I spent over six months in Malaga and during that time I took some amazing overnight and day trips from Malaga to destinations all over Andalucia.
While some destinations make better overnight trips, there are plenty of fantastic places that can be reached with a couple of hours or less by train or car. Here are six of my favorite day (or overnight) trips from Malaga.
Malaga to Granada Day Trip
The trip from Malaga to Granada is about an hour and a half by car. You can also take a bus (an Alsa bus) from Malaga’s main bus station. The trip by bus takes between an hour and a half to two and a half hours depending upon whether you get a direct bus or whether you’ll be making stops on the way. The last time I purchased bus far for this route it cost around 12 Euros each way.
I prefer driving this route if I have a long term car rental (monthly car rentals are affordable in Andalucia), but it’s definitely convenient (and much more affordable when compared to a one day rental car) to take the bus if you don’t have a car for regular use.
Granada is one of my favorite day trips from Malaga. The Alhambra and Nazari Palace are absolute ‘must visit’ sites for anyone that visits Southern Spain and the city itself holds a lot of charm.
Why travel to Granada?
Besides the fact that Granada is home to The Alhambra, a spectacular and world-famous historic site featuring what is considered to be the most beautiful and well-preserved Islamic building in Europe (the Nazari Palace), the city itself is also a wonderful place to spend a day, a couple of days or longer (I spent five days there and feel there is still much I didn’t discover!).
Granada is a city that is full of unassuming little cafes, tapas bars, and plazas. The region (both Andalucia and the province of Granada) isn’t an economically wealthy one. Locals live relatively simple lives in this mountainous region.
There is a unique feel in Granada, that while you are in a city that is a popular tourist destination, its also a city that has been less impacted by globalization and wealth. This is in part due to the fact that Granada is more remotely located, and farther from the coast or an international airport than cities like Malaga or Seville. You’ll see fewer modern luxury condos and permanent Northern European expats in Granada than the coastal cities. Accommodation and dining out also costs less in Granada than in cities like Seville or Malaga (especially if you stick to locals’ favorite spots and Airbnb).
Book a bus from Malaga to Granada
Malaga to Seville Day Trip
Driving from Malaga to Seville takes a little over two hours and the journey by train gets you there in just under two hours. While I normally prefer to drive around Andalucia, Seville is one of those destinations I prefer to travel to by train (especially if I’m not planning on traveling around elsewhere in Andalucia directly before or after). However, driving is also a fine option.
Why do I recommend taking the train from Malaga to Seville? Primarily because when you travel to Seville you will want to remain within the city of Seville. Walking, catching the tram, or bus within Seville is easy and everything you want to see, do, or eat can be accessed this way.
Seville is one of those cities-that is made for wandering and exploring… Stopping at multiple tapas bars for small bites and a caña or vino, meandering through beautiful historic plazas, and ending up somewhere down a small alley at midnight waiting to get into a popular flamenco bar… it’s all part of the experience. Seville is one of my all time favorite day trips from Malaga, even though I highly recommend spending a full two days and a night here if you can swing it.
Many articles and posts have been written on what to see and do in Seville.. but the reality is that it’s almost better to just show up and figure things out on your own (armed with a recommendation or two for amazing tapas bars and a ‘locals only’ flamenco bar of course).
Malaga to Ronda Overnight Trip
Reaching Ronda by car from Malaga involves some pretty windy roads, and those roads feel even windier on a bus, so I prefer to take the train from Malaga’s Maria Zambrano station when traveling from Malaga to Ronda. That said, the train does take twice the time (almost two and a half hours versus the hour and twenty minute drive) that driving does, and the drive up and around and into this hilltop white village is pretty impressive.
I’ve done it both ways and I’m glad I was able to journey there by car at least once, to get the experience. However, on my subsequent return journeys I’ve opted for the train.
