Where to Stay and Dine in Ronda

How to get there: Ronda is about 390 miles south of Madrid. Iberia Airlines has daily flights from Los Angeles to Madrid on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Prices range from $986 during high season to $776 low season. Call (800) 772-4642. TWA flies Los Angeles-Madrid daily, with direct flights on Monday and Thursday. Prices range from $1,012 high season to $802 low season. Call (213) 484-9319.

From Madrid, the fastest way to Ronda is by plane to Malaga, which costs an additional $50 round trip, and is available through both Iberia and TWA. After reaching Malaga, you can get to Ronda via rental car or bus (three departures daily). It’s about 50 miles west.

Accommodations: Hotel Reina Victoria (Calle Jerez 25) commands a spectacular view of the city and the landscape. It’s well worth the price, which ranges from $65 to $100 double occupancy per night.

Slightly more economical are El Polo (Calle Mariano Soubiron 8) for $55 double and El Tajo (Calle Doctor Cajal), where a double goes for about $30. Other more inexpensive hotels include the Biarritz (Calle del Cristo 7), Morales (Calle Sevilla 51) and Rondasol (Calle Cristo 11).

Where to eat: Walks in Ronda’s steep streets and surrounding landscape provide good exercise and set the mood for the hearty local cuisine, which includes broiled lamb, chorizo , bull meat, tomato and garlic soup, as well as fish from the nearby coast.

Restaurant Don Miguel, which affords a terrific view of the Puente Nuevo bridge and the dramatic gorge, specializes in lamb and trout. El Escudero (Calle Marcos de Obregon) serves Carne a la Brasa. Bullfighting aficionados eat at Pedro Romero, which is worth a visit for all of its bullfighting memorabilia, including a stuffed bull’s head in the dining room.

Other notable restaurants are Los Faroles, La Alhambra, La Bodega, La Verdad and El Porton. Numerous bars serve local wines accompanied by tapas , the Spanish before-dinner snacks that may include seafood dishes, olives, cheeses and jamon serrano (cured ham, an Andalusian specialty).

For more information: Contact the National Tourist Office of Spain, 8383 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 938, Beverly Hills, Calif. 90211, (213) 658-7188.