Easy day trips from Malaga in Andalucia
There are so many things to you do in the Costa del Sol areas that you can do some easy day trips from Malaga and experience the most beautiful places of interest in the region. With gorgeous white villages set on the hillsides, beautiful coastal cities and historic old towns to visit, Malaga is a great base to place yourself while exploring the Costa del Sol region.
Malaga is the best hub for the Costa del Sol with regional bus and train lines and an international airport with so many regional and international flights that go to and leave from Malaga city. If you rent a car, then you can explore more places and stop and start where you want along the way.
You’ll love exploring all these easy to get to destinations taking public transportation or even a rental car to stop and go as you please and really get to enjoy a whole day or more visiting these locations.
Where is Malaga City located at?
Malaga City is located on the Costa del Sol, a coastal area in southern Spain. The Costa del Sol runs along the Mediterranean coastline of Malaga province in Andalusia. Positioned in the central part of this coastline, Malaga City serves as an important center for tourism and local culture, with its location offering attractive beaches and a pleasant Mediterranean climate. Malaga has excellent connection to plane, train and bus services to the city and to reach many other cities in the region.
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Transportation and how to get to these day trip locations
There is plenty of plenty of public transportation options or you can easily get around the Costa del Sol using a rental car and use either toll roads or surface roads to get around the region.
Train service to many of these locations can be made by train or the local commuter train service to the region using local commuter train, Cercanerias. It is relatively easy with many transport options.
Bus service to different areas of the Costa del Sol and the region of Andalusia is extensive with Malaga as the hub location. You can get around easily to many day trip locations through Bus services which is located next to the train station. You can book bus availability and times through the Omio booking site here for more services by train or bus.
Probably the easiest way of getting around the Costa del Sol is renting your own car and explore your destination through fantastic roadways and easy to follow directions especially if you use a GPS system to get you around the area easily. Check out rental cars through Europe Rental cars here for more information and making a reservation.
Here are the Easy day trips from Malaga in Andalucia
We share the best places to explore around Malaga for short-and easy-day trips from the city. You can get to these places quickly or even sign up for group tours of the top places to visit in the area.
Visit inland at the hilltop city of Ronda
Distance from Malaga: 115 minutes or approximately 100 km
The magical city of Ronda set on a hilly plateau is gorgeous and worth a day trip. From Malaga, the easiest route would be to take a bus directly from the city to the main bus terminal of Ronda. Once there you can either walk around or catch a taxi to get to the Old Town and main attractions of Ronda which center closer to the cliffsides and tourist Old Town of the city. The best way to get to Ronda is typically by bus from the Estación de Autobuses de Málaga which takes about two hours from station to station. Once there you can walk from the city center area or catch a taxi to get to the old town of Ronda which is where most of the attractions are to be found.
Check out my post on doing a day tour of Ronda here for inspiration.
Popular places to visit at Ronda include:
Bullring of the Royal Cavalry of Ronda
Arab Baths Arkeological site
Punte Nuevo viewpoint to new bridge
Plaza del Socorro
Mondragon Palace
Casa Museo Don Bosco
Iglesia de Santa Maria la Mayor
Take the commuter train to Torremolinos
Distance from Malaga: 19.7 miles or 19 minutes west of Malaga
One of the lively and fun cities to visit on the Costa del Sol is Torremolinos, located on the coastal area about 19 miles west of Malaga. One of the most popular tourist destinations, Torremolinos beaches and scene is lively and fun with a fun historic central district to explore and an exciting nightlife and parry vibe. There’s also a variety of bars and clubs that cater the party set, the LGBT community, one of the largest scenes located here in the Costa del Sol.
Check out my post on the top things to do around Torremolinos here for more images and inspiration.
Popular places to visit at Torremolinos include:
- Plaza Costa del Sol.
- Parque La Batería.
- Mirador de la Cañada del Lobo.
- La Carihuela.
- Casa de los Navajas.
- Aqualand Torremolinos.
- Jardín Botánico Molino de Inca.
- Benalmádena Pueblo.
Visit the white village of Antequera
Distance from Malaga 42 minutes or 52 Kilometers
located inland from Malaga about 52 kilometers is the large white village and city of Antequera which is an easy day trip drive or you can take train services to the city and buses to get around. Having a car will give you more flexibility to explore and see the main central district of the city and then drive up to the white village area above. You’ll find spectacular viewpoints an ancient Islamic fortress and other historic churches and monuments to visit in the village and down below are the more modern plazas, shopping venues and other easy walking areas to explore with historic sites along the hilly areas of the city.
Check out my post on visiting Antequera in one day here for more details.
