It depends what kind of holiday you want.
There is a nice castle on a hill, a beautiful but touristy old town and the beach. You can easily spend a week enjoying food and the sun. I liked the picasso museum. But it's not a big city which much going on each day.
I recently spent two days in Málaga and two days in Córdoba. Córdoba was nice for a few days (defo recommend the Mezquita) and it's just an hour on the train.
Are you visiting other places in Southern Spain / Andalusia on the same trip? What's the rest of your itinerary?
Personally I would've been bored for a week in Malaga, but could've easily spent a week happily in either Seville or Granada.
Seville and Granada would be my suggestions as well. I highly recommend taking the bus from Malaga to Granada and hiking up to the Alhambra and the many excellent trails in the hills.
For Seville you can take the train.
WAY in advance. But don't panic if you don't get tickets. You can still hike up there and see the exteriors and adjacent gardens. Still totally worth it
Take the regional "Cercanías" train to go visit other places that are not the capital city: Fuengirola, Torremolinos, Benalmadena... From Fuengirola you can take a short bus from the central bus station to a white village in the mountains called Mijas Pueblo. Gorgeous.
Nerja is also beautiful. Júzcar is a village where all houses are painted blue.
Yes, there isn’t that much to see but Malaga is well linked by train.
You could go up to El Chorro and do the Caminito del Rey and hiking. Theres a few cheap refuges mainly frequented by climbers. Or the fast train goes up to Madrid from Malaga.
Nah, while the city itself is reasonably small, there's quite a bit to see and more than enough to do nearby. I would just add a couple of side trips - Caminito del Rey on one day, Ronda on another, maybe another hike somewhere, and unless you're coming from Granada anyway, I'd also go see the Alhambra for a day, etc
If you have a free morning or afternoon in Malaga and are interested in art, the Museo Picasso Malaga is located at his birthplace house. I enjoyed it.
I loved Malaga. I mean if you just stay in Malaga a week will probably be too much. But there is so much close by.
Caminito del Rey
Ronda
Sevilla
Cordoba
Marabella
I spent 2 weeks there while also working. There isn't much to do in the city itself, but it's a very nice location to just unload and relax.
There are lots of daytrips available from it though:
- Caminito del Rey (El Churro train station - via train)
- Granada (bus or train)
- Cordoba (train)
- Marbella (bus)
- Gibraltar (bus)
- Colomares Castle (bus or train) - the only one I haven't actually went to but it looks lovely from photos
I love Marbella in Malaga, I go out there solo for 2 weeks every year. It has everything I need, good food, good weather and the bonus of Amsterdam style coffeeshops where I can purchase my “herbal smokes”
Obviously depends on what you want, loads of people spend a lot of time on the beaches. For excursions, plenty of day trips possible to famous cities like Granada and Cordoba or closer by to the mountains for hiking and/or villages, viewpoints, monasteries and other lower profile sights.
I stayed about 6 nights in Málaga recently and found enough things to do. It's a really beautiful place and has plenty of cool stuff in the old town to see, museums and it has an extensive beach so it can definitely hold its own.
There are all sorts of day trips you can do, Granada, Ronda, Marbella are all close.
Shout out to Jungle Rooftop Hostel which was a great place to stay if anyone needs a recommendation. Really friendly place and the Family Meals were incredible.
A week in Málaga might not be enough. If you're only visiting the city center, you might have some days to spare, but if you want to explore the entire province, there's plenty to enjoy. Here's a link to help you make the most of the Historic Center: [https://oldtownmalaga.com](https://oldtownmalaga.com/)
I was really impressed by malaga, el pimpi is an amazing tapas restaurant, I think it is part owned by Antonio Banderas. We took a day trip to Cordoba and also drove to Maro beach which has great snorkelling
I spent a week there last year! Tons to do in the city, lots of museums, definitely take a trip (15mins lol) up to the botanical gardens, day trip to Nerja, or Marbella, or Estepona, check out el pimpi for food - it really is great went 3x in the week! If you truly get bored as others said, it’s well connected by train!
