Málaga Attractions. A Fortress, Castle, and Other Places to Visit

Malaga is the capital of the Costa del Sol, or "Coast of the Sun" of Spain! It is a lively city in Andalusia, in the south of Spain, full of monuments, culture and great cuisine. It is a wonderful city, where it is sunny more than 300 days a year, and the architecture delights. Malaga was founded by the Phoenicians in the 8th century BC, and its Phoenician name "Malaka" means salt. This city was even "doomed" to wealth. Pablo Picasso and Antonio Banderas were born here. Interestingly, this famous actor played a famous painter in the series "Genius: Picasso". Check out the attractions of the City of Museums!

Malaga attractions, or what to see in the City of Museums? Map of attractions worth visiting!

In Malaga, we expected primarily beautiful buildings and atmospheric streets, but it was the defense complex that made the biggest impression on us. It's definitely worth your attention! Unfortunately, we lacked time for other museums, and there is no shortage of them in the city, after all, this is the City of Museums and probably only Madrid beats them in Spain in this regard! Check out the best things to do in Malaga!

Alcazaba Fortress in Malaga

The Alcazaba fortress is a monumental fortress from the times of the Moors. It is one of the best-preserved Moorish fortifications in Spain, built in the middle of the 11th century, and more precisely in the years 1057–63. It is amazing! Not only views of the city and the sea, but even lace decorations of the fortress itself, labyrinths or gates and nooks and crannies. The whole thing is very impressive. Interestingly, in the past, until the 20th century, the Alcazaba was home to the poorest inhabitants of Malaga. The buildings were filled with makeshift apartments. Today, it's hard to imagine. 
Address: Calle Alcazabilla 2
Admission: about the fortress and castle a common ticket of 10 euros

Teatro Romano Roman Theatre of Malaga

Next to the fortress, there is an ancient Roman theater from the 1st century AD. It was built during the reign of Emperor Augustus and was used until the 3rd century. Its audience could accommodate up to 3,000 spectators, and the division into sectors reflected the social classes of the time, the lower levels were for the elite, and the higher ones for the general public. For centuries, the backfilled Teatro Romano remained backfilled, and it was discovered by accident in 1951. Today, it is again the stage for cultural events.
Address: Address: Calle Alcazabilla
Free admission, although you have to pass the queue to the fortress

Gibralfaro Castle in Malaga

Above the fortress, Gibralfaro Castle offers an impressive panorama of Malaga. Its name translates as "mountain of light", due to the lantern that was used for navigation. The buildings of the castle are quite modest, but the building also houses an armaments museum. The whole complex is worth your attention, but when visiting it you have to climb quite high, which is tiring in the heat.
Buildings existed here already in Phoenician times. In the fourteenth century, Yusuf I of the Nasrid dynasty built the castle in its present form to protect the lower Alcazaba and the city from attacks, mainly by Catholic Kings in 1487. Interestingly, the zigzag walls made it possible to abandon the construction of flanking towers, and the main gate in the lowest part is shaped in such a way that the attackers, after crossing one door, had to change direction, which weakened the impetus of the attack and prevented the use of large rams to push through the next door. At that time, the defenders could attack them from the top of the gate without a roof.
Address: Camino de Gibralfaro 11
Admission: about the fortress and castle a common ticket of 10 euros

Malaga's La Manquita Cathedral

The cathedral is huge, a 16th-century pearl of the Renaissance. The majestic building rises in the heart of the city. It was supposed to have 2 towers, but one of them is unfinished, because there was a lack of funds. When you see its power, you will not be surprised by this fact. You can explore the beautiful interior with Renaissance and Baroque elements after buying a ticket.
Address: Calle Molina Lario 9
Admission: 10 euros (online)

Plaza de la Merced - Picasso Bench Square

Plaza de la Merced is one of the city's main squares. This public square is located in the heart of Malaga and has been part of the city since Roman times. At least from the 15th century, it functioned as a city market. It's the one with the bench and Pablo Picasso's house. It is worth visiting the iconic Tapas Picasso restaurant. A set of 5 different seafood tapas costs 19 euros, Google rating 4.7

