Costa del Sol - Coast of the Sun

A trip to Malaga is not complete without a visit to the Costa del Sol.

Costa del Sol – literally, ‘Coast of the Sun’ is a stretch of beach, in the Malaga Province of Spain. The stretch of beach of about 150 km is touted as the heartbeat of Malaga linking a number of towns popular with the British, Germans, Scandinavians and French.

Benalmadena sits in the center of this very popular coast. The area's sunny climate is the main tourist attraction. This is where sun seekers head for in summer. It reportedly accounted for about 35% of Spain’s tourist income.

This is looking at the beach in one direction, from the road...

and, this is the view from the other direction.

It is not very obvious from the photos. But besides the hotels, and apartments, there are restaurants, cafes and gift shops. The scene is the same for as far as the eyes can see, and beyond.

On the beach, there are sunbeds and straw shade umbrellas for rent. Or, if you prefer to bring your own beach chairs, towels and mats, that’s fine too. You can set up your own spot on the beach. When you are hungry and don’t feel like walking too far, there are cafes and restaurants on the beach.

This is the seafront promenade.

One of the joys of visiting the Costa Del Sol is walking along the seafront promenade. It is a great place for a walk – any time of the day. The sight and smells made it a wonderful experience. Life here seems surreal, cut off from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

There are hotels and apartments, bars, cafes, restaurants and gift shops. When you are tired of walking, you can find a cafe or restaurant you like, have something to eat, or drink, sit and watch the world go by, or ogle at the numerous half naked bodies of all shapes and sizes on parade.

There is always the smell of Espetos in the air. These are skewed Sardines cooked over charcoal fire. It is a local speciality. Most, if not all restaurants on the beach have it on their menu. And, by the smells of it, they seem to be very popular.

Another smell that is in the air at the Costa is the strong smell of suntan lotion. The hot summer sun can be quite merciless, and if you are not careful, you will burn very quickly.

Cafes and restaurants on the beach promenade do brisk business.

More apartments and hotels along the promenade

A common sight on the promenade are hawkers – Africans hawking their wares – usually imitation goods like shoes, bags, wallets, football jerseys and caps, watches, sunglasses....

At the end is the Benalmadena Marina, or Puerto Marina Benalmadena which is "amongst the best in the world."

This is Castillo de Bil-Bil, or Castle of Bil-Bil – an iconic landmark on the Benalmadena Costa. Castle of Bil-Bil is not actually a castle per se. It is an Arab style construction which has a lot of Muslim inspiration, built in 1927 by a wealthy family. Now, it is basically a social and cultural center, a venue for exhibitions, concerts, conferences etc..

Tourists’ arrival on the Costa del Sol begin in May. Peak periods are from July to September, when it is the school holidays and European summer holidays. By the end of September, tourists will begin to dwindle when the Summer holidays end, and children go back to school. By then, it will also be too windy and cold to go into the water.

You can click on the picture for a better view.

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On The Main Street of Arroyo de la Miel

Benalmadena train station

A fountain in front of the train station. Straight ahead is the beginning of Avenida de la constitucion.

The main street on Arroyo de la Miel is called Avenida de la Constitucion. But for those who have trouble pronouncing the name, they simply refer to it as the main street or the high street. The street starts from the train station and runs through the center of Arroyo de la Miel into the next town. However, only the beginning of the street – about half a kilometer of it, is busy and touristic.

Here, on both sides of the streets you will find many shops, bars and restaurants. There are also fountains and statues of people who contributed to the development of the town in the early days.

The main street is always busy as this is the heart of the city. In the mornings and evenings, when it is not too hot, it is a good place to have a meal or a drink and watch the world go by.

Besides ‘The Waiter on Arroyo de la Miel’, 👉 HERE the other iconic item that stood out on the main Street of Arroyo de la Miel is a Jacaranda tree when it is in full bloom. The difference is that while the ‘Waiter’ is always present on the street, the jacaranda tree blooms only in late Spring. And it is during that time that the fully bloomed purple flowers of jacaranda catch the attention of visitors.

Imagine walking out of the station, and coming upon the tree in full bloom – a big purple tree in the center of the pavement. Anyone would have whipped out their cameras and snapped a few shorts. If you visit during that period, that will be one of the things that stood out in your mind when you recall your trip to Arroyo de la Miel.

This is the jacaranda tree I was on about.

This is a photo of the tree in bloom, taken by Roger in May.

Straight ahead of the Jacaranda tree are shops, bars and restaurants. There are Thai, Chinese, Indian, Italian, Mediterranean, Moroccan and a couple of Spanish restaurants.

And in the midst of them all is Burger King.

And yes, there is a MacDonald’s too. While Burger King has been around since my first visit in 2017, MacDonald’s is a recent addition. The restaurant is located across the road from the train station at the beginning of the street whereas, Burger King is almost at the end on the busy part of town.

