The town of San Pedro del Pinatar is the northernmost point of the Mar Menor lagoon and the most popular resort in the province of Murcia. In 2021, the town had 26,320 inhabitants – this is 388 more than in 2020, which marks its popularity among property buyers despite difficult times due to pandemic restrictions.
There are many hotels with spa services in San Pedro Pinatar, but the most interesting thing is that everybody can enjoy healing mud baths here for free. The municipality itself has a very good infrastructure: there are a lot of hotels, restaurants, shops, the municipal swimming pool Aqualia, the yacht club Lo Pagan, the skate park San Pedro del Pinatar, the museums Palacio Barón de Benifayó and Del Mar, the church of the Holy Trinity, Dos Mares shopping center etc.
There is also a port from where La Manga can be reached by boat, and possibility to make a trip from there, for example, to Isla Grosa. It is one of the most common tourist destinations that allows to compare the tranquil Mar Menor lagoon with the Mediterranean sea.
Buying Property in San Pedro del Pinatar
First of all, San Pedro del Pinatar is a resort town, so the cost of real estate is largely due to this factor. On average, housing costs here are higher (1,232 €/m2) than the average ones throughout the entire province of Murcia (1,071 €/m2)
Housing located in close proximity to the sea and the bay of Mar Menor, such as El Mojón-Las Salinas are in the greatest demand, the average cost in this area is 1,804 eur/m2.
In San Pedro itself and the surrounding areas, there are a lot of properties of old housing stock, starting from the 60s of the XXth century and newer. A small studio of secondary housing stock and one-bedroom flat will cost about the same – from 45,000 €, two-bedroom apartment are with a cost from 55,000 €, duplexes valued from 80,500 €, detached houses start from 105,000 €.
Housing starts are actively developing in San Pedro del Pinatar. Basically, these are detached villas or townhouses, but there are also flats. So, the cost of apartments with 2-3 bedrooms in the new gated residential urbanization «San Pedro del Pinatar» starts from 102,235 €, duplex apartments near the beach in the residential complex «La Llana Beach» are with a cost from 189,900 €, single-family homes «Entremares Premium Deluxe» with 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms in the Lo Pagán area are valued from 329,950 €.
The average profitability of the rental business is 5 percent per annum.
Restaurants and Bars in San Pedro del Pinatar
It is worth noting that there are many decent restaurants and bars in San Pedro del Pinatar that enjoy high ratings among their visitors. Restaurants of local and traditional Mediterranean cuisine are especially popular.
MardeSal
Near the town port there is a restaurant «MardeSal», offering gourmet meals and fine wines, among which there are many fish dishes and seafood culinary masterpieces.
- Address: Playa de la Llana s/n Puerto de San Pedro, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
- Website: mardesal.com
- Tel. +34 650 16 45 92
Restaurante Porto Chico
Nearby, in the port, there is the restaurant «Porto Chico» offering high-level services, a private pool and excellent food at reasonable prices of 18 € – 60 € for lunch /dinner.
- Address: Club Nautico Villa de San Pedro Puerto de San Pedro Del Pinatar, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
- Website: restauranteportochico.es
- Tel. +34 968 17 96 31
Juan Mari
The cozy small restaurant «Juan Mari», recommended by the Michelin guide, is also very popular both among locals and tourists. Here guests will be offered dishes of Spanish, Mediterranean and European cuisine, as well as, optionally, vegetarian and vegan dishes.
- Address: Avenida Emilio Castelar 113, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
- Website: restaurantejuanmari.wordpress.com
- Tel. +34 968 18 62 98
We also recommend visiting authentic restaurants «Hogar del Pescador El Parras» with a variety of seafood or «El Castillo» with a pleasant price-quality ratio:
Bar Restaurante Hogar del Pescador El Parras
- Address: Calle Lorenzo Morales, 2 BAJO, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
- Tel. +34 968 18 11 37
El Castillo
- Address: Orihuela 1, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
- Website: facebook.com/CerveceriaElCastillo
- Tel. +34 686 05 52 83
Hotels in San Pedro del Pinatar
Fuente de la foto: kayak.es
San Pedro del Pinatar is a well-maintained resort town with excellent service – therefore there are a large number of comfortable hotels, apartments and villas here. Thanks to the small size of the municipality, almost all hotels are located near the center and the beach.
In 4-star hotels “Thalasia Costa de Murcia” and “Lodomar Spa & Talasoterapia”, there are wellness and spa centers with saunas and massage, mud therapy and herbal medicine. The cost of accommodation in a double room in these hotels starts from 64 € per night.
