My trip to Malaga in Holy Week, fried fish, Gibralfaro, Alcazaba (Arab fortress)
First of all, I would like to say that I am going to tell you my experience from my point of view, that is, a traveller who was only two days in Malaga.
Malaga is a great city halfway between Murcia and Granada (it is not so big, good weather, good prices, tasty gastronomy, welcoming people, etc.). These aspects, together with the fact that it is a seaside town, make Malaga a nice city to visit, and why not, to live. Although food prices are cheaper than in Murcia, you won’t find the traditional free “tapa” with a beer (like in Granada), except in some bars of the university area. To continue with comparisons, although Granada has an architectural beauty superior to Malaga, the last one has two castles located high up on the Gibralfaro mountainside, perfect to history lovers. From there, you will be able to see the whole city and the coast.
I visited Malaga in Holy Week, when the city swarmed with activity. However, the atmosphere was not exhausting and you could find some places to have lunch in the centre even on Good Friday.
The weather was fantastic. In Malaga people were sunbathing on the beach while it was raining cats and dogs in the rest of the country. That is the weather in Malaga: many sunny days every year; you only have to take a look at Wikipedia.
The prices, at least regarding transport and food, are very cheap. The average price I paid for my meals was less than €15, and I ate a lot! The city is small and you can perfectly go all over the city on foot in half an hour. But if you don’t like walking, transport to the tourist areas is constant for the reasonable price of less than €2.
With regard to the food, if you go to Malaga in summer, I recommend trying the traditional salt fish snacks (sardine, gilthead bream, etc.), called “espetas de pescado”, and cooked in wood boats buried in the sand, on Malaga beaches. “El Pimpi”, a place located in the centre of the city and known by any inhabitant of Malaga, is a very special place due to its tradition, its decoration, the quality of the “tapas” and its food in general.
With regard to the leisure time, the city has a great number of parks and beautiful tourist areas where you can go if you want to relax by walking and enjoying the gardens, especially the Alcazaba gardens and Gibralfaro, the castle. For sun and sea lovers, I highly recommend the Malaga beaches.
Malaga is a city full of customs, traditions and a deeply-rooted history. Holy Week is lived strongly in Malaga and there are a great number of Nazarene congregations and communities. You can also find several museums about traditional customs and museums of history not only in the centre of the city, but also inside the aforementioned Gibralfaro castles. Malaga is a city with thousand-year-old traditions. Its history starts with the Phoenicians, continues with the Roman Empire and the Muslim occupation in the Kingdom of Al-Andalus. After some centuries, Malaga annexed to the Castilla Crown and it was one of the bloodiest cities in the Spanish Civil War.
The architectural beauty of the city is based on the bullring, the cathedral, the Roman Theatre and especially, the castles high up on its mountainside: La Alcazaba and Gibralfaro. I was really taken with these castles, especially, La Alcazaba; it seems a palace fortification with a veritable Eden of gardens and a fantastic decoration based on waterfalls, fountains, ponds, flowers, fruit trees, etc. On the contrary, Gibralfaro has a more traditional garden based on different kinds of trees. The impressive views of the coast and the city are the main attractiveness of Gibralfaro.
To tell the truth, I don’t really like the other buildings of the old quarter.
In conclusion, Malaga is a beautiful city, with a good food, a lot of history, a perfect weather, wonderful beaches, and impressive castles. It is worth visiting Malaga and I wouldn’t mind living there for a period of time. I highly recommend visiting Malaga.
Malaga is a great city halfway between Murcia and Granada (it is not so big, good weather, good prices, tasty gastronomy, welcoming people, etc.). These aspects, together with the fact that it is a seaside town, make Malaga a nice city to visit, and why not, to live. Although food prices are cheaper than in Murcia, you won’t find the traditional free “tapa” with a beer (like in Granada), except in some bars of the university area. To continue with comparisons, although Granada has an architectural beauty superior to Malaga, the last one has two castles located high up on the Gibralfaro mountainside, perfect to history lovers. From there, you will be able to see the whole city and the coast.
I visited Malaga in Holy Week, when the city swarmed with activity. However, the atmosphere was not exhausting and you could find some places to have lunch in the centre even on Good Friday.
The weather was fantastic. In Malaga people were sunbathing on the beach while it was raining cats and dogs in the rest of the country. That is the weather in Malaga: many sunny days every year; you only have to take a look at Wikipedia.
The prices, at least regarding transport and food, are very cheap. The average price I paid for my meals was less than €15, and I ate a lot! The city is small and you can perfectly go all over the city on foot in half an hour. But if you don’t like walking, transport to the tourist areas is constant for the reasonable price of less than €2.
With regard to the food, if you go to Malaga in summer, I recommend trying the traditional salt fish snacks (sardine, gilthead bream, etc.), called “espetas de pescado”, and cooked in wood boats buried in the sand, on Malaga beaches. “El Pimpi”, a place located in the centre of the city and known by any inhabitant of Malaga, is a very special place due to its tradition, its decoration, the quality of the “tapas” and its food in general.
With regard to the leisure time, the city has a great number of parks and beautiful tourist areas where you can go if you want to relax by walking and enjoying the gardens, especially the Alcazaba gardens and Gibralfaro, the castle. For sun and sea lovers, I highly recommend the Malaga beaches.
Malaga is a city full of customs, traditions and a deeply-rooted history. Holy Week is lived strongly in Malaga and there are a great number of Nazarene congregations and communities. You can also find several museums about traditional customs and museums of history not only in the centre of the city, but also inside the aforementioned Gibralfaro castles. Malaga is a city with thousand-year-old traditions. Its history starts with the Phoenicians, continues with the Roman Empire and the Muslim occupation in the Kingdom of Al-Andalus. After some centuries, Malaga annexed to the Castilla Crown and it was one of the bloodiest cities in the Spanish Civil War.
The architectural beauty of the city is based on the bullring, the cathedral, the Roman Theatre and especially, the castles high up on its mountainside: La Alcazaba and Gibralfaro. I was really taken with these castles, especially, La Alcazaba; it seems a palace fortification with a veritable Eden of gardens and a fantastic decoration based on waterfalls, fountains, ponds, flowers, fruit trees, etc. On the contrary, Gibralfaro has a more traditional garden based on different kinds of trees. The impressive views of the coast and the city are the main attractiveness of Gibralfaro.
To tell the truth, I don’t really like the other buildings of the old quarter.
In conclusion, Malaga is a beautiful city, with a good food, a lot of history, a perfect weather, wonderful beaches, and impressive castles. It is worth visiting Malaga and I wouldn’t mind living there for a period of time. I highly recommend visiting Malaga.
Content available in other languages
- Español: Mi viaje por Málaga en Semana Santa, pescaito frito, Gibralfaro, Alcazaba
- Português: A minha viagem por Málaga na Páscoa, pescada frita, Gibralfaro, Alcazaba
- Italiano: Il mio viaggio a Malaga in Settimana Santa, pescaito fritto, Gibralfaro, Alcazaba (cittadella)
- Français: Mon voyage à Malaga pendant la Semaine Sainte, pescaito frito, Gibralfaro, Alcazaba
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