Editing Tourism in Spain (section)

==Winter tourism==
{{See also|List of ski areas and resorts in Europe#Spain|l1=List of ski resorts in Spain}}
[[File:Vista de montañas y Pradollano.jpg|[[Sierra Nevada Ski Station]]|thumb|150px|left]]
[[File:Baqueira 1800.jpg|thumb|right|225px|[[Baqueira-Beret]] ski resort.]]

Spain is a generally mountainous country, with well-known [[ski resorts]] located in several parts of the country, including the [[Pyrenees]], the [[Sistema Central]], the [[Sistema Ibérico]] and [[Sierra Nevada (Spain)|Sierra Nevada]].
For the most part, the main crest forms a massive divider between France and Spain, with the tiny country of [[Andorra]] sandwiched in between. The [[Crown of Aragon]] and the [[Kingdom of Navarre]] have historically extended on both sides of the mountain range, with small northern portions now in France and much larger southern parts now in Spain.<ref>Preamble of the [http://www.cg66.fr/culture/patrimoine_catalanite/catalanite/charte_catalan.pdf "Charter of the Catalan Language"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325232934/http://www.cg66.fr/culture/patrimoine_catalanite/catalanite/charte_catalan.pdf |date=25 March 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |year=1995|title=Collins Road Atlas of Europe|publisher= Harper Collins|location=London|pages= 28–29|isbn= 0-00-448148-8}}</ref>

Sierra Nevada in Spain is a popular [[tourism|tourist]] destination, as its high peaks make [[skiing]] possible in one of Europe's most southerly [[ski resort]]s, in an area along the [[Mediterranean Sea]] predominantly known for its warm temperatures and abundant sunshine. At its foothills is found the city of [[Granada]] and, a little further, [[Almería]] and [[Málaga]].

Parts of the range have been included in the [[Sierra Nevada National Park (Spain)|Sierra Nevada National Park]]. The range has also been declared a [[biosphere reserve]]. The [[Sierra Nevada Observatory]] is located on the northern slopes at an [[elevation]] of {{convert|2800|m|ft}}. The Sierra Nevada was formed during the [[Alpine Orogeny]], a mountain-building event that also formed the European [[Alps]] to the east and the [[Atlas Mountains]] of northern Africa across the Mediterranean Sea to the south. The Sierra as observed today formed during the [[Paleogene]] and [[Neogene]] Periods (66 to 1.8 million years ago) from the collision of the African and Eurasian [[continental plate]]s.