I cannot express in words how wonderful it is to stay in Malaga city. if you want to see the "real Spain" you wont be disappointed in this fabulous metropolis..
The shopping is amazing,scores of great cheap clothes outlets,friendly locals which does seem odd for a city , a beach close to the city centre and numerous street cafes where you can sit for hours and watch the world go by!!!
You approach the centre of the city through a "concrete jungle of high rise flats and once in the centre which is huge you enter into a beautiful oldy worldy part of Spain. Everyone on the streets is well dressed but down to earth, its like Knightsbridge in London but without the attitude!!!!!
There are train services from the city centre to all the resorts along the coast, a fabulous food market near the rail station, all in all its perfect for a short city break
Make sure you book a hotel in MALAGA CENTRO as the outskirts of this beautiful city are a bit grotty!!
I visited this town 2 years ago by mistake and have been going back every six to eight weeks ever since!! If you like shopping for wonderful clothes at jumble sale prices and eating out really cheaply sorrounded by gorgeous architecture you will be guaranteed to be hooked for life!
Malaga city is quite simply the biggest secret of the Costa del Sol, forget hordes of Brits swaggering around like louts this town is Spanish and fiercely proud of its culture and buildings
You can book hotels in the city centre on the Alpharooms website much cheaper than you would pay if you arranged it yourself
Also you can walk the streets at 2 in the morning and not worry about any bad behaviour by young people, quite simply the centre of the city is busy until the early hours of the morning and absoloutely safe!!!
Go on and enjoy!!!!!

also looking at a short break next march at a hotel called tryp guadamar any info welcome laswalkirias
cheers
tigerlilly

I think the hotel u were considering is about 5km's out of Malaga. Las Vegas hotel (can be found on Alpha Rooms) looks quite nice from the outside for a city break and is relatively central - a wee walk to the Catherdral area. However you may have problems at such short notice. You could consider staying in Torriemolinos and take the train to Malaga. A taxi ride will be around 15 euros from Torrie.

I agree with previous poster - Malaga centre is quite good. Lots of Tapas around the streets leading from the rather fabulous cathedral. You can also buy the Red Tourist bus pass for 15 euros which takes around the city and up to the castle where you get great views of Malaga and surrounding area. The bus can be boarded only 2 minutes walk from the railway station and ofcourse at various stops on the tour route (bus also passes the las vegas hotel) although cannot remember if a stop is at the hotel vicinity. Picasso was born in Malaga and the bus passes his birthplace square. Its really worth a weekend visit.

Nivsy

Thanks for the tips. We are flying out tomorrow and will stay in Torremolinos as we found the prices very good with good facilities( hope so anyway!!).
Our main aim is to have a good look at Malaga.
We will send a short report on our return.
Thanks,
Alan

Alano - well how did