Spanair

From the airport to the city: Pablo Ruiz Picasso International Airport is located eight kilometres from the centre of Malaga.  The good connections it provides with the entire Costa del Sol make it an important tourist transportation hub. There is a bus (line 19) every half an hour which takes you from the Paseo del Parque – next to the City Hall – right to the terminal.  The trip costs one euro.  Making the trip by train is a little more expensive although it is still quite cheap (1.15 euros).  It is also a good option for getting to the airport since it leaves every half an hour and takes only 13 minutes.  Going by taxi is the most expensive way to get there as a four-euro supplement is charged.

Other transports from Malaga city:

Boat: The Port of Malaga is well connected with several other Mediterranean ports and it currently ranks second on the Iberian Peninsula in terms of cruise ship traffic. 

Taxi: Three companies provide taxi service in the city.  Taxis are the most comfortable way to get around the city centre and are recommendable during the hours when there is no bus service.  The price is the main disadvantage: the minimum fare during the day is 1.27 euros.

Train: Malaga’s train station is located close to the centre and features excellent connections with the other public transport systems.  With respect to the cercanias (commuter train) services, destinations are divided into four zones and prices vary accordingly.  The minimum price for a one-way ticket is 1.15 euros, in effect as of 1st January 2007.

Bus: The city of Malaga has a comprehensive public bus service with about 40 different lines available to move people about in the city.  A one-way ticket costs 0.95 euros.  However, to allow users to get around the city and transfer from one bus to another, the Transport Consortium has brought in the billete único, a card which can be obtained for a deposit of 1.80 euros and which offers significant discounts on trips around the city.  A tourist bus is another great way to see all the sights the city of Malaga has to offer.

Metro: In the future the Malaga Metro – which is still under construction – will be the most modern subway system in all of Spain.  Two lines have been financed in the project, which is already in the works.  Both will start from La Malagueta and will provide connections with other modes of transport.

Malaga’s climate is classified as subtropical humid Mediterranean, ideal for any sort of tourist activity.  Here visitors can enjoy 300 days of sunshine a year.  While winters in Malaga are warm with rather mild minimum temperatures (average of 12º C in January), summers are quite hot, although the proximity of the sea prevents them from being overly so (average of 25º C in August).  Rainfall is limited to about 40 days per year, with most falling between the months of November and March. 

Malaga’s cuisine has gained a great deal of international prestige in recent years and the city has become a destination not only for tourists but for gourmets, as well.  Ingredients from the sea, the countryside and the mountains (wild game meat) all play a part in the local recipes – certainly among the best of Mediterranean cuisine.  The highlight of the culinary specialties offered here is without a doubt the genuine pescaíto frito (small fried fish).  You can’t leave the city without trying the boquerones “victorianos” (fresh local anchovies), which can only be found along the coast of Malaga.  The close proximity of the sea makes for a fish and seafood menu of such diversity as to please even the most demanding palate.

Another typical delicacy in the region is the espeto de sardinas (sardine skewer), best savoured right beside the beach.  Clams, coquinas (wedge clams), conchas finas (Venus clams), cooked prawns, grilled prawns, calamari, mackerel, octopus, and red mullet, as well as different types of molluscs stewed in parsley sauce, garlic and white wine round out the selection of seafood.

Another long-standing tradition is the “tapeo” (tapas-bar hopping), where it’s the variety that counts.  For example, you will not find two ensaladillas malagueñas (Malaga-style potato salads) that taste alike.  Thanks to the region’s subtropical climate it is also possible to grow garden vegetables and fruits like the avocado, now indispensable in many of the local salads and other dishes.  Finally, a special mention must be made of Malaga’s sumptuous assortment of cakes and desserts, as well as its sweet, velvety wine, which enjoys international renown.  These can be savoured any of the numerous restaurants found in the city.  

Lunch is served from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and dinner from 10:00 p.m. to 12:00 midnight.

Casa Jacinto
Avenida Obispo Ángel Herrera Oria, 7
Price: Moderate (35 euros)
Specialties: Fresh fish such as Cantabrian anchovies; premium quality seafood, stews and chivo malagueño (Malaga-style goat).

D’Vinos
C/ Echegaray, 3
Price: Moderate
Specialties: Recommended for sampling a variety of wines and enjoying a choice selection of typical local tapas.

