Malaga an incredibly well-connected, modern city
Getting to and from Malaga has never been easier.
As a major tourist destination, and the sixth-largest city in Spain, Malaga is an important transportation hub. It boasts excellent and regular connections to the rest of Spain, including the islands, Europe and beyond.
With a large international airport, an extensive network of motorways and dual carriageways, high-speed rail (AVE) and a major cruise and ferry port, travellers have many options to suit their needs.
Here we take a look at them in more detail.
A major international airport
With almost 150 destinations operated by 60 companies, Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport is, after Madrid and Barcelona, the best-connected airport in Spain.
It boasts two modern terminals with several daily connections to major cities in the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Portugal, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and more, as well as to the Canary and Balearic Islands.
There are also seasonal connections to the US and destinations in the Middle East and North Africa.
The airport can be reached from Malaga city in as little as 20 minutes by road. It is served by both the A-7 and MA-21 motorways, as well as by the Cercanías suburban train which runs every 20 minutes between Malaga and Fuengirola.
High-speed rail connections
Since 1992 and the arrival of the first high-speed rail service (AVE) between Madrid, Cordoba and Seville, rail travel in Spain has been revolutionised.
The high-speed network has since been expanded to include dozens of towns and cities across the country and now covers more than 3,600 kilometres, making it both the biggest in Europe and second in the world only after China.
When the AVE was brought to Malaga’s María Zambrano station in December 2007, this brought the Costa del Sol closer to the country’s capital and other previously hard-to-reach destinations.
Now, the AVE means that Madrid can be reached in between 2 hours and 20 minutes and 2 hours and 50 minutes, depending on the number of stops.
There are around a dozen services each way per day, and low-cost fares are available if booked in advance.
There are also now connections (either direct or indirect) to around 20 cities, including Barcelona, Zaragoza, Valencia, Valladolid, Huesca, Toledo, Tarragona, Cuenca, Lérida and Segovia.
Thanks to the Avant (high-speed, medium-distance) service, within Andalucía, both Cordoba and Granada are just a stone’s throw away. Trips take 1 hour and 1 hour and a half, respectively.
Seville, meanwhile, can be reached in just 2 hours using the Avant trains (or almost 3 on the low-speed trains).
Top-quality road infrastructure
The road network around Malaga has come on leaps and bounds in recent years, with modern infrastructure providing excellent connections.
Malaga city has two high-capacity bypasses which mean that traffic jams are now a thing of the past.
There are two major motorways which connect Malaga to elsewhere. The first is the A-45 road which passes through the Las Pedrizas tunnels, north to Antequera and Cordoba. The other is the A-7 (known as the Autovía del Mediterráneo) which runs from the French border in the north, through Barcelona, to Algericas, near Gibraltar, in Cadiz province.
The A-7 is also the main artery which connects the Costa del Sol. There is a 96-kilometre stretch which runs parallel: the AP-7 toll road. This provides quick access to Torremolinos, Benalmádena, Fuengirola, Marbella and Estepona.
From Malaga, you can easily reach Seville (2 hours 20 minutes), Granada (1 hour 30 minutes), Cordoba (1 hour 45 minutes), Marbella (1 hour), Antequera (50 minutes), Ronda (1 hour 40 minutes), Nerja (45 minutes), Gibraltar (2 hours), Tarifa (2 hours 15 minutes), Almeria (2 hours 10 minutes), Cadiz (3 hours) and many more by car.
Regular public transport
Like all modern European cities, Malaga has an excellent public transport system.
Buses are regular and connect all parts of the city, principally via the Alameda Principal. There is an airport bus and, past midnight, there are five night buses in operation.
What’s more, there are two stations for medium and long-distance buses: one in the port (Muelle de Heredia) and another beside the main train station (Paseo de los Tilos).
Malaga also has a Metro but its service is limited to the western side of the city, connecting María Zambrano (and soon the Alameda) with the Palacio de los Deportes on Line 1 and Andalucía Tech on Line 2.
The Metro is not to be confused with the Cercanías service which runs from the Alameda. This train also has two lines. The main, most regular one connects Malaga with the Western Costa del Sol, stopping at the airport, Torremolinos and Benalmádena, before terminating in Fuengirola. From there, you can take buses to Nerja and Marbella.
The second Cercanías line goes inland to Álora from which you can take a transfer to the Caminito del Rey ‘daredevil walkway’.
A growing sea port
Malaga Port has been taking on growing significance in the last few years as it has become a popular stop-off point on the Mediterranean for cruise ships. Every year, almost half a million cruise passengers pass through the terminal to visit this spectacular city.
The port also acts as one of the main departure points from Spain to Melilla, a Spanish enclave in the north of Africa. There are daily connections between the two ports and in summer, there are fast ferries which can do the journey in about three hours and 45 minutes.
From there, many travellers choose to explore Morocco.
Other popular ferry routes between Spain and North Africa run from Tarifa, Algeciras and Motril to Tangier, Nador and Al-Hoceima.
Easier than ever before
As you can see, there are numerous ways to travel to and from Malaga and many places to explore nearby with relative ease.
Malaga is a great place to live and getting here is now easier, more comfortable and faster than ever before.