Koala Tarifa

Comfort, colour and no koalas in 5 funky apartments at the heart of Tarifa's Old Town.

Tarifa has seen a complete metamorphosis over the past 20 years thanks to its new-found status as surf capital of southern Europe. The narrow streets of its ancient centre are now lined with buzzy bars and restaurants, boutiques and über-trendy design shops. Owner Marta ran one of the best of them before turning her artistic eye towards Koala's 300-hundred-year-old walls. After extensive restoration she created 5 guest apartments which place the decorative accent on functional, contemporary and spare design whilst preserving many of the original features of this traditional Andaluz townhouse.

The house turns around a flagged patio, which doubles as a chill-out area, and the apartments are reached via staircases that radiate out from this central axis. Varying in size and configuration, any one would be a comfortable base in Tarifa. Marta and her partner Björn can advise on where to shop, eat or swim but Koala's set up would best suit folk who are happy to make their own arrangements. Not too daunting when the town centre, with its buzzy Café Central, is just around the corner.

Highs

• Koala is incredibly quiet considering that you're plumb in the centre of town
• With an apartment rather than a hotel room you really feel as if you've got your own Tarifa pied a terre
• Marta and Bjorn have lived here for years. If you follow their recommendations you'll get to experience the best the town has to offer
• The juxtaposition of contemporary furnishings and traditional Andalucian architecture works really well

Lows

• Only two of the rooms have access to the small walled garden but there's a second chill-out area in the patio-courtyard
• There's no restaurant but there are great cafes and eateries just yards from Koala's front door
• Koala has no guest sitting room or communal space apart from the garden and patio. In wet weather you might get cabin fever