The Costa del Sol has been “going” for a long time. The first coastal villages West of Málaga City to be developed into holiday resorts were Torremolinos, Benalmádena, Fuengirola and Marbella.
Some were built quickly and cheaply without much regard for planning regulations.
In an effort to cash in on the new concept of the “package tour”, hotels were simply thrown up with little attention paid to comfort, safety and issues of longevity.
Many of these tatty structures have been or are being torn down, to be replaced with altogether more tasteful and attractive alternatives.
Pablo de Ronda lives out of choice up in the mountains of the Serranía de Ronda, yet he has ventured from time to time to the strange, dirty, noisy and expensive world of the coast of sunshine.
I have been on day trips to Torremolinos, Benalmádena, Fuengirola, Marbella, San Pedro de Alcántara, Estepona, Casares Playa, Manilva and Algeciras. Of these I like the eastern end of Torremolinos out towards Guadalmar best, as it is still quite undeveloped, yet has a great beach and loads of chiringuitos.
On my one visit to Benalmádena I didn’t spot a single Spaniard. Enough said.
San Pedro town I like a lot. It has a great atmosphere and is nice and open. The beaches are stony, however. The chiringuitos are good, if somewhat pricey.
Estepona is a genteel town with an enchanting casco antiguo (old part), a great main beach, a pretty port and some fine restaurants. It’s a very well-cared-for place.
Casares Playa, despite the name, has disappointing beaches. Friends of ours have a front-line apartment on a newish urbanización there. We enjoyed a visit to see them and even swam in the sea in the winter, December 2021.
Manilva we visited off-season on the recommendation of Spanish friends, but it was dead. The beach chiringuito that had been suggested to us was all shut up for the winter. Fortunately we had spotted an Argentine restaurant on the main road. El Estribo gave us an outstanding lunch which included some fabulous Argentine beef.
We travelled on Mr Henderson’s railway to Algeciras for my 61st birthday. We shan’t be going again. It’s not an attractive town, it’s grubby and quite boring.
That’s my personal view of the places I’ve been to on day trips on this part of the Costa del Sol.
My one experience of staying overnight (two nights, in fact) was quite recent, in September 2022. My wife, sister-in-law and I had a mini-break in the Mijas area. We stayed in Colinas del Faro between La Cala de Mijas and Fuengirola. A very convenient location from which to explore the area.
On the first evening we attended a gala dinner of the Costa Press Club at Restaurante Play in Mijas Costa. Although this was a private function for over 60 people, we could tell that it would be a great place for a romantic dinner for two overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Good food and friendly staff.
On the following morning I had an early coffee or two in Fuengirola, at Granier on the seafront and in a churrería in the Los Boliches part of town. I’d been to Fuengirola a few times over the years and I’m afraid it continues to disappoint. Seedy and shabby, it badly needs a facelift. Its splendid beach deserves a better resort behind it.
La Cala de Mijas is a better bet. It’s a pretty little village nestled between the busy A7 and the beach, which is fantastic. Parking is a nightmare, however. All three of us went there for breakfast. We chose a chiringuito on the beach. Set up for tourists there were various English breakfasts on offer, which were huge, so reasonably good value-for-money. We were well-fed.
After a bit of expensive window-shopping – even the sale goods were eye-poppingly pricey – we headed up into the hills to Mijas proper, ie Mijas Pueblo. This is without question a classy town with a terrific ambience. There were plenty of spectacular views to enjoy.
We lunched at one of the many restaurants crowded around the main square. The only one with a table in the shade. Gastrobar Alboka offered a range of gourmet tapas, from which we chose a couple each. Excellent, if somewhat dearer than we’re used to up in the Serrania de Ronda.
That night we did a bit of research on Trip Advisor and opted for Tapas Bar Bocarte in Cala de Mijas. We dined on excellent tapas which were generous in size and tasty, but once again expensive. On the night we were there the service was very slow, although they were very busy, to be fair. All in all, though, we had a good night, and we would go there again if we were in the area.
Our final breakfast was in Granier in Fuengirola. I had been the day before, but the womenfolk not. Expensive, but we knew it would be. What we didn’t expect was a 60€ surcharge – a parking fine!
So, that’s my review of the western Costa del Sol. Highlights, in alphabetical order, are: Cala de Mijas, Estepona, Guadalmar, Mijas Pueblo, San Pedro de Alcántara and Torremolinos. The rest you can keep.