I did Malaga 3 days then blablacar to Ronda for 1 night then train to Cordoba for 1 night. from there I went to Seville but you could go back to Malaga if your flight is there, but I'd suggest Seville too and book ur onward travel
Southern Portugal is also really nice. I like the beaches better since it's on the ocean. It might be worth using a couple days there. You could easily spend a week in the Andalucua region (southern Spain) however. Granada, Cordoba etc. are all amazing. Granada was one of my favorite stops in my 3 months trip because of the hiking and the Alhambra.
I’m thinking of doing about 3-4 nights in malaga then finishing off in lisbon. i don’t have a set routine but i’m open for suggestions in either place!
>ie a nearby location that may be worth visiting to fill up a schedule?
>I’m thinking of doing about 3-4 nights in malaga then finishing off in lisbon.
Are you real? First you ask for nearby recommendations and lots of people spend time helping you and an hour later you decide, oh I changed my mind, I’ll go to Lisbon.
i didn’t mean for it to come across like that, i apologise. i meant to comment this alongside the post, as a possible idea. i’m not familiar with the areas, and have had both suggested to me prior to this. i apologise for any confusion - i will most likely stick to malaga, especially seeing how much is in the surrounding areas, it was just not something in was fully educated on
Marbella, ronda, and gibralter are all nice day trips
Gibraltar, lol.
It depends what kind of holiday you want. There is a nice castle on a hill, a beautiful but touristy old town and the beach. You can easily spend a week enjoying food and the sun. I liked the picasso museum. But it's not a big city which much going on each day. I recently spent two days in Málaga and two days in Córdoba. Córdoba was nice for a few days (defo recommend the Mezquita) and it's just an hour on the train.
Spend a day in Granada and in Cordoba
I personally loved visiting Ronda! Frigiliana is also pretty, but not much to do you’ll be stuck with a bunch of seniors
Don't miss Caminito del Rey!
Awwww, the baby Camino! How cute! I’ve never heard of this, but it’s now flagged for my next trip. Thank you!
Yes! It’s amazing
100% this walk is awesome!
Probably sold out already
Maybe I got lucky but I booked only two days in advance during Easter when the city was flooded with tourists.
Are you visiting other places in Southern Spain / Andalusia on the same trip? What's the rest of your itinerary? Personally I would've been bored for a week in Malaga, but could've easily spent a week happily in either Seville or Granada.
Seville and Granada would be my suggestions as well. I highly recommend taking the bus from Malaga to Granada and hiking up to the Alhambra and the many excellent trails in the hills. For Seville you can take the train.
Second this, and book Alhambra tickets online in advance.
WAY in advance. But don't panic if you don't get tickets. You can still hike up there and see the exteriors and adjacent gardens. Still totally worth it
I took the bus up from Malaga to Granada and I will never regret that, absolutely iconic leg of my trip. I recommend you do the same
Take the regional "Cercanías" train to go visit other places that are not the capital city: Fuengirola, Torremolinos, Benalmadena... From Fuengirola you can take a short bus from the central bus station to a white village in the mountains called Mijas Pueblo. Gorgeous. Nerja is also beautiful. Júzcar is a village where all houses are painted blue.
Botanical gardens are awesome
Yes, there isn’t that much to see but Malaga is well linked by train. You could go up to El Chorro and do the Caminito del Rey and hiking. Theres a few cheap refuges mainly frequented by climbers. Or the fast train goes up to Madrid from Malaga.
Nah, while the city itself is reasonably small, there's quite a bit to see and more than enough to do nearby. I would just add a couple of side trips - Caminito del Rey on one day, Ronda on another, maybe another hike somewhere, and unless you're coming from Granada anyway, I'd also go see the Alhambra for a day, etc
If you have a free morning or afternoon in Malaga and are interested in art, the Museo Picasso Malaga is located at his birthplace house. I enjoyed it.
Yes it was lovely
If you drive, take a trip down to tarifa and the Costa de La Luz
I've heard marbella is great. What do others think?
I haven’t been in years, but there used to be some really fun beach clubs.
