its 15th century Templar castle set against a backdrop of pale mountains. The city boasts Mucia's greatest piece of Renaissance architecture, the church of Salvador, and there's plenty of stunning 16th and 17th century buildings harking back to its heyday, but the castle is its crowning glory. Inside is the museum of Religious Art and History (the town is considered the fifth holiest city in the world) and its Callabos del vino - white horse - which take centre stage during the Festival of Santisima y Vera Cruz.

In fact Caravaca is a great place for festivals, particularly during May and August. Contact Murcia's tourist office for details +34 902 101 070 for details. It's also a great place for eating. Once agin you are spoilt for tapas and local cuisine; check out Canota, Gran Via for murcian-style stews, fired kid ribs and Calatrava bread or, if you want a sunny terrace try Los Vinales and Juan Carlos 1.

For a change of scene, consider a day out at Sierra de Espuna, Murcias most spectacular natural park covering 25,000 hectares. This is a wonderfully lush wilderness of pine-clad mountains, soared over by eagles and vultures. With its gorges, mountains and rocky formations, this is seventh heaven for hikers and climbers, but there are plenty of sign-posted walking, riding and cycling routes or you could try hang gliding at La Muela. If you want to stay here, the small town of Alhama de Murcia is just outside the park, it has a ruined Arabic castle and plenty of tour operators to help organise trip

Or how about Parque Natural de Monte el Valle, a semi-urban park just six kilometres from Murcia? It's carpeted in pine forests and herb-filled glades, ravines and streams and home to 16 different species of flora, as well as terrapins, eagles and kestrels and no fewer than five species of bat.

So whether you go for bats or Baroque, churches or chorizo, this year try something new and discover Murcia's magic.