The Costa del Sol is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. It is renowned for its outstanding beaches, warm climate, fashionable shopping, extraordinary mountain landscapes and historical interest. Cost of flights are generally cheap therefore making traveling easy and inexpensive to the region.

Sightseeing

The most often visited attractions of in the area are the golden, sandy beaches, scattered along the almost 300 kilometers of coastline. Granada exhibits the commonly visited, 14th Century, Alhambra palace-fortress, which is a spectacular Moorish architecture in Spain. Two other popular historical tourist attractions in the region include the 15th Century Alcazabar, a Moorish Fort situated in Malaga and also the Cathedral, known as La Manquita, which means 'the little one armed lady'.

Further inland the topology of the area becomes very mountainous with beautiful elegant Spanish villages and spectacular views with valleys packed full of orchards. This is a sheltered region due to the mountain ranges creating a mild, stable climate with slight prevailing sea breezes and little rainfall. Sub-Tropical vegetation flourishes in this part of Spain, such plants include the common palm trees, as well as cypresses, hibiscus and oleanders. Vegetation here is very colourful with village and town streets lined with orange trees.

Shopping

There are a wide range of shops in the area including designer fashion, home ware, and hyper market specials. Paseo Maritimo is an excellent place to shop in Marbella and Feria del Libro, is a well visited flea market in Malaga. Malaga is the fifth largest city in Spain and is located in the center of the Costa del Sol, as mentioned above; Malaga contains a wealth of interesting features such as the magnificent gardens and cathedrals. Torremolinos offers a range of wonderful shops which have been built where the old fishermans quarters were originally found. Places to visit and stroll around include Benalmadena, Fuengirola, Mijas, Marbella, and Estepona, which are all beautiful places, great for shopping, especially Estepona, which has five star shopping . Numerous golf courses can also be found scattered throughout the area.

Food and Drink

There is an abundance of restaurants catering for the British and German tourists in the Costa del Sol, including the traditional Spanish tapas, which are a popular traditional food. Fresh seafood and Spanish meat dishes are a common meal in the area. There are plenty of coffee bars, trendy bars and clubs that remain open till the early hours of the morning.

Accommodation

Accommodation in the Costa del Sol caters for everyone and suits all budgets. The majority of hotels and apartments offer amazing facilities with restaurants and bars, swimming pools, saunas, and Jacuzzis and are situated either in the centre or on the outskirts where it is quieter. There are also several campsites in the area to suit the needs for those self catering families.

How to get there?

Malaga International Airport offers connecting flights to all major European cities and a number of worldwide destinations. Other options include the frequent bus and rail services that operate in and out of the city, connecting easily with Gibraltar, Seville, Madrid, Alicante and Valencia via major motorways.