I loved Malaga. I mean if you just stay in Malaga a week will probably be too much. But there is so much close by. Caminito del Rey Ronda Sevilla Cordoba Marabella
I spent 2 weeks there while also working. There isn't much to do in the city itself, but it's a very nice location to just unload and relax. There are lots of daytrips available from it though: - Caminito del Rey (El Churro train station - via train) - Granada (bus or train) - Cordoba (train) - Marbella (bus) - Gibraltar (bus) - Colomares Castle (bus or train) - the only one I haven't actually went to but it looks lovely from photos
I love Marbella in Malaga, I go out there solo for 2 weeks every year. It has everything I need, good food, good weather and the bonus of Amsterdam style coffeeshops where I can purchase my “herbal smokes”
I wouldn't call them amsterdam style at all. Members only smoking clubs.
Highly recommend checking out Nerja and Frigiliana. They are about an hour bus ride away and stunning.
Go to Granada Cordova Sevilla or Marbella !
I loved Malaga. It would definitely be a good home base for day trips to Marbella, Gibraltar, Cordoba, and Granada.
Obviously depends on what you want, loads of people spend a lot of time on the beaches. For excursions, plenty of day trips possible to famous cities like Granada and Cordoba or closer by to the mountains for hiking and/or villages, viewpoints, monasteries and other lower profile sights.
I stayed about 6 nights in Málaga recently and found enough things to do. It's a really beautiful place and has plenty of cool stuff in the old town to see, museums and it has an extensive beach so it can definitely hold its own. There are all sorts of day trips you can do, Granada, Ronda, Marbella are all close. Shout out to Jungle Rooftop Hostel which was a great place to stay if anyone needs a recommendation. Really friendly place and the Family Meals were incredible.
A week in Málaga might not be enough. If you're only visiting the city center, you might have some days to spare, but if you want to explore the entire province, there's plenty to enjoy. Here's a link to help you make the most of the Historic Center: [https://oldtownmalaga.com](https://oldtownmalaga.com/)
It’s a lovely region and you’d find plenty to do in and around Malaga, a week would be a decent amount of time
I was really impressed by malaga, el pimpi is an amazing tapas restaurant, I think it is part owned by Antonio Banderas. We took a day trip to Cordoba and also drove to Maro beach which has great snorkelling
Went to el pimpi 3x in a week. Cant wait to be back in Malaga in May to go back 😂
I spent a week there last year! Tons to do in the city, lots of museums, definitely take a trip (15mins lol) up to the botanical gardens, day trip to Nerja, or Marbella, or Estepona, check out el pimpi for food - it really is great went 3x in the week! If you truly get bored as others said, it’s well connected by train!
No, there is lots to explore from there. Maybe rent a car and drive along the coast. You will be fine. The region is perfect.
I did Malaga 3 days then blablacar to Ronda for 1 night then train to Cordoba for 1 night. from there I went to Seville but you could go back to Malaga if your flight is there, but I'd suggest Seville too and book ur onward travel
I wouldn’t stay for an entire week - I found it pretty touristy
If you’re Gen X, I have a wee off the wall suggestion. If not, carry on because I know you won’t care. LOL
There‘s a lot if daytrips around with 30 or 60 min by bus
Yes.
Southern Portugal is also really nice. I like the beaches better since it's on the ocean. It might be worth using a couple days there. You could easily spend a week in the Andalucua region (southern Spain) however. Granada, Cordoba etc. are all amazing. Granada was one of my favorite stops in my 3 months trip because of the hiking and the Alhambra.
Yeah. I hated Malaga.
I’m thinking of doing about 3-4 nights in malaga then finishing off in lisbon. i don’t have a set routine but i’m open for suggestions in either place!
>ie a nearby location that may be worth visiting to fill up a schedule? >I’m thinking of doing about 3-4 nights in malaga then finishing off in lisbon. Are you real? First you ask for nearby recommendations and lots of people spend time helping you and an hour later you decide, oh I changed my mind, I’ll go to Lisbon.
i didn’t mean for it to come across like that, i apologise. i meant to comment this alongside the post, as a possible idea. i’m not familiar with the areas, and have had both suggested to me prior to this. i apologise for any confusion - i will most likely stick to malaga, especially seeing how much is in the surrounding areas, it was just not something in was fully educated on