Ronda is situated overlooking the Tajo Gorge and is perhaps most known for its impressive (and historic) bridges, which offer stunning views of the below landscape. If you are staying for any significant length of time in Malaga or Andalucia, I highly recommend a trip to Ronda. Besides the gorgeous panoramic views that can be enjoyed at different vantage points all around the city, Ronda is also a lovely, lively hilltop city that feels almost more like a small mountain village. Walk the streets, enjoy the views, visit the stunning Palacio de Mondragón or Jardines de Cuenca or take a small cave tour. Plan to spend at least a half a day walking and exploring... and then the rest of the day relaxing, eating, and drinking.
*I recommend staying the night in Ronda as it incredibly lovely when it’s all lit up at night.
Find Trains from Malaga to Ronda.
Malaga to Cordoba
Just an hour and a half’s drive, an hour and a half’s bus ride, or a little over an hour train journey from Malaga, Cordoba makes a great day trip. This tiny, charming, Andalucian city sometimes gets overlooked by tourists that flock first to famous destinations like Seville and Granada but it is well worth a visit.
Cordoba has a wealth of splendid historic and architectural wonders such as its spectacular Mezquita of Cordoba (a centuries’ old Roman temple- turned Visigoth Cathedral-turned mosque), Alcazar de los Reyes (an 8th century fortress), and Puente Romano (a Roman bridge dating back to the 1st century AD) among many others.
But beyond these impressive historic sites, Cordoba offers so many other charms to visitors who venture to this tiny city. From its tiny stone streets, to it’s bedecked patios (especially during the city’s famous Festival de Patios), the historic Jewish quarter, and array of fantastic tapas or fried fish eateries Cordoba is worth at least overnight trip if you want to do the city and its sights any justice.
Find trains from Malaga to Cordoba.
Malaga to Jerez
The public transportation options from Malaga to Jerez aren’t very good so I recommend making this trip by car. Driving from Malaga to Jerez takes between two to two and half hours while trying to do this journey by bus can end up taking two to three times longer and involves multiple connections.
While Jerez (Jerez de la Frontera is this city’s full name in Spanish) is much less of a tourist destination than cities like Seville, Granada and Cordoba it is a city renowned by sherry (jerez in Spanish) lovers around the world. It is, after all, the birth place of sherry and this is where you will find the best (and only real) sherries in the world.
If you’re not a huge sherry fan, it’s still really fun to sit in Jerez’s various old school bars and experience the region’s ‘sherry culture’ first hand, as well as to take advantage of one of the many opportunities to tour local sherry producers’ sherry caves. And, while Jerez may be slightly less impressive to visitors who make the journey here after already having been blown away by Andalucia’s finest shining jewels (Seville, Granada, Cordoba), it has a quiet charm. In Jerez, you feel like you are seeing a real Andalucian city, not just the perfect, polished up, versions most tourists flock to.
Accommodation and dining out in Jerez costs less than pretty much any other Andalucian city that I’ve been to, which means that even if you’re on a budget you’ll be able to enjoy hanging out noshing on small plates and sipping sherry at multiple establishments without putting much of a dent in your wallet.
Book a sherry tour in Jerez at Bodegas Tradición (my favorite sherry producer)
Malaga to Pedregalejo
Pedregalejo is technically located within Malaga city limits but is quite a ways from the center of the city and is considered its own unique destination. Known for having the best beaches in Malaga (or more aptly-the only real beaches..) and great barbecued fish and seafood restaurants, it’s common for malagueños to head over to Pedregalejo on Friday night for barbecued fish, cocktails and a night walk on the beach. It’s also a popular Saturday and Sunday destination, with crowds strolling the promenade, gathering for cold cerveza on outdoor patios, and sunbathing.
Getting from Malaga to Pedregalejo can be done on foot (if you fancy walking a couple of miles), by taxi, or by car (though be warned-parking is a bit of a nightmare anywhere near the most popular parts of the beach promenade). When I was staying in Malaga, I usually opted for a taxi to and from Pedregalejo if I was headed there for dinner (cocktails and late hours…), or a leisurely walk from the center of Malaga if it was daytime and not too hot, and then a bus back in the early evening. Buses from Malaga to Pedregalejo (#3 and #11) run between the Alameda Principal stop in central Malaga and El Palo. If you travel to Pedregalejo by bus-get off at the Los Baños del Carmen stop.
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