Sunday, May 23, 2010

5 Great Reasons to Honeymoon in Malaga

Great Location: The perfect location of Malaga makes it a great place to base yourself in for your honeymoon holiday. To spend some quality time together, there are some fantastic day trips that you both can enjoy in the Malaga Region. Choose from a drive to Granada - one of Andalusia's gems, to Day Trips from Malaga to Benalmadena, Fuengirola, Marbella and Torremolinos.
Wonderful Beaches: If you are happy to stay local rather than head on a driving tour of the region, then what could be better than a long romantic stroll down the beaches of Malaga? Some of the best beaches near the city are El Palo, Las Acacias Beach, Playa de la Malagueta, Playa Huellín and El Candado. The beaches are long and wide with clean, golden sand. The majority of them have promenades with plenty of facilties so you can drop by a pleasant café for a coffee or an ice cream!
Note that during peak times the beaches will be busy - if you avail of a car rental you can head outside Malaga and head for Playa Torrox (located 30 miles to the north) or Playa Benajarafe in Velez (over 4km long).
Great Attractions to Visit: Why not take a peaceful stroll around the city and see the sights? If you visit the Historic Quarter you will both savour visiting the most prominent historical buildings of the city. Visit the following squares and streets to see the most important sights - Plaza de la Constitución, Plaza del Obispo, Calle Cister and Calle Alcantarilla.
Learn all about Spain's colonial past in a visit to wonderful castles and palaces such as La Alcazaba, the Palace for the Nazarite Kings. Enjoy stunning views of the city from Gibralfaro Castle. The Palace Marques de Valdeflores, and the Bishops and Customs Palace are stunning places to discover together and take some photos! Maybe you could also head to the Malaga Bullfighting Ring that lies atop a hill, which overlooks the local area.
Malaga is also home to some stunning Cathedrals such as Malaga Cathedral whose construction originally began in 1528, and was built on top of the former Moorish Mosque. The wonderful architecture here is very impressive. Sagrario Church and Santiago Church (Christening Church of Pablo Picasso) are well worth visiting.
Birthplace of Picasso: The renowned artist Pablo Picasso was born in the city in 1881 and a great idea to spend some time together is to take the Picasso Tour of Malaga. Fit in a trip to the Picasso Foundation (Fundación Picasso), which is located in the historic quarter of the city. The artist and his family actually lived in this building, on the 2nd floor. The Museum is well worth visiting as there are regular exhibitions of his work held here. Find out more about the Picasso Tour of Malaga.
Great for Wine Tasting: Why not take in a day trip to Antigua Casa de Guardia and savour wine that is produced in Malaga! Antigua Case de Guardia is the oldest wine tavern in the Malaga region. Here you can both enjoy some great wine in the surroundings resembling the 19th century! This winery dates back to 1840 and is located at Olias village, to the north of El Palo suburb of Malaga. Check out some great restaurants in the area, and sample the delicious fish dishes that are on offer in this area.
John writes for Novacarhire.com - an independent car hire reservation website where you can book low cost car hire at over 5,000 locations worldwide.
Heading to Malaga on holidays? Visit Novacarhire.com's Car hire Malaga page and get an instant quote which will offer you the best deals from top car rental providers.

Malaga - A City With Historical Attractions and Natural Wonders

For a great Malaga city overview, visit any number of websites and you will find an amazing amount of information on this ancient port city in the south of Spain. Located between the Mediterranean Sea, the Axarquia hills, and the two rivers Guadalamedina and Guadalhorce, Malaga is part of the Costa del Sol region and the fabulous beaches are a huge tourist attraction. Malaga is a very popular destination for many European travelers and offers many amenities to make their stay as fun filled and comfortable as possible.
The weather in Malaga is very mild, with very short winters with temperatures rarely below the mid 40 degree Fahrenheit, 4 degrees Celsius, range and summers generally stay in the mid 80 degree Fahrenheit, 30 degree Celsius range. There are plenty of things to do year round in Malaga, but summer is the most popular time for tourists. The city is very accessible and easy to get around in, so tourists enjoy an easy visit to the area.
Malaga has a rich cultural and artistic heritage. It is the birthplace of Pablo Picasso, the very famous artist whose paintings have sold for millions of dollars and whose house is available to tourists. The city also hosts two heavily celebrated festivals, in both the Holy Week and Malaga Fair. The Holy Week is celebrated the week before Easter and marks the last days that Christ was alive until the time he was crucified and buried. The Malaga Fair is celebrated in August and is centered around the familiar symbols of Spain, including wine, tapas and flamenco dancing.
Malaga has a very popular nightlife. There are many travelers to Malaga who enjoy the many bars and restaurants, for both the amazing food and dance filled nights. There are also many stores for those who love to shop. There are many world famous stores with expensive well known products available, along with local boutiques that offer representative crafts of the region.
There is also a popular walking tour available up the Axarquia Hills. At the top of the hill is the Gibralfaro Castle. The castel provides visitors with panoramic view of Malaga and is situated next to the Alcazaba, a fortress built during the times of the Moorish occupation. This fortress is in the center of the city. This area then leads visitors around to Paseo del Parque, where a collection of palm trees and statues beautify the area. At this point, the streets run into the main commercial district of Calle Larios and to the harbor.
Malaga is also situated next to the other popular southern Spain destinations of Cordoba and Granada, both easily and quickly reached by car, train and bus.

