El prado

it is quiet except when they have their festival when you get no sleep for 3 days and nights!  there is a school in the area so you get that traffic but not much else in the area, a couple of bars are in 10 to 15 minutes walking distance.  the nearest others are in Arboleas which is 30 min walk or 5 min drive away and that's where the banks and medical clinic are.  

There is also a walking distance Los LLanos market on a Saturday and a market in Arboleas on the Saturday as well.

You may also find that there are barking dogs. 

Thanks I always forget about barking dogs good point! I'm looking for my ideal place n southern Spain warm in winter up in the hills but close to busy entertainment it's a tough nut to crack. I love to live in the hills somewhere but be able to walk or pushbike into town in evening.

El Prado is nice and walkable to La Cinta which has 2 bars and a little further to El Rincon which has a bar restaurant with lovely views over the valley.If you want to be closer to amenities try the El German and La Judea areas of Arboleas which are 10.minutes walk to the village centre but still feel very rural with eagles, hoopoes, wild boar etc. Or, it is possible to find houses just outside Albox which are walkable to the town and the scenery can be pretty spectacular there.

Have you looked closer to the coast.  We look onto hills. Great walking, cycling and amenities in village and lots more close by.  Check out Los Lobos and San Juan de Los Terreros.  Best of both worlds and very reasonable house prices.  

Thanks for that I always wonder how you would describe albox ?. I've read certain stuff about it being low end with quite a few illegally built properties? 

Albox has quite diverse properties and areas. It's a real working town but that means it has hospital, banks, loads of shops and services etc.In the town itself, apart from the ayuntamiento and main square area it isn't pretty, but it is very authentically Almeria. There are dozens of tapas bars - some look smarter than others but we have learned that that isnt important and it's the quality, value and service that matter. Also, the Tuesday market is very good and there's a great atmosphere with locals and foreign arrivals such as ourselves enjoying the incredibly reasonable prices in the street cafés. 

You do need to be careful with property. Of the properties we viewed in the area at least 3 were not fully legal ( although one very close), but others were. We found two within easy walking distance to the town and in hindsight made a mistake in not buying one of them - 10.minutes walk to town but all you could see were stunning views of the mountains and rambla. 

Albox isn't everyone's cup of tea but I love it. Especially the people who we find to be mostly very helpful and kind. But other great places too such as Almanzora and Cantoria You probably just need to rent first and try out places for fit. Best of luck🙂

Yes thanks I will check those other  places out I could do with no barking dogs and mozzies if I can get it. I think a lot of places with great views can be a bit off the beaten track I'm on my own I like to go out in the evening but at the same time I want a big garden on its own somewhere don't know if this is achievable and yes I will rent first.

I used to do volunteering on helpx ect for private houses rather than group "volunteering" to find out what places were really like. One of them was in almunecar which I found quiet in November once tourists have left. I was 2 miles up in the hills above and it was pretty cold up there as soon as the sun went down. Some places are plagued with mosquitos if there's standing water around. And this particular finca had lovely sunny days but that would bring out the house flies that seemed to be everywhere so eating outside was problematic but I guess you get used to it. It was kind of scruffy up there with public garbage dumps halfway down the hill that got torn apart by dogs. Domestic holiday homes would leave their dogs food for a week in their pounds  while they went back home. So dogs would bark at you every time you past by aggressively. Wasn't my kind of place but did have beautiful views down to town.