El Cabra
Paseo Marítimo El Pedregal, s/n
Price: Moderate
Specialties: This restaurant is the place to go for paellas, fresh fish and skewered sardines; here they can be enjoyed right beside the seashore.

El Envero
C/ Luis Barahona de Soto, 6
Price: Moderate (40 euros)
Specialties: This restaurant has a grand tradition of lamb and steak dishes.  The fish and seafood typical of Malaga’s cuisine are also on the menu.

La Ménsula
C/ Trinidad Grund, 28
Price: Moderate
Specialties: The house specialty are the delicious portions of ibéricos (cured acorn-fed pork products) and flamenquín troceado (chopped pork and ham roll).  Other dishes include the anchovies, the revuelto de bacalao (scrambled egg with salt-cod) with potatoes, and the mejillones a la cazuela (mussel casserole).

Marisquería-Restaurante Sal Gorda
Avenida Canovas del Castillo, 12
Price: High
Specialties: Live seafood from Galicia (oysters, spider crab, lobster, baby clams, mussels, and crab), as well as the coquinas (wedge clams) and conchas finas (Venus clams) from Málaga, Málaga shrimps and Sanlúcar prawns.  A wide selection of meat dishes and wines round out the menu. 

Malaga features a great selection of hotels, hostels, apartments, campgrounds and youth hostels where tourists can find accommodation.  The coast – with its beautiful beaches – makes Malaga very alluring destination and the area is very popular with visitors.   

Hotel AC Malaga Palacio 4*
C/ Cortina del Muelle, 1
Price: High (rooms start at 93 euros)
This hotel, which boasts over 200 rooms, is located beside the Cathedral and the Palacio de la Aduana.  On top of the hotel’s terrace is a swimming pool which affords spectacular views of Malaga.

Hotel NH Malaga 4*
Avenida Río Guadalmedina, s/n
Price: Moderate
This hotel is part of the well-known NH group and offers its guests a wide array of creature comforts including a sauna and a gymnasium.  The conference halls here can accommodate about 900 people.

Parador de Malaga de Golf 4*
Mediterranean Motorway, km. 231, Exit: Coín-Aeropuerto
Price: High
In close contact with nature, the Parador de Malaga de Golf features a total of 60 rooms.  The golf course is the hotel’s star feature, although other sports can also be enjoyed here thanks to its swimming pools, tennis courts and grass football pitch.

The Hotel Cohiba, Hotel Los Naranjos and Hotel Kris Tribuna (3*) all offer a good combination of reasonable prices and proximity to the beaches and the city centre.

Hostels: Costa Rica, Derby, El Nogal, La Hispanidad, Pedregalejo, Terminal and Victoria.

Malaga is the perfect city for shopping.  The Historic Centre is like one great shop window where products of all shapes and sizes are sold.  The main street, Calle Marqués de Larios, features all the most famous brand-names of clothing and shoes.  Surrounding this street are more than 1,000 shops which spread along the banks of the Gaudalmedina River, and the streets of Carretería, Álamos and Alcazabilla, making this the largest commercial zone in the city.  Numerous pedestrian-only streets and municipal parking lots allow visitors to relax and enjoy a day of shopping here. 

You can find just about anything in the shops here from handbags, accessories, and souvenirs to handicrafts, antiques and art.  There are also some design shops of well-known brands whose shop-windows are true works of contemporary art.   

Malaga also features shopping centres and department stores that boast a wide variety of shops and services, making them real leisure centres for customers.

Visiting and enjoying Malaga is not a question of will but rather of time.  The choice of leisure activities is so vast that it is often hard to decide: beaches, monuments, botanical gardens, sports and adventure... To start off on the right track you should opt for the public transport – especially the city buses – as your means of transport.  With over 40 different routes, the bus will take you anywhere you want to go.

Apart from that, the range of possibilities is nearly endless.  For lovers of sun and relaxation, what better way to enjoy the sunrise than lying on a beach-towel at the edge of the sea?  Malaga’s 14 kilometres of beaches bordered by seaside promenades make this – and much more – possible.

A cultural tour is another way to enjoy a morning in Malaga – you can follow a route that will take you to all the principal monuments and museums.  There are itineraries for every taste – with such a wide variety of possibilities, you can choose to visit historic buildings like the Alcazaba and the Roman Theatre or opt for a walk through the Picasso zone, where the highlights are the museums.  