Museo Picasso Málaga - Picasso Museum

Pablo Picasso was born in Malaga. Here is his house and a museum dedicated to him. In fact, there are 2 museums dedicated to him. The smaller one is in Palacio de la Merced, in his family home, next to his bench, the other one is in the Palacio de Buenavista (Calle San Agustín 8). The latter is one of the most important museums in Malaga, located in a beautifully restored palace from the 16th century in the historical center of the city. It hides a collection of over 200 works by Pablo Picasso and costs 13 euros.
Interestingly, it was Pablo Picasso who invented the dove of peace symbol and first presented it in Wrocław in 1948 during the "World Congress of Intellectuals in Defense of Peace". He sketched a dove on a napkin in the restaurant of the Monopol Hotel at Świdnicka Street.
Address: Museo Picasso Calle San Agustín 8
Admission: 13 euros

The streets of Malaga with the most expensive Calle Larios

Be sure to stroll through the labyrinth of streets that are pleasant, atmospheric and allow you to admire the nice architecture. Many of them are narrow, cramped and charming. The wide artery of Calle Marqués de Larios, also called Calle Larios, looks slightly different. This is the most expensive street in Malaga, due to high real estate prices. It is ranked 11th among the most expensive streets in all of Spain. It is the main commercial artery and pedestrian street in the heart of Malaga, a symbol of luxury with shops of famous brands and exclusive restaurants.

Malaga Park - Malaga City Park

Malaga Park is a thriving piece of the city, with green parrots, palm trees and tropical dragon trees with distinctive thorns and large flowers, usually pink, but we also saw yellow ones. An even more spectacular flower here is a plant called royal strelitza. Its English name is bird of paradise, in fact, the inflorescence resembles a bird of paradise.
Address: Paseo del Parque 1
Free admission

Mercado Central de Atarazanas - Malaga City Market

Mercado Central de Atarazanas is a famous city market with traditional products, seafood, vegetables and local cuisine. The perfect place to discover the flavours of Andalusia, nicely designed.
Address: Calle Atarazanas, 10
Free admission

Sreet art in the "Soho" art district or murals in Malaga

In the Soho district, you will find numerous murals, both small and large-format. The most famous one is at Comandante Benitez Street, painted by Dface and Obey. These are street artists Dean Stockton (Dface) and Shepard Fairey (Obey Giant).

Beach near Malaga Airport - Playa del Campo de Golf 

Playa del Campo de Golf, also called San Julian, is located between Malaga and Benalmadena, very close to Malaga Airport. Itis adjacent to the resort of Torremolinos and borders the Parador de Malaga Golf Club complex. So if you don't have much time at the airport or you have some time to fly, take advantage of sunny moments on the beach. Here, on the very beach, you will find a nicely landscaped barbecue La Mar del Garum. Here you will see the famous way of grilling fish in a boat. We actually had only a short moment to say goodbye to the sea and Malaga, so we were tempted only by coffee and cake, overlooking the navy blue water and the planes landing again and again. On the sand you will find beautiful shells. There is a separate naturist zone.
Address: Cam. de la Cizana
Free entry

Other Malaga beaches

• La Malagueta Beach - the main urban beach located at the port of Muelle Uno, the inscription Malagueta has made it the most recognizable
• La Caleta Beach - the most beautiful beach on the east coast of Malaga, next to the luxurious district of the city. Wide and sandy
• El Dedo beach - also called Chanquete, with a family atmosphere, there is also the inscription El Dedo or finger, modelled on the inscription Malagueta
• Penon Del Cuervo beach - with an interesting rock formation and a wild west landscape, it has barbecue areas
• Pedregalejo beach - next to the oldest and most traditional fishing district of Malaga, where the view of a boat on the beach is a daily occurrence. Eat the best seafood here

Benalmadena Colomares Castle

Colomares Castle is a truly fairy-tale building located in neighbouring Benalmadena. It is the world's largest monument dedicated to Christopher Columbus and his discovery of America. It was built in 1987–94 by Dr. Esteban Martín, a history enthusiast. He incorporated the images of Columbus' three ships into the walls of the castle. The whole thing makes an amazing impression.
Address:  Finca la Carraca
Admission: 3 euros, closed on Mondays

