3 Days in Málaga, Spain + Photo Tour
I visited Málaga, Spain for the first time this recent past November of 2023. I don’t like to be too busy when visiting new places. I prefer to walk around and absorb the feeling of a city.
I stayed a hostel with private pod rooms called COEO Pod Hostel. It was pretty cool! Very clean and nice to have my own private room. The bathrooms where shared.
One thing about Malaga is that the train station is pretty far outside the city center. I try never to take Ubers and Taxis on my travels because I prefer walking and seeing the whole city and to save money. So this was a very long walk!
This is how I spent my time:
Day 1: 1/2 day. Arrived on a Friday afternoon. Checked into my hostel and then walked around the bustling city center. Got food at Kimchi Bowl—it was good!
Day 2: Got a coffee and donut at Bun and Coffee then recorded a podcast episode in my pod at the hostel. Went window shopping and found that the shops only had polyester and synthetic clothing that I wasn’t interested in. Spent the day resting and editing the podcast at the hostel. Got pizza at Regina Margherita and it was very good.
Day 3: Rented a car and drove to Ronda and the Caminito del Rey (see my photos here).
Day 4: 1/2 day. Toured Alcazaba in the morning then headed to the airport to fly to Lisbon, Portugal for the next leg of my trip.
Overall impressions:
The city center is charming! There were a lot of Christmas lights up that made it feel magical. It was packed with people so the vibe was fun.
There were a few moments when I felt overwhelmed with how crowded it was.
Really great coffee shops and food.
Ideal climate — the warmest place I visited on my 2-month Fall 2023 trip. I was there the first weekend of November and it was probably in the lower 70s (Fahrenheit).
I would go back!
It reminded me a little bit of Santa Barbara, California—warm, on the coast, sparkling clean, people shopping, and people dining outside. The big difference is that there are no cars in the city center of Málaga, which feels so much better! Santa Barbara did shut down part of State St during the pandemic for pedestrians only and I think have kept it that way since, which is really nice. Also, Málaga is bigger with a population of 569,005 (2016). Santa Barbara’s population is 88,255 (2021).
Photos and stories:
Alcazaba
“The Alcazaba (Spanish: [alkaˈθaβa, alkaˈsaβa]; from Arabic: القَصَبَة, romanized: al-qaṣabah, pronounced [alˈqasˤaba]; lit. 'citadel') is a palatial fortification in Málaga, Spain, built during the period of Muslim-ruled Al-Andalus. The current complex was begun in the 11th century and was modified or rebuilt multiple times up to the 14th century. It is one of the best-preserved alcazabas in Spain. The Alcazaba is also connected by a walled corridor to the higher Castle of Gibralfaro, and adjacent to the entrance of the Alcazaba are remnants of a Roman theatre dating to the 1st century AD.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcazaba_of_Málaga)
Málaga City Center
Coffee Shops
Delicotte Specialty Coffee and Tea (link)
Really nice pour over coffee with a lot of options on the origin choice.
Bun and Coffee (link)
It was November so I got the pumpkin spice donut. Tis’ the season for pumpkin spice everything!
New Level Specialty Coffee (link)
This flat white was great and look how cute the hand-made ceramic cup is! But, as you can see in the photo, the finish on the table was coming off and making a sticky mess. It’s wild to me that they wouldn’t take care of that ASAP. These tables looked worn in a long-term way. Gave me the ick!
