Malaga Travel Guide

Check out our ultimate Malaga travel guide with things to do, restaurant and hotel recommendations, and day trips from Malaga.

Malaga, the hometown of Picasso, was long only considered the gateway to the Costa del Sol.

That has changed.

Today it is one of the most historic and beautiful port cities in Europe and one of the oldest cities in Spain. Its Moorish citadels and ancient amphitheaters now stand alongside ultra-modern hotels, restaurants, museums, and galleries.

Tourists from all over the world visit Malaga because of the year-round pleasant climate, the beaches, the famous museums, and stroll on the noble mile and the harbor promenade.

Malaga sights can rival those of larger cities. Modernity shakes hands with the history that is over 2000 years old.

The most famous sights include the Picasso Museum and his former home, old churches (Santa Iglesia) and citadels, castles on the mountain in the center of the city (Monte Gibralfaro, Castillo de Gibralfaro, Alcazaba of Málaga), the market hall (Atarazanas), the Botanical garden, the cultural center (Pompidou Málaga) and even a historical amusement park.

The new cultural center complements the ancient museums in Malaga. The luxury hotels in Malaga are also among the most exclusive.

If you have a little more time, you can easily explore other places near Malaga from here.

Tour guides offer excursions from Malaga to Ronda, Costa del Sol, the nature reserve around Bolonia, Genalguacil (the picturesque museum village), Tarifa (known for its nightlife in the surfing season).

If you feel like exploring the Andalusian coast and Malaga now, then read on.

Here you will find the best tips, travel times, and everything you need to know to make the most of your next Malaga vacation.

Best time to visit Malaga

Warm weather all year round

In Malaga, it rains only 50 days a year. So there is no really bad time for a holiday in Malaga.

Even in winter, it is warm enough to enjoy the numerous open-air cafes, the harbor, and the garden restaurants. Summer is considered the high season, but the best time to travel is late spring or early autumn.

The festivities around Easter are an insider tip. The prices for flights and accommodation are significantly lower, the climate is not too hot and dry, and the sights are not too crowded.

Especially those who check into one of the luxury hotels in Malaga will appreciate the mild off-season.

In addition to wellness tourism, the port city also offers historical sights, the many museums in Malaga, one of the most expensive shopping streets in Europe, Avangard restaurants, and of course the beach and port.

Book your vacation now!

All the companies and products below are helpful to plan your trip. The travel experts of Universal Traveller use all of them because they make their lives easier.

• Bookaway – On Bookaway you can check all available transportation options in more than 67 countries.

• Agoda – Agoda is an amazing website to book hotel rooms. When we are traveling in Asia we do not use any other website.

• Booking.com – Booking is another great platform to look for hotels. Low prices, great selection, and an easy to use interface!

• Hostelworld – Hostelworld is in our opinion the best website to search for hostels. You can find rooms and beds of more than 35.000 accommodations in 180 countries.

• Get Your Guide helps you to find the best tours wherever you are heading to. It’s normally the first website that we check when we plan a trip to a new place.

• RentalCars – Rentalcars compares 900 companies at over 53,000 locations to guarantee you the best price.

• Momondo – Momondo is the first website we use when we are looking for a cheap flight.

• SafetyWing – SafetyWing offers flexible & reliable Digital Nomads Travel Medical Insurance at just a third of the price of similar competitor plans. Check out our detailed review here!