Benahavís is a small Andalucian pueblo situated 10 minutes from the Coast behind San Pedro de Alcántara and situated between Marbella, Estepona and Ronda. Benahavís is an ancient white village set within the mountains and surrounded by what was once breathtaking natural beauty, gorges, rivers, cliffs & outcrops home to large birds of prey. The name is derived from the Moors; Ben (meaning "son of") and Havis (who ruled over the region from Montemayor Castle). There are over 15,000 properties in Benahavís in which fewer that fifty percent of inhabitants are Spanish. Only about 2500 people are registered in the current census. The villages promotes itself as a gastronomic center, and cuisine is mainly andalucían in style. It is also home to nine golf courses, which will rise to fifteen in the next decade. The town itself is surrounded by natural parkland, and, as such, retains some of its secluded, cosy feel. La Zagaleta: a highly exclusive mansion club which contributes to Benahavis' status as the richest province per capita head in Andalucía, lies within the municipality, and overlooks the village. Located on the Southern face of La Serrania de Ronda mountain range, Benahavis is the most mountainous village on the western Costa del Sol. Its terrain is traversed by the Rivers Guadalmina, Guadaiza and Guadalmanza. Regions of great natural and historic interest are to be found within its boundaries, such as El Cerro del Duque, Daidin and the Montemayor Castle. Sadly, the town hall (Partido Popular) has allowed new developments to spring up rapidly within the Benahavís municipality, with plans to build even more new homes, commercial premises and golf courses, all of which is destroying the tranquility of the area. “Ecologists in action” (Ecologistas en Acción) along with local residents have complained about frequent sewage dumping in the Arroyo del Chopo, a stream which runs along the Ronda road and whose waters end up in a local lake used by children for cable skiing. The town hall has so far done nothing.