- Hotel Lodomar Spa & Talasoterapia: Calle Rio Bidasoa 1, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
Double rooms in the 4-star hotel «Traíña» will cost from 57 € per night. The hotel is located just 700 meters from the beaches of Mar Menor, and offers a summer terrace with a solarium, a swimming pool with a bar and as well as a library.
- Hotel Traíña: Avenida Romería de la Virgen, 84 Antigua Avda Generalísimo, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
The 3-star apart-hotel «Bahía», located 500 meters from the beach, includes 35 apartments priced from 53 €. The hotel has a swimming pool with views, a game room and a cafe.
- Aparthotel Bahia: Calle Mar Adriatico 4, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
Tualberguejt Guest House is located just a few meters from the Mediterranean Sea and not far from Mar Menor. These apartments are placed between the shopping centers two seas and La Zenia Boulevard. Nearby you can enjoy the natural park of Las Salinas de San Pedro del Pinatar, cycling and hiking. Tualberguejt offers double rooms with breakfast at a price of 41 €.
- Tualberguejt: Avenida el Mojon 37, 30740 San Pedro del Pinatar España
For lovers of a more private and respectable holiday, as well as big groups, San Pedro and the surrounding area offer villas for rent. For example, the «Luxury Villa Anna» has 2 bedrooms, a terrace, a garden and a swimming pool and it could fit up to 5 people. Renting the entire villa will cost 310 € in June and 268 € in January.
- Luxury Villa Anna: 10.5 km from the center of San Pedro del Pintar, 2.5 km from the beach.
Mud Baths (Baños de Lodo) of San Pedro del Pinatar
The main attraction of San Pedro del Pinatar is a vast area with therapeutic mud, where there are special platforms at the bottom, that are comfortable to come down to the water. Mud needs to be taken from the deep. It is very specific and bad smelling (those who are good at mud know that this is a sign of good quality).
The Mar Menor mud is rich in compounds of zinc, magnesium, potassium, sodium, which not only have a very good effect on the skin, but also relieve internal inflammation. In this way, inflammation of the joints and ligaments can be treated. Athletes come here very often to treat injuries. Cosmetics, which are very popular in this region, are made from this mud too. Curative mud treats skin diseases, cleanses pores, slows down the aging process.
Other Attractions of San Pedro del Pinatar
One of the symbols of the resort of San Pedro del Pinatar is the mill Molino Quintín. This is not a very traditional mill, as it was used to grind salt. Its second function was related to the fact that the mill distilled water from the Mar Menor into containers for salt evaporation – special lakes. In the 1970s, this mill was restored and an electric motor was put in it. The mill still pumps water – it has retained its functionality.
All the mills in this area were built in the XII th century. Interestingly, many of the parts that make these mills up were made by fishermen, such as the blades, which were created on the same principle as the sails. Shipping and fishing in this area were well developed, which could hardly fail to affect the life of the local population.
Local authorities are trying very hard to make the town as hospitable and convenient as possible. Throughout its territory one can find information boards that will help you find your hiking trail, even if you do not speak Spanish.
Near San Pedro del Pinatar, visitors can see rare pink flamingos, or they can walk through the park equipped with viewing platforms, visit the places where salt is mined, and also watch the special process of fishing.
The Natural Park of San Pedro del Pinatar
A little north of the mud bath zone, there is a unique natural reserve – a park of sand dunes and swamps. This is a protected area: walking here, it is forbidden to go off the path, pick plants or litter. We are talking about a unique natural area, which is constantly in recovery mode. This place is notable for the fact that a huge number of birds live here, which nest and winter in this zone. The flora and fauna of the park is absolutely unique.
The name of the municipality itself contains the word «pinatar», which means «pine forest». The second part of the name – «San Pedro» – is the name of the patron saint of the town since the XVII th century. San Pedro is the Apostle Peter, who was a fisherman (as we have already said, fishing is great developed in this area).
As for the pines, almost the same story happened here as in Guardamar del Segura: these trees were planted in the sand dunes to prevent them from invading the town.
Throughout the park, there are special trails for pedestrians and cyclists. For pedestrians, there are three routes with a length of 1, 3 and 11 km. The last route is marked in yellow and leads you to a place where fish were caught in a special way.
One of the most important activities in this resort along with tourism is navigation and fishing. Here was born the original way of fishing – encañizadas – invented by the Arabs. It was carried out at the place where the Mar Menor joins the Mediterranean Sea – that is the place where fish go to the warm waters of the lagoon. The fishing method is that the fishermen build special reed labyrinths.
In general, fishing in San Pedro del Pinatar lasts all year round, this activity is especially beloved here. One can come here and arrange fishing from a boat. Fishing here is mainly for sea bream and sea bass.
We definitely recommend you to come to this unique place, relax and improve your health, fish, take a walk in the beautiful park… You will remember this vacation forever and will certainly want to return!