Malaga also gives you the chance to really get in touch with nature.  Exploring its marvellous and diverse botanical heritage – whose crown jewel is the La Concepción Botanical-Historical Garden – is a truly beautiful experience.

Evenings in Malaga are also great time to make the most of the city’s charms.  The agreeable climate allows you to enjoy the tranquillity of a terrace in the Plaza de la Merced or Calle Larios until the sun sets.  Or you may decide to have something at one of the numerous snack-stands lining the beachfront promenades.  A beautiful spot like the Baños del Carmen (a former beach-side spa) is a great place to contemplate the changing tones of the sea in the late afternoon.

And finally, the nights: Malaga’s night-life is most active from Thursday through Saturday.  The Historic Centre becomes a boisterous area, full of activity, where the young – and the not so young – dance to the rhythm of the music – sometimes played by live bands.  From the Plaza de la Merced to the Plaza de la Constitución a lively atmosphere is assured until the wee hours of the morning.  If you are looking for a more relaxed ambiance, you should head for the areas of La Malagueta, Paseo de Sancha, Limonar and Pedregalejo.  The Plaza Mayor and Malaga Nostrum leisure centres are located on the outskirts of the city; here cinemas, discotheques, bowling alleys and bars make for another fun alternative.

Malaga is considered to be a true “City of Museums” featuring more than twenty to choose from.  Most of these are concentrated in the city’s Historic Centre so visiting them is easy and convenient. 

Museums: Archaeological Museum of the Alcazaba, Centre of Contemporary Art, Interactive Museum of Music, Picasso’s Birth-House Museum, Malaga Museum of Picasso, Museum Aquarium-Marine Interpretive Centre, and the “Antonio Ordóñez” Bullfighting Museum – to name just some.

La Concepción Botanical-Historical Garden is considered to be the most beautiful tropical garden in Spain and one of the most spectacular in Europe.  It has more than a century and a half of history behind it but was not declared a garden of historical-artistic interest until 1943.  A visit here is an unforgettable experience, giving you the feeling of being lost in the middle of a tropical jungle. 

Gardens of the Finca El Retiro: Among the best in Spain, they contain botanical and ornithological elements as well as an aquarium.

Montes de Malaga Natural Park: This park belongs to the Environmental Agency and is washed by five tributaries of the Guadalmedina River.  It covers an area of 4,900 hectares.

The Alcazaba: Built in the 11th century, this was the palace-fortress of the city’s Moorish governors.

The Cathedral and Cathedral Museum – popularly known as the “Manquita”.  Construction was begun in the 16th century and it still remains an unfinished work even today.

The Roman Theatre: Dating from the time of Augustus, it was discovered in 1951 and is located at the foot of the Alcazaba.

The Church of San Juan Bautista is part of the heritage left by Ferdinand and Isabella.  Built in the Gothic style, it is one of the many churches found in the city.

The Episcopal Palace is an amalgam of buildings that currently house the Diocesan Museum.  It is also used as an exposition hall. 

The Miguel de Cervantes Municipal Theatre was constructed in 1870 and is currently the scene of the Malaga Festival of Spanish Cinema.

The Monument to Torrijos, from the 19th century, is situated in the centrally-located Plaza de la Merced.  It pays tribute to the Liberal general and his companions who were executed by firing squad in 1831.

Malaga, the modern-day capital of the Costa del Sol, was founded by the Phoenicians, probably around the 7th century B.C.  During those times it was known as Malaka.  The history of Malaga has passed through various different stages, from the Roman period, through the Moorish era, and up to modern times.  During the first two periods, the city was a hub of special importance and lived out moments of glory thanks to its unstoppable development.  The conquest of the city by Ferdinand and Isabella brought with it a period of decadence similar to that which later transpired during the years of the Spanish Civil War.  Malaga suffered an aerial bombardment at the hands of Mussolini and the Nationalist Forces, an event which brought about the exodus of many of the citizens.

Since then, everything has changed and Malaga now lives in a state of constant growth, having recently surpassed half a million inhabitants, according to the municipal census.  The city is considered to occupy a special place on the coast of Andalusia; it is located 60 kilometres from Marbella; 129 from Granada; 265 from Cadiz; 219 from Sevilla; and 573 kilometres from Madrid.

The “miracle” of Malaga occurred as the 1950s were coming to a close and the city participated in the “boom” of the Costa del Sol, becoming the tourism world capital.  Its beaches, infrastructure and agreeable climate catch the attention of more and more tourists every year.