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Edgy arts institutions, top-notch dining and a strong line in rooftop bars make this cool, cosmopolitan port city much more than just a gateway to the Costa del Sol.Málaga walks all over Barcelona and Valencia, in my eyes.” It’s a bold statement from Myles, a long-standing British ex-pat resident of Málaga province. But then again, during the past decade, Myles has seen Málaga transform from gritty port gateway to the Costa del Sol to an outpost for prestigious international arts institutions.
Málaga walks all over Barcelona and Valencia, in my eyes.” It’s a bold statement from Myles, a long-standing British ex-pat resident of Málaga province. But then again, during the past decade, Myles has seen Málaga transform from gritty port gateway to the Costa del Sol to an outpost for prestigious international arts institutions.
In the 10 years leading up to the grand openings of the Centre Pompidou Málaga and the Málaga branch of St Petersburg’s State Russian Museum in 2015, the city invested €100m (£90m) in the arts. “It has more museums than anywhere else in Spain, allegedly,” says Myles. It certainly has lots. Over 30, in fact, including two dedicated to native painter Picasso, one recently furnished
with 160 pieces of career-spanning art.
But as I shuttle around on one of the city council’s free-to-use bikes, it’s clear the city itself is a Mediterranean masterpiece. Previously shuttered from the sea by tatty 20th-century docks, the grand neoclassical villas of Málaga’s palm-fringed Avenida de Cervantes once again look onto the water, thanks to a shiny new marina, fragrant strip of botanical gardens, and a boardwalk stringing together over 15 miles of beaches.
Freewheeling along the coast, I stop for a swim at a chiringuito (seafood shack) and lunch on espetos — the skewered sardines after which Malagueños are nicknamed. Of all the simple, sunny joys to be had in Málaga, these grilled sardines — plucked from a barbecue pit fashioned out of old fishing boats — are surely the most superlative.
Back at the marina, a coffee at the El Artsenal gallery sets me up for an afternoon of perusing. More populist than the adjacent Pompidou, El Artsenal’s steam-punky sculptures and
colourful bric-a-brac art are a welcome antidote to the marina’s stark white concrete and glass.
In neighbouring Soho, with its graffiti murals and minimalist tapas spots, Málaga has another burgeoning arts district. But, as one of the world’s oldest cities, it’s no stranger to edgy generational flux. Málaga’s modern incarnation was largely funded by liberal 19th-century industrialist families — rather than conquering colonialists — whose extensive arts and archaeology collections have been creatively curated in the palatial new Museo de Málaga.
Yet the city’s crowning glory — one I ditch the bike to navigate — is a magnificent, historical mille-feuille dating back even further. Crowning a hill is the 10th-century Gibralfaro Castle, beneath which sits the Alcazaba, a Moorish fort with labyrinthine gardens weaving down to a subterranean Roman amphitheatre. Legs burning, heady with the scent of orange blossom and jasmine, I stop for a glass of cava near the top, at El Ambigú de la Coracha, a small cafe wedged into the hillside like a box at the opera. From its heights, Málaga’s drama continues to unfold: the sprawling, unfinished, gothic-renaissance-baroque cathedral dwarfing the old town; the porticoed
grandeur of the La Malagueta bull ring and, of course, the Med.
The beaches of the Costa del Sol, which used to be the sole reason to fly into, and hastily scurry out of, Málaga, now almost seem like an afterthought.
Things to Do and see in Málaga
Museo Picasso: the collection housed in this lovely 16th-century villa is not in the same league as Madrid’s Reina Sofía, but its drawings, oils, sculptures and sketches give real narrative to Málaga-born Picasso’s prolific, eight-decade career. Highlights include Restaurant (1914), an oil painting stuck onto glass, and an impressive roster of temporary exhibitions examining his collaborations and influences. A visit to Museo Casa Natal (set in the building where the artist was born), on nearby Plaza de la Merced, completes the picture.
Cathedral: Málaga’s gloriously florid, sprawling cathedral contains marvellous carved choir stalls, an ornate 18th-century organ and a painting by ‘Spanish Michelangelo’ Alonso Cano.
Where to Go Shopping
Mercado Central: get the pick of the local produce at Málaga’s central market — all stained-glass windows and sculptural ironwork, converted
from a Moorish shipyard. Try sweet toasted almonds, pan de higo (fig bread), Cabra Malagueña goat’s cheese with olives from surrounding groves — the lesser-known variety Hojiblanca is highly recommended. There are also excellent Iberico hams and shellfish, as well as tapas, all of which makes for a lovely gourmet lunch. Calle Atarazanas 10.
Sombreros Maquedano: buy a fedora, panama, straw boater or Cordobés — worn for bullfights during April’s Feria de Abril festival — from this elegant shop with a marble-and-gilt facade. From around €20/£18. Calle Sierpes, 40.
Málaga's Best Restaurants
With superb tapas and great local wines from €2 (£1.80) a glass, you don’t need to bust the budget to go gourmet in Málaga.
Chiringuitos (£): grilled sardines on the beach is the ultimate Málaga foodie moment. The chiringuitos (seafood shacks) in villages dotting the east coast are cheaper than those in town. Try Miguelito El Carinoso, in Pedregalejo, where a seafood feast for two — garlicky prawns, warm octopus salad and sardines — costs around €30 (£26), with a bottle of local Barbadillo. Paseo Marítimo de Pedregalejo, 77.
Lola y Ludwig (££): this tiny Soho spot serves Irish-Spanish dishes (reflecting the owners’ origins) like tortilla with colcannon and bacon, and salmon marinated in Irish gin.
When to Go
Málaga is at its hottest in August, when humid highs can exceed 40C; winter lows are roughly 17C. And unless you want the full-on Holy Week experience, it’s best to avoid Semana Santa
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