Popular places to visit at Antequera include:
Dolmens of Menga, Viera, and El Romeral
El Torcal Natural Park
Real Colegiata de Santa María la Mayor
Alcazaba of Antequera
Convento de Belén
Tholos de El Romeral
Lobo Park, Antequera
Plaza Coso Viejo
Iglesia de Santa María de Jesús
Visit historic Seville
Distance from Malaga 205 km or 2.18 hours
A visit to historic city of Seville from Malaga is doable for a full day visit which is definitely a long day, but if you have longer an over night stay is preferable. The regional Capital city of Andalucia is historic, filled with cultural sites and amazing treasures to discover all around the city. Most of the historic sites of Seville center on the historic center with the main attractions like the cathedral, royal Alcazar of Seville, Giralda Tower, the barrio Santa Cruz, the gorgeous Plaza Espana or a nice waterfront walk along the Guadalquivir River and then the Triana neighborhood. There are so many cool neighborhoods, plazas, shopping venues and fascinating places to explore along the historic city of Seville.
Check out my post on visiting Seville here for more inspiration.
Top sites to visit around Sevilla includes:
The historic Barrio Santa Cruz
Giralda Tower
Royal Alcazar of Seville
Seville Cathedral
Plaza Espana
Triana district
Road trip to Nerja
Distance from Malaga 58 km or 47 minutes
A coastal city to the east of Malaga and about a half hours drive by bus or car on the A7 expressway, Nerja is not so touristy compared to the other locations around the Costa del Sol. Filled with lovely squares, walking promenades, churches, museums and best of all, a spectacular coastline. You can explore the scenic coasts and beautiful beaches that make this a lovely coastal city to visit. It’s an easy walking town with pedestrian streets that snakes its way from the old town to the ocean front areas at the stunning Balcony de Europe with spectacular views of the coastline areas of Nerja.
Check out my post to visiting Nerja here for more information, images and top places to explore.
Top sites to visit around Nerja includes:
Balcony of Europe
Balcon de Europa plaza
Historic church of El Salvador
Calahonda Beach, Burriana Beach and Salon Beach
Acueducto del Águila
Nerja Donkey Sanctuary
Nerja Caves (Cuevas de Nerja)
Explore the narrow streets around Nerja
White village of Frigiliana
Distance from Malaga 59 Km or 47 minutes
The lovely white village of Frigiliana lies east of Malaga and is under 1 hour drive by car and a little longer by bus. This beautiful white village sitting above the coastlines of Nerja, Spain is just that artistic, creative with lovely narrow streets, cool walking promenades filled with boutique stores, cafes and bars and shops selling hand made foods to other local specialties. This picturesque village has so many rewarding photo taking spots, its an Instagram lovers perfect venue to capture great street scenes, views of the area, cute streets and lots of dining venues to choose from. You’ll love this fun trip exploring the area and then drive down to Nerja to enjoy the coastal community and vibe of the area.
Check out my post to visiting Frigiliana here for more images and inspiration to visiting.
here for more information, images and top places to explore.
Top sites to visit around Frigiliana includes:
Castillo de Lizar
Church of Saint Anthony of Padua
Church Square
El Fuerte
Plaza de las Tres Culturas
Palacio de los Condes de Frigiliana o El Ingenio
Mirador Cruz de Pinto
The grand city of Granada
Distance from Malaga 129 Km or 1 hour and 26 minutes.
The city of Granada lies inland northeast of Malaga and is filled with historic treasures, amazing architecture and the stunning Alhambra Moorish complex to enjoy and explore. The whole city and historic district is compact and easily walkable to see most of the important landmarks, monuments and beautiful buildings built in different time periods of the city’s grand past. You’ll love exploring the main sties from the Alhambra, the river front areas, the Old town with its ornate cathedral, the old Albacin Moorish district to the newer and grander boulevards, plazas and shopping districts of the city to explore.
Check out my post to visiting Granada here for more information, images and top places to explore.
Top sites to visit around Granada includes:
Historic Albacin district
The Alhambra fortress and palaces of Granada
Granada Cathedral
Paseo de los Tristes
Palacio de los Cordova
Royal chapel of Granada
Plaza Nueva
Conclusion on day trips from Malaga, Spain
These day trips from Malaga are definitely worth putting on your bucket list of places to visit around the Costa del Sol and inland areas around Malaga region. Hope this inspired you to visit some of the wonderful places and bookmarked the site for later – please do share this post on any social media you can help share this with.
Thank you for checking out this post with Visiting Spain and Mediterranean, come check out the rest of the site of places to explore around the country, Muchas Gracias.
