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A truly magnificent drive from San Pedro along the Ronda road, through the valley of Rio Guadalmina continuing up through the Serrania de Ronda leads you to the beautiful town of Ronda.  It is situated o­n a rocky outcrop 740m above sea level and dominated by the Puente Nuevo (New Bridge) which spans the Tajo (gorge).
Ronda was under Sevillan rule until 1248 and Fernando the Catholic took control of Ronda in 1485.  Many of the town’s monuments were destroyed by Fernando and indeed by the French in 1809.  However there are still plenty of interesting places to see. 
To the Southern side of Puente Nuevo lies the old Muslim town known as La Ciudad and to the north, the newer town called El Mercadillo, where the majority of the restaurants and hotels can be found.
Ronda has a wealth of history associated with bandits who were active in this area up until the 1950’s and the town’s “Museo del Bandolero”, bears testament to their legacy. (In 1844 the government set up the Guardia Civil, Spain’s rural police force to deal with the activity of the bandits and smugglers)
A fascinating trip right down to the water in the gorge can be found at the “Casa de Roy Moro and La Mina”. Stop a while in the beautiful cliff top gardens before descending the 350 or so steps (I lost count!) down the water mine. 
They enable Ronda to maintain water supplies whilst under attack and provided a hidden gateway to the old town.  Arguably o­ne of Ronda’s most beautiful palaces, the “Palacio de Mondragon” is where Fernando and Isobel stayed is now the town’s museum.  Casa Juan Basco is a 19th Century mansion with spectacular gardens and fountains and Museo Lara is a recently opened antique and art museum with over 2000 exhibits.
In 1785 the “Plaza de Toro’s”, Ronda’s elegant bullring opened.  Three generations of the Romero family fought bulls in this bullring.  Pedro Romero (1754 – 1839) killed 5500 bulls in his career without being gored.  Local legend has it that his skill was much admired to the extent that outlaws in the bandit ridden hills would risk capture to see him in action.