Costa del Sol: Beaches, Picasso’s Birthplace, Aerial Cable Car and Paleolithic Caves
The communities of the Costa del Sol offer the traveller fun in the sun, museums, ports, beaches, marinas, and even some of the most famous and well-studied caves inhabited since the pre-dawn of human history. Here are some of the best places to visit in this holidaymaker’s sun dripped paradise.
Costa del Sol Attractions - Things to Do and Sights to See
Nerja
This city is the most famous urban center on the eastern end of the Costa del Sol, and is one of the most loved attractions in the whole area. The Nerja Caves are a series of underground caverns with Paleolithic wall paintings, a restaurant, a museum, and the world’s widest cave column.
Find out more about the Nerja Caves, and see maps and a presentation at the cave website (in Spanish)
Nerja also has around 16km of exquisite sandy beaches to enjoy, so you can combine history with sunbathing! The Balcon de Europa clifftop promenade will allow you to enjoy stunning views over the Mediterranean and beautiful Costa del Sol coastline.
Other Nerja attractions include the El Salvador 17th century church, the Gardens of Capistrano Playa and the town's fantastic restaurants.
Malaga City
Malaga City is the midpoint at which most people divide the Costa del Sol, east from west. It’s a city of over half a million people in the city proper, and around 800,000 if you include the surrounding areas. With its mild climate, large bay, and beautiful blue skies it’s one of the most attractive larger cities in the world.
Pablo Picasso was born in Malaga, a fact that cannot be escaped in the city. The Picasso Foundation renovated his birthplace, the Casa Natal de Picasso, which can be found in the centre of the city, and it is now a monument to this great artist and contains many of his works and a library of research and information. Here you will find works by the master himself as well as the works of Miro, Ernst and other masters both last century
and contemporary. You can learn a lot about how to make sure your trip
includes seeing some of the most remarkable work of the 20th century by
visiting their website http://www.fundacionpicasso.es/en/index.html
 To have the best opportunity to see Picasso’s works, you will want to
see the magnificent Museo Picasso Malaga. This museum was actually
built as a direct response to Picasso’s own desire to have his works
seen in the city of his birth, which was made possible by Christine and
Bernard Ruiz-Picasso. This once in a lifetime opportunity to see the
works of the most influential artist of the 20th century is not to be
missed - see the website for further details:- http://www2.museopicassomalaga.org/i_home.cfm
Malaga City also has many historic buildings including churches, the Alcazaba and Malaga Cathedral.
Mijas
Mijas is right in the center of the Costa del Sol region. It has seven golf courses, places to ride horseback with great views, excellent beaches, and a famous resort called La Cala. Make sure to visit the Mijas Beaches, they're superb!
- Calhonda Beach - Calahonda Beach is the longest beach of Mijas, at 4,500 metres long and 25 metres wide.
- Its golden sands, crystal clear waters, great facilities and family friendly atmosphere make for a fantastic beach day. The beach is also conveniently close to beach bars where locals and tourists can have as much fun as they want.
- El Cabo Rocoso Beach - This is another beach on the Mijas coast, but it’s rockier and more well known for snorkelling. it also has an interesting ancient watchtower.
Marbella
Marbella is located in the centre of the western Costa del Sol about 56 kilometres from Malaga. It’s one of the most famous, popular and well known cities in the entire region and is considered a magnet to celebrities and globetrotting gazillionaires. The Roman hot springs, bath houses, museums, Arabic fortress and basilica are attractions that add spice to the real lure: Marbella’s incredible beaches.
Puerto Banus is Marbella’s most famous marina and is another of the city's attractions. If you want to see, or be seen, the 915 boats lodged here belong to the world’s wealthiest royalty and notable individuals.
Cable Car for Sky-High Fun
The Teleferico de Benalmadena offers an aerial cable car that you can board from the Tivoli Amusement Park in Benalmadena. This adventurous flight over the coast will take you 2,600 metres in 15 minutes to the Peak of Mt. Calamorro at a height of 800 metres above ground. Don’t miss this opportunity of a lifetime!
The Costa del Sol is a paradise full of startling natural beauty, art from ancient Rome to Picasso, and the world’s most alluring beaches. Spend time here, and you just may decide to slip away from the workaday world forever.
For more details on the many Costa del Sol attractions, you can download our FREE Costa del Sol Guide .
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