9 Best Things to Do in Fuengirola

You can enjoy multiple attractions in your single visit to this 10th-century castle. There’s the castle itself (free entry), with its majestic striking walls and towers from where you can take in the Mediterranean seascape. Then there’s beach below that’s basically named after it, as well as an adjoining multipurpose venue where open-air concerts are regularly held. Between this hilltop castle and the beach, there’s a riverside recreational area with swan duck pedal boats before the scenic suspended bridge that connects the promenades between Playa de Castillo and Santa Amalia.

This usually uncrowded beach promenade separates Fuengirola’s sandy coast and the seaside town’s main beach road. The brick-tiled Paseo Maritimo is one of the longest promenades in Spain. It spans 7km along most of the town’s coastline, with the Mediterranean seascapes constantly in view. Lined with shady palms and with a dedicated cycling lane in the middle, you can easily get to any section of beach, beach club, bar or restaurant along the strip.

Fuengirola is blessed with several sections of wide and sandy beaches. Each provides ample spots where you can sunbathe under the Andalusian sun and swim in the Mediterranean waves. Right in front of the Castillo Sohail, there’s the namesake beach that’s often not too crowded. Follow along the Paseo Maritimo promenade and you’ll eventually reach the beaches of Santa Amalia, the highly popular San Francisco, Los Boliches and Torreblanca – each offering recreational water sports and parasol-shaded sun loungers, as well as beach bars on the sand.

For an inspiring and educational time out, Bioparc Fuengirola (Fuengirola Zoo) can be a good choice. It has zones that each represent different habitats from around the globe. There’s the Africa zone with its recreated wetlands and a gorilla enclosure called the “valley of Congo”. Stripe-tailed lemurs play around the thickets of the Madagascar zone, and you can enjoy soothing tropical birdsongs from bulbuls and starlings in their Southeast Asian enclosures. The Indo Pacific zone features Komodo dragon exhibits with Khmer temple-inspired backdrops. Tickets are around €20 for adults.

Though this might not be the biggest waterpark you’ll find in Spain’s Costa del Sol region, it’s good if you’re a family looking to spend some time away from the beach. Most of its pools are surrounded by plenty of free sun loungers from where you can watch over the kids. The few slides on offer include the Crazy Loop and the labyrinthine Laberinto de Toboganes which winds through many curves before you splash into the pool. The Río Bravo lazy river is good for all. Tickets are around €30 for adults.

This mini amusement park offers rides and games that will keep younger kids happily busy for hours. They use a stored-value card system that you can top-up anytime (from €10, with each ride worth a €1). There are standard and bungee trampolines, arcade games, merry-go-rounds, and even bumper cars. Some of the arcade games let you win tokens that you can exchange for prizes. They open well into the evening, and can be a great way to spend the night with kids, before heading back to the hotel.

To enjoy a visit to a Spanish flea market, head down to Calle Méndez Núñez on a Tuesday or Sunday morning. It’s like any other typical Spanish town market, but with plenty for visitors to see and sample. Various stall owners set up their tents in a neat row, showcasing a good variety: clothing, woven basketries, colorful fruits (from around €2 for a kilogram of strawberries) and plenty of souvenir items. As an open-air market that’s literally set up in the middle of the street and parking lot, it can get quite balmy in the summer.

As Fuengirola’s English theatre, the Salon Varietés has been showing various comedies and plays for decades. You can relive a variety of classic small screen comedy sketches and dramas, brought live onto the stage by a professional team of performers who dance and sing beautifully. Plays range from Monty Python’s Spamalot to Gary Marshall’s Wrong Turn at Lungfish. Usually, they don’t have any show schedules in the summer months (June – August), but they normally keep their theatre bar open.

The marina of Puerto Deportivo de Fuengirola is a great spot to chill out with plenty of bars to choose from. There’s Waterfont Bar & Grill and Coco’s at The Marina on the southern end near the docked yachts, and around the marina’s mini piazza with its four towers, there are the White Rose and Shaggy’s. If you come on a weekend afternoon during the summer months, you’ll usually see a few street musicians performing in the square. White Rose has a large terrace out front where you can sit back with a cold lager.