Rural Tourism in Malaga

Posted on January 25, 2024
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Posted in Travel Tips
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While it is true that the main attraction of the Costa del Sol is its beaches, there are also an increasing number of visitors who are opting for rural tourism in Malaga, away from the bustling coastline.

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Did you know that the province of Malaga has more than 100 villages to discover?

Do you want to take a day trip and see charming spots, a weekend getaway, a family reunion or a gathering of friends, or spend your entire holiday in the countryside?

Discover culture and gastronomy, festivals and gastronomic festivals, typical white villages of Arabic origin nestled in the mountains.

Get away from the crowds and enjoy nature, pine forests, rivers and mountains. You can find all this in Malaga. A few kilometres from the coast, come and join us!

Rural tourism in Malaga

Embalse Guadalhorce Credit Depositphotos — Guadalhorce reservoir and El Chorro. Credit Depositphotos

We would like to echo a recent press release. Malaga is, together with Cadiz, one of the Andalusian provinces with the highest demand for travellers who value rural tourism.

If already during the last two years there has been a significant growth due to the pandemic, this holiday alternative in Malaga has a growing number of followers, both national and international (the vast majority).

Due to the benevolent climate we have in Malaga, rural tourism also attracts many people outside the high season.

We remind you that there is no such thing as winter in Malaga, and especially in the pre-season months the countryside is a real delight as you can see in our cover photo.

Most popular regions and municipalities for rural tourism in Malaga

The biggest “fans” of rural tourism in Malaga continue to be our foreign visitors. In fact, they account for more than 80% of tourists.

Among them, those who most choose this type of holiday are visitors from the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France.

The regions and municipalities most chosen by them according to current data are:

Regions

Caminito del Rey. Credit Depositphoto — The Caminito del Rey is one of the most visited natural sites in the province. Credit Depositphoto

Municipalities

Torrox
Frigiliana
Cómpeta
Almáchar
Nerja
Antequera
El Borge
Alhaurín de la Torre
Alozaina
Sayalonga
Vélez-Málaga
Ronda
Periana
Alhaurín el Grande
Mijas
Villanueva de la Concepción
Tolox
Guaro
Rincón de la Victoria
Coín
Canillas de Albaida

Cottages & Rural accommodation

Salares. Credit Depositphotos — The white village Salares in the Axarquia. Credit Depositphotos

The villages mentioned above are only trends. As we said before, there are many beautiful villages in Malaga, some of them so small that they escape the radar of most people.

Nevertheless, you can find rural accommodation in practically all of them.

Cottages

The biggest and most interesting offer you will find are Cottages (casas rurales). They are mostly small and medium sized renovated farmhouses with swimming pool.

These houses are usually large and spacious enough to accommodate a larger number of people and you can find houses with between 3 and 7 bedrooms, for example.

The houses are rented as a whole and if you are travelling with a group, the price per head is quite cheap. As always, off-season and longer term rentals tend to have lower prices. For this type of accommodation you will need to rent a car in Malaga, as they are remote places.

Rural accommodation

Another option is rural accommodation such as flats or small hotels. There you will obviously not have the intimacy of a house alone in the middle of the countryside.

But it can be a good alternative if you don’t want to travel with many people and also have the option of half board, for example. It would be the ideal option for a weekend getaway, for example for Valentine’s Day in Malaga.

Many of these rural hotels also have a small spa or whirlpool bath, sauna and massage.

Optionally, some of them offer a transfer service from Malaga airport to the rural hotel.

Camping & Glamping in Malaga

Camping Antequera Credit Depositphotos — A camper van in Antequera. Credit Depositphotos

Another very popular alternative is to do rural tourism in Malaga in your own house on your own wheels. The advantage is obviously the great freedom that this way of travelling confers.

By the way, did you know that with us you can also rent a campervan at Malaga airport?

In this article you will find everything you need to know and frequently asked questions to enjoy a campervan holiday in Malaga.

Malaga Campervan Tour

If this idea appeals to you, in our article Camper Tour around Malaga and Costa del Sol you will find many ideas of places to visit, as well as the best inland campsites in Malaga.

Glamping

And last but not least, we present you the best Glampings in Malaga. It’s a word play on camping and glamour.

That is to say, far from having to carry your tent and gear, here you find a first-class service that takes the camping experience to another level. Take a look around, there are some really lovely glamping options.

They’re not exactly cheap, though. But they can be a great idea for a special camping trip.

Festivals, fairs & gastronomic festivals villages of Malaga

cerezas alfarnate — Alfarnate cherries are famous. Taste them during the Cherry Day in Alfarnate.

Frankly, you can’t imagine how many fairs and fiestas there are in the 103 villages of Malaga!

With its agricultural tradition combined with the mild climate, there are harvest festivals all year round. And don’t forget that the people of Malaga like to eat well and party. That is to say, many festivals are gastronomic and have tastings of local products.

If you really want to get to know Malaga better, don’t miss the local festivals and the people.

Calendar of popular festivities in Malaga

While some of these fiestas have fixed dates, (for example every year on the third Sunday in February), many others have variable dates.

Therefore, if you decide to stay in one of these villages check the local town hall website for the current dates. To get an idea of month by month, here is a link to our Malaga Fiestas Calendar.