According to the legend told in the Odyssey of Homer, after the Trojan War-era, Greek official named Menestheus escaped with his troops through the Straits of Gibraltar and reached the Guadalete River.

In 1260, Alfonso X of Castile conquered the city from the Moors and renamed it Santa María del Puerto.

[7] Christopher Columbus's first expedition to the Americas set sail from El Puerto de Santa María.

El Puerto was the residence of several wealthy cargadores, merchants who operated Spain's trade with the Americas.

In the nineteenth century the city became the General Headquarters for the French Army during the Peninsular War under the reign of Joseph Bonaparte (1801–1812).

The area boasts two other natural parks, the Sierra de Grazalema and El Coto Donaña.

The most famous bodegas in El Puerto are Osborne and Terry both of which export sherry and brandy worldwide.

In the cellars of El Puerto, the dry, pale sherry known as Fino is produced using the traditional method called solera.