Hotel Polynesia Costa del Sol: Where to Stay on the Coast

The resorts closest to Málaga airport are the easiest for a short break or a family trip: Torremolinos is 6 minutes away, Benalmádena 10 and Mijas 13, with Fuengirola a little further along the shore. Benalmádena is the most searched resort on the coast after Málaga itself, and its Castillo Monumento Colomares is a curious sight for an afternoon. Fuengirola has the Castillo de Suel above the seafront, and La Cala de Mijas sits on the coast below the hill town of Mijas.

Staying in Málaga, the largest place here with nearly 600,000 residents, means a city break with beach attached: Playa de La Malagueta, the Alcazaba, the Castle of Gibralfaro, the Roman Theatre and a cluster of museums are all close together. Further west, Marbella, Estepona and Manilva are best reached from Gibraltar airport, 51, 32 and 23 minutes away respectively.

East of Málaga the pace changes. Rincón de la Victoria, Torre del Mar, Torrox and Nerja are smaller towns, and Granada airport is 43 minutes from Nerja, whose Cueva de Nerja is one of the best-known sights on the whole coast.

In Málaga you are choosing a city hotel first and a beach base second, which suits couples and anyone who wants museums and evenings out more than a sunlounger. The larger resorts along the airport corridor, Torremolinos, Benalmádena and Fuengirola, are where most package holidays land, so this is the natural place to look for family hotels on the Costa del Sol and for apartment stays close to the sea.

If you would rather cook for yourselves, self catering holidays on the Costa del Sol work well in the quieter towns too, from Manilva and Estepona in the west to Torrox and Nerja in the east. Families and groups searching for villas to rent on the Costa del Sol often look inland around Mijas or along the Marbella and Estepona stretch, where a car is part of the plan. Couples hunting for adults only hotels on the Costa del Sol can filter for them in the live results here rather than relying on a resort name alone.

Pick your airport before your hotel. Málaga suits everything from Mijas eastwards to Málaga city, Gibraltar is the shorter run for Manilva, Estepona and Marbella, and Granada is closest to Nerja, Torrox and Torre del Mar. A package of flight, hotel and transfers from Jet2holidays, TUI, loveholidays or On the Beach takes care of that transfer for you, and you can compare those deals alongside hotel-only prices on this page.

Timing matters. July and August are the hottest months at 33°C and coincide with UK school holidays, when prices across the coast tend to rise. April, May, June, September and November offer warm days in the low to high twenties. October is the wettest month, with around 117mm of rain, so pack a jacket if you go then.

For villa holidays on the Costa del Sol, or holiday villas away from the seafront, add car hire to your search; you can compare car hire here too, along with tours and tickets for the Alcazaba or the Cueva de Nerja.