In 1981, in this town, three young men from Santander were murdered by various members of the Spanish Civil Guard, in what is known as Almería Case.

During July and August, Roquetas de Mar has often southern winds coming from Africa, thus increasing the temperatures.

[6] The 'urbanización' (tourist area with hotels and restaurants and shops) of Roquetas is predominantly a Spanish holiday resort for the majority of the summer months, but it also receives many visitors from the United Kingdom, Ireland and Germany.

Roquetas de Mar is the second most populous municipality in the province of Almería behind its capital.

It is the second-largest town in Spain without a rail link behind Marbella; in 2020 a proposal was submitted to build a railway from Almería to Adra via Roquetas and El Ejido.