Thousands of tourists enjoy their holidays on the Costa del Sol, where apart from on the beaches they can also have great fun in the water parks or visiting natural environments. Using a vehicle is a must when we want to get the most from our visit, so for this we recommend to check our prices and book early, take advantage of our online reservation without credit card nor cancellation fees. Continue reading to know some of our recommended things to do in Malaga.
A holiday on the Costa del Sol is a lot more than just a sun and beach destination. Therefore, both the coastal and the inland municipalities offer several activities and leisure areas to enjoy with the whole family or with a group of friends; and spend an unforgettable August.
From zoos to refreshing water parks, without forgetting the charm of some of the privileged natural environments as well contemplating some of the monuments and museums in the villages. These are just some of the offers that the visitors, as well as the locals that don’t have enough budget to travel abroad to other destinations, can enjoy.
Amusement Parks
Tivoli World, forty years of fun in Benalmadena
In Benalmadena, a visit that’s a synonym of fun assured, for both adults and children, is the one to the emblematic Tivoli World, where there’s more than 40 rides for all ages, although specially for the little kids, like the Tivoli Dragon, the Giant Wheel, the Rollercoaster, the bumper cars, the bumper boats, the mysterious boat, the little train, the Passage of Terror, the Go-Karts or the Free-fall.
In this amusement park, there are also many live shows that are organised throughout the whole summer, from concerts of famous and well-known artists to funny shows for kids and even stand-up comedy. Plus, this year it’s the 40th anniversary of the park’s opening and will be offering the visitors special discounts.
On the other hand, in Marbella there’s the famous Funny Beach Karting. These facilities, apart from kart racing in different categories like adult, kids, two-seats, etc., also offer trampolines, bumper boats and a zip wire. They also offer water activities such as pedaloes or jet skis.
Water Parks
A refreshing and exciting adventure on the Costa del Sol
The water parks are also an interesting option to spend an unforgettable day, like Aqualand in Torremolinos, or Aquamijas, the water park in Mijas, or Aquavelis, the one in Velez-Malaga.
In the case of the one in Mijas, slides, rapids with rubber dinghies and the artificial wave pool in all the parks with these features are some of the reasons why every summer season from April till October thousands of people visit these facilities.
In Velez-Malaga, one of the most refreshing attractions is the Aquavelis water park, that offers a wide variety of slides and pools for both young children and for those daring adults that can try out the Kamikaze: A high speed descent from 80 metres high; the ringlet, the soft slides or the Rapid River on top of a giant rubber ring. For the kids there’s also a fun children’s area, with smaller slides. The peculiar wave pool is also a must, an attraction to enjoy with the whole family where the waves are scheduled to turn on automatically every hour.
Zoos
A family visit to discover the most exotic fauna
Situated right in the centre of Fuengirola, is one of the most important zoos, not only in Malaga, but in the whole of Andalusia: Bioparc Zoo, which is home to many different species from a white tiger to lemurs, crocodiles, gorillas and many more.
In summer, the park extends its opening hours till midnight. This way, at 10pm every night, except on Mondays, Bioparc Fuengirola offer a very interesting African dance show, as well as an unforgettable experience with some of the animals that live there.
In Estepona we’ll find Selwo Adventure, a natural area that opened in 1999 that covers a surface of around 800.000 square meters with over 2.000 animals of 600 different species that live there in semi-freedom. The visitors that plan to spend the day at this leisure resort, can go for a ride on a dromedary or walk across the three suspension bridges from 35 to 60 metres long, there is also a 116-metre long zip wire and you can practice your accuracy with a bow and arrow, amongst so many other activities to choose from.
Aquariums
Sea species from different seas and oceans all over the world
The tourists and the locals have the chance to contemplate so many different sea species in Sea Life Benalmadena. It’s a fascinating interactive aquarium, unique on the Costa del Sol, surrounded by 500.000 litres of water and with over 3.000 creatures that live in the Mediterranean sea, in the Atlantic ocean, in the tropical areas of the Indian ocean, in the Pacific ocean and in the Red sea, without forgetting the most representative species that live in the Amazon.
They do exhibition shows, of kids activities or feeding of species, from 10am till midnight. Amongst the animals in the aquarium there are are turtles from the Cayman Islands, sharks, tropical fish and a wide variety of jellyfish brought in from all the oceans.
There are even more animals in Selwo Marina Benalmadena, a park of fauna that covers a surface of 1.67 hectares and seems to be half way between South America and the ocean. Situated by the Parque de la Paloma (the Pigeon park), its innovative concept makes it the only park in Andalusia to host a dolphinarium and a penguinarium. Plus, this year it’s its tenth anniversary, for which they have prepared a complete program with several new features and surprises that will be carried out throughout the whole season.
The most acclaimed attraction by the public is the encounter with the dolphins, where one can get to meet them up-close, observe their characteristics, participate in a training session or feel the caress of these animals. Plus, in summer they offer a spectacular dolphin exhibition accompanied by a selection of classical and contemporary melodies in the show ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’.
Natural Environments
The beautiful scenery of the municipalities in Malaga
In Benalmadena, a cable car trip up to the Calamorro mountain is well worth it. It allows the visitor ascend up to 800 metres in barely fifteen minutes, and enjoy the whole environment’s natural richness throughout the whole journey. The Benalmadena Cable Car offers an exceptional leisure alternative right in the middle of nature that gathers a trip in comfortable cable cars, falconry exhibitions and trekking routes that lead to viewpoints from where one can enjoy panoramic breath-taking views over the Costa del Sol. And, on a clear day, one could spot Sierra Nevada, Gibraltar and even the African coast.
Amongst its activities there’s the Valley of the Eagles where, everyday at 1pm and 5pm, one can enjoy the falconry exhibitions, the art of hunting with birds of prey, declared Patrimony of Humanity by Unesco. These exhibitions show emblematic species of the birds of prey such as hawks, eagles, owls and vultures.
Inland tourism is becoming more an more an alternative for a holiday. The railway tracks or canyoneering, amongst other activities, allow the adventurer to enjoy the scenery and the environment of the Ronda mountains, that transform into a natural amusement park. Some of the most demanded destinations are: the Ronda gorge; the Devil’s Pit, in Juzcar; the Green Throat, in Grazalema; the Cat’s Cave, in Benaoján; or the Vulture’s Canyon, near Cortes de la Frontera.
For these kind of activities it’s important to do them with companies that specialise in adventure sports, as they require safety protocols and different route levels so that anyone with a minimum level of fitness can join in.
Other activities
Spiritual meditation for the relaxation of the body and mind
Another way of spending a holiday in the province of Malaga, is dedicating it to relax the body and mind with a spiritual vacation in a meditation centre like the one in Alhaurin El Grande for example, that offer during one week the chance to escape on organised day trips to different parts of the province. Those who need to escape from the daily routine can find in these type of vacations the perfect combination between resting, relaxing, tourism and meditation, guided by the centre’s resident master.
In case what you’re searching for is a more archaeological experience, the Axarquia offers two of the most important caves one must visit: the Nerja cave, famous for its enormous and impressive stalactites; and the Treasure cave in Rincon de la Victoria, the only sea cave that can be visited in the whole of Europe.
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