Avenida de la Constitucion is a bit quieter between 2pm and 5pm when it is siesta time. Some of the shops and restaurants are closed during that period. Otherwise, the street is the busiest part of town.

You can click on the picture for a better view.

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The Waiter of Arroyo de la Miel

Known fondly as ‘The Waiter on Arroyo’, the set of sculptures comprising a table, two chairs and a waiter was the work of Bodero, a multidisciplinary artist based in Benalmádena in 2007.

One day, while drinking coffee, and watching waiters at work, he thought of how service staff had contributed to the development of the Costa del Sol. And yet, their contribution has gone largely unnoticed.

He was inspired to create a set of sculptures “In tribute to the waiters, men and women, who through their work have contributed to the development of the Costa del Sol."

He talked about the idea with the Mayor of Benalmadena at the time, who agreed to his suggestion. He set to work, completed and installed the sculptures. Unfortunately, shortly after they were installed, the sculptures were vandalised and one of the chairs was stolen. Since then only one chair remained – until this year, when the council commissioned Antonio Quesada, an artist responsible for many of the works of art displayed on the streets of the municipality, to create an exact replica of the chair that still remains. 

And now, there are two chairs again.

I didn’t know the story behind the sculptures and the missing chair until recently. When I first saw them, I thought they were intended as such. I found the set of sculptures at the beginning of the main street of Arroyo fitting and iconic. It was a good representation of the cafes and restaurants on the street.

Now that I know the full story behind them, I find them even more meaningful. I think the same applies to any art piece or sculpture. When you know the story behind it, you can relate better and the artwork takes on a new meaning – even though you might not like it a lot, or agree with the artist’s concept.

Anyone who has been to Arroyo would have seen the set of sculptures, remembered it, and most likely, had a photo of it. The sculptures could easily be the most photographed thing in Arroyo. In fact, when I visited Arroyo for the first time and came upon them, that was the first thing I did – took out my camera and took a few shorts of the sculptures. Now, I see curious tourists posing and taking photos when I pass by the area.

Here’s the link to the full story of the Waiter on Arroyo de la Miel. Have a look if you are interested.

👉 Source

You can click on the picture for a better view.

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Arroyo de la Miel, Benalmadena

Benalmadena train station. Out of the station, and you are on the main street.

Arroyo de la Miel is one of the three urban centers and districts that make up the municipality of Benalmadena, along with Benalmádena Pueblo and Benalmádena Costa. One could say it is the town center of Benalmadena.

There is a main street in the heart of the town. As with any town center you will find restaurants offering cuisines from all over – from European to American, from Mediterranean to Chinese. Most of them do brisk business. Outside of the main street, the town is a maze of winding side streets, back streets and plazas.

Since Arroyo de la Miel stands on hilly slopes at the base of mount Calamorro, there are slopes everywhere – from gentle slopes to moderate slopes to very steep slopes. The back streets, and side streets weave through the slopes. You are either going up or down a slope.

Here, you find smaller shops and businesses catering to the locals in the area. You would be amazed at the number of cafes and restaurants you find here. Most of these are small, local restaurants serving simple, local fares. However, there are also restaurants serving foreign cuisines to the enclaves of foreigners living in the area.

Arroyo de la Miel has many holiday apartments owned by Europeans who come here to escape the cold in Winter, or to enjoy the sun and sand in Summer. A big section of the people living here are retirees from the UK.

Arroyo de la Miel does not have the hustle and bustle of most cities where everybody is in a hurry. Besides the tourists on the main street, the residents in the town are mostly elderly people or retirees spending their holidays here. So, the pace here is slower and more relaxed.

Arroyode la Miel, or Benalmadena for that matter, is a nice place to visit, if you are looking to spend a few relaxing days.

Here are some places of interest in Benalmadena.

1. Costa del Sol
Costa del Sol is the main attraction of Benalmadena. You can take a leisurely walk along the coast, or rent a sunbed and soak in the sun, or look for a nice restaurant along the beach (of which there are many), have a drink and watch the world go by.

2. Puerto Marina in Benalmadena
Puerto Marina in Benalmadena is voted one of the most beautiful marinas in the world.

3. Sea Life
The Sea life aquarium located near the Puerto Marina is supposedly one of the top Sea Life Marines in Europe.

4. Parque de la Paloma, or Park of the Doves. They were voted one of twenty five most beautiful parks in Europe. As the name implies, you will find many doves and pigeons.

5. Benalmadena Cable Car
You can take the cable car to the top of Mount Calamorro to have a bird’s eye view of the town below. On a clear day, you can see as far out to Africa.

6. Benalmadena Pueblos
Visit the villages on the mountainside. Marvel at the interesting designs of the houses built on the slopes of a mountain. Ingenious, I find.

Other than the above mentioned, Benalmadena is a town where holidaymakers relax, enjoy the sun, eat, drink and party. If that is the kind of holiday you look forward to, Benalmadena is definitely worth a visit. Just take it easy and go with the pace of the place.

You can click on the picture for a better view.

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