Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park in the southeastern corner of Spain is Andalusia's largest protected coastal area. It is a wild and isolated landscape. Spain's southeast coast, where the park is situated, is a region in mainland Europe with a hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification: BWh).

The eponymous mountain range of the Sierra del Cabo de Gata, with its highest peak El Fraile, form a volcanic rock formation with sharp peaks and crags with red and ochre colouration. It falls steeply to the Mediterranean Sea, creating jagged 100-metre (330 ft) high cliffs divided by gullies, creating numerous small coves and white-sand beaches.

Offshore are numerous tiny rocky islands and extensive coral reefs teeming with marine life. Its climate is dry, with rainfall below 160 mm (6.3 in) a year and average yearly temperatures above 19 °C (66 °F). In 1997, it was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. In 2001, it was included among the Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance, due to the adsorptive properties and low permeability of its clays, the area was studied as a possible place for deep storage of sealed radioactive waste.