Caminito del Rey King's Path

Caminito del Rey is a spectacular, hanging path 100 meters above the Guadalhorce River, on the rocky walls of the Desfiladero de los Gaitanes gorge in Andalusia, in the south of Spain. It's an hour's drive from Malaga. Caminito del Rey starts in the municipality of Ardales, passes through the municipality of Antequera, and ends in El Chorro (municipality of Álora). Today, it is considered one of the greatest attractions of Andalusia, but it was created as one of the most dangerous routes in the world. It has a length of about 7.7 km, and the paid part is 4 km. You wander it near the vertical walls of a limestone ravine, reaching up to 700 meters in height. It's a world-class attraction, highly recommended!
Address:  El Caminito del Rey, Ardales
Admission: 10 euros on your own or 18 euros with a guide, tickets must be purchased online in advance

If you like Spanish cities, visit the neighboring Benalmadena, as well as Palma and Alcudia in Majorca !

Getting to Malaga from Malaga Airport

Malaga Airport is the international airport of Malaga - Costa del Sol (AGP). It lies about 8 km southwest of the city centre. It is the main transport hub for tourists going to the Costa del Sol. We flew here from Katowice with Wizzair airline. Getting from Malaga Airport to the city centre is very convenient. There are several ways to do this:

• Train: The fastest and cheapest way is by suburban train line C-1 Cercanías, which runs directly from the airport to Malaga Centro Alameda station. The ride takes about 12 minutes. The ticket for this train costs about 1.80 euros. Trains run every 30 minutes or so from early in the morning almost until midnight. The train station is located at Terminal 3 and tickets can be purchased at the vending machines available on site
• Bus: Line A, also called Aeropuerto Exprés, runs between the airport and the city centre. The bus journey takes about 30 minutes and the ticket costs 4 euros. The line runs from 7 a.m. to midnight, and courses take place every 30-45 minutes. The ticket is purchased from the driver (you can buy it by card or in cash, in other lines only in cash). We had to get off this bus to Benalmadena after a few stops, cross the bridge to the other side of the street and take the M110 bus in the other direction (1.75 euros, cash only)
• Taxi: for convenience, you can use taxis, which are located right at the exit from the airport. The cost of a taxi ride to the center is about 25 euros

Accommodation in Malaga

Throughout our stay on the Costa del Sol, we slept at the MedPlaya Hotel Alba Beach in Benalmadena. It has a fantastic location almost on the beach. Just cross the road. It offered tasty breakfasts and other amenities, I an outdoor pool, bar, billiards, etc. There is also a hotel car park, payable separately (EUR 15 per night).

Here you will find a wide selection of accommodations. By booking your stay on Booking.com through our link, you support the development of our blog — and we thank you in advance! It helps us reach many interesting places that we later love to show you and share our experiences and information with you.

Where to rent a car in Malaga?

We rented a car in Malaga, near the airport, from Centauro, through Discover cars. Centauro takes customers from its headquarters to the airport free of charge, so after returning the car, we got to the flight quickly and without any problems. We rented a Fiat 500 because it is economical, convenient and very easy to park even in a small parking space, and it can be different. Thanks to this, we did not have to pay for the hotel parking lot, because we always found a little space for us in the zones marked with white lines, where you can park for free. The rental price is PLN 350 for 2 nights and PLN 80 for full insurance. When buying it, you do not have to worry about possible scratches, because they were not even checked. Of course, it also protects against financial consequences in the event of possible unpleasant events on the road. In addition, we paid a 44 eurofuel deposit, which they returned after 2 days, because we returned the full tank, as we received the car.

What's worth seeing in the area?

You don't have to travel far to find more interesting places. Within a radius of 100 kilometers, there are many attractions waiting for you that will certainly enrich your stay Your trip with additional memories.

• Costa del Sol in Spain, distance: 0.5  km
• Benalmadena in Spain, distance: 16.2  km
• Torcal de Antequera in Spain, distance: 28.2  km
• Caminito del Rey King's Path in Spain, distance: 38.4  km