10 Things to Do in Malaga

10) Quad-biking... Be prepared for mud.... and lots of it! Quad bike outings will certainly take you off the beaten track but it's all in good fun and beginners are most welcome. For details see check out Adventuresportsholidays.com
9) Ancient Alcazaba... This is arguably the most important historic monument in Malaga and is definitely worth a look. The fortress was first built in the 8th century and gives fantastic views of the city. Don't forget your camera.
8) The Picasso Museum... Any visit to Malaga would not be complete without a look inside the former home of Spanish artist Picasso at Plaza de la Merced. Here you can find original works of many celebrated artists including Picasso.
7) 'The Rock'... A couple of hours drive down the coast will take you to Gibraltar which is still British territory. A word of caution though, it may be British territory but they still drive on the right-hand side!
6) Check out a bullfight... It's certainly not for the faint hearted but Malaga is in the epicentre of bullfighting country. Bullfights usually take place on weekends at the prominent 'Malagueta Bullring' in the city centre. The season runs from April-September.
5) Help me, Ronda... The idyllic town of Ronda can be found in the mountains in the northwest of the province of Malaga. If you enjoy picture postcard views and don't suffer from vertigo, then this place is certainly worth a trip out to. And possibly the best thing, it's difficult to find better tapas than they serve in Ronda.
4) Putt yourself on course... Malaga is among the best places in Europe to play golf. You'll find over 50 courses in the area ranging from courses such as Valderama and San Roque where major tournaments are often played to less famous courses where you can pick up the basics. Check out Golfmalaga.com for more info.
3) The 'millionaires playground'... If you want to sample the lifestyle of the rich and famous then head down to swanky Puerto Banus. The harbour views are as spectacular as the lavish yachts moored in front of the celebrity-styled cafes and bars.
2) The Caves of Nerja... 4 km's east of Nerja you'll discover one of Europe's finest cave structures. Incredibly, this ancient geological wonder was only discovered fifty years ago when a group of small boys were playing nearby. You can find them under the slopes of the Sierra Almijara Mountains
1) Malaga from above (well, not for too long!)... Skydiving is the ultimate adrenaline rush and you can enjoy Malaga's fantastic mountains and beaches from 15,000 feet with a tandem skydive. For more information visit Skydivespain.com. Be sure to hold on tight!

The Beauty of Malaga Weather

If you are traveling to Malaga, Spain, you can enjoy yourself any time of the year, but you will have to decide what you want to do on vacation in order to decide on what time of year to travel there. Summers in Malaga are hot and dry, perfect beach weather. But the winters are mild, with snow a rarity, so if you want to escape the snowy north, it might be an ideal destination for a winter vacation. And the spring and fall have warm temperatures with only a little rain; most of the days in this region of Spain are sunny.
So if you are a sun worshiper, you will want to visit during the summer, but remember that's when all the crowds are there. If you want to enjoy warm weather rather than hot weather, you may consider going to Malaga in the spring or fall.
Spring is a wonderful time to visit the Costa del Sol. The temperatures remain warm, but not summertime hot. They are usually in the range of 18 to 24 degrees Celsius. At night it falls to a range of 9 to 15 degrees Celsius. There is not much rain, since the average rainfall in March is about 60mm and in May about 20 mm. Golfers especially enjoy the Costa del Sol in the spring because the temperatures are pleasant and there is not much rain. If you are not a fan of summer heat, spring is the best time to travel here.
The busiest time of year in the Costa del Sol is the summer. Summer season begins in June, when you will already have high heat and very full sun. There is almost no break in the sunlight during the summer period, so even if you are a sun worshiper, be aware of that. There is relief by the shore, because of the sea breezes. Be sure to protect your skin from this relentless sun by frequent applications of sunscreen.
The hottest month in Malaga is August. In addition to the heat, August brings with it some humidity, and there can often be some sea fog rolling in. Many people think Malaga in August is a sauna. Temperatures soar to 40 degrees Celsius during the day and only drop to 30 degrees in the evening. There are also frequent late day thunderstorms in the month of August. Autumn is still a warm season in this area. Temperatures range from 19 to 28 degrees during the day and drop to between 11 and 19 at night. September is still fairly warm, and then the area cools down in October and November.
Winter is cooler, but not bone chilling cold like the north. The winter will have most of the rainy days, but still not a great deal compared to the north. There are many sunny days in the winter and snow is almost unheard of.