Exploring south of Spain

We all, more or less, miss the days of traveling. The days when you could just go away without unexpected changes - as cancelled flights, isolation, restrictions or PCR tests. I will in this post review my last warm holiday to Spain, from 2019 (!). Maybe we all can get that boost and dream about finally being on a beach again!

---

I did this trip with my friend Johanna as company. She flew from Sweden (Arlanda), while my flight left from Belfast (International). We both flew into Malaga airport, and our stay was only a short trainride away (about 15 to 20 minutes) in Torremolinos. We booked an airbn, so we had an apartment with a balcony and a huge bed in the middle of the small centre. It was close to the beach and we could also save money by cooking our own breakfast/lunch on some days, as we had a kitchen. It was perfect for us, who stayed for 7 days.

Because we went early May we expected the weather to be between 20 to 25 degrees, but as we arrived in the middle of a heatwave it was pushing 30 degrees every day. A positive thing, with going as early as we did, was that we didn't go on high season and some days we had big parts of the beach to ourselves!

Torremolinos is a town that used to be a fishing village before tourism kicked in. It has over 300 sunny days a year (!) and when we visited it was a good base for when wanting to do some exploring in other nearby places.

We decide to visit Ronda, Gibraltar and Malaga. To Ronda we went on a bus tour that took us up the mountains and had a few stop in different villages before we stopped in Ronda for a longer stay. This was a bus tour not to recommend if you want peace and quiet. The guide spoke four languages, and even if this is indeed very impressing he decided to tell all the facts he had on all languages, and there was a lot of facts! I can't remember one moment of peace and quiet on our way over to Ronda!

"It has incredible views and plenty of places for food or dessert, if that is your cup of tea."

It was also here that we realized that the people in Spain (mostly smaller places like towns and villages) don't usually speak English. We almost missed the bus back trying to find a person who could give us directions to the bus station! Have your google translate ready in emergencies like these! Other than this Ronda was a beautiful place to visit. The tour continued here by walking around the town, and we also had a pitstop for wine-tasting. It has incredible views and plenty of places for food or dessert, if that is your cup of tea. Picture below shows me being annoyed over our guide that would never stop talking, at least Johanna's patience got us through it!

Our second adventure was a bus tour to Gibraltar. This journey was a longer one and we had to put aside a full day for going back and forth. But is was definitely worth it! Gibraltar is a part of the U.K and to enter you need to show passport and go through security.

After entering we changed to a smaller bus for the English tour. We had one pitstop before going up the mountain where you can find the main attraction of Gibraltar - the monkeys! Here you do not only get an amazing view over Gibraltar, but it is an incredible experience to watch the monkeys roam free. They have no cages around them and tourists are warned of monkeys stealing your stuff or even biting you - this is however accepted as we are stepping into their territory, and you visit on your own risk. We also got the opportunity to enter St. Michaels Cave, which was an extra bonus!

After the trip up the mountains we got time to go to the city center for a bit before the trip back to Torremolinos. The city centre remind you of an "old town" and the street names are British. In the heat we decided to go for some food and a beer before taking a stroll back to the bus. Is this a must if you have an opportunity to go? Yes, from my point of view it is a very good daytrip and there is loads of different tours you can decide on!

Lastly we went to Malaga for one day. This was more of a city-trip as it was so close to Torremolinos and we wanted to get the city-feel as well, when we had the chance. It was very difficult to get ahold of an Uber in Malaga, and in the heat we struggled to accept that the drivers constantly decided to canceled our bookings because they couldn't find the way. After many ifs and buts we managed to get to Jardin Botanico. A huge park just outside the city centre. Here you had to pay a small entry fee.

"If you're in Malaga and either is looking for nature to soak in or an Instagram-friendly place - Jardin Botanico is the place to go to!"

In the park there was different kinds of flowers, trees and all you can imagine. It was also different buildings to visit. If you're in Malaga and either is looking for nature to soak in or an Instagram-friendly place - Jardin Botanico is the place to go to!

What about food? We can't miss the importance of food. That's half of the reason you go on holiday, right? I was actually a bit disappointed in the food where we went. It just felt very bland. We went to a tapas place in Torremolinos, and as this is a "must" in Spain we expected a "wow"-moment, but it was nothing special. Maybe we just choose the wrong places to go, or you need to move more outside the touristy places to get to the real flavors of Spain? The best place we went to, accordingly to me, was a wee Sushi-place in Malaga. Here I tried sake for the first time, and well... I'm unfortunately not a fan!

Overall Spain in beautiful and has a lot to offer. Just be aware of potential language barriers - not everyone speaks English! There is plenty to do if you are more on the adventure side of things, but there is also beautiful beaches, pubs and restaurants if you're looking for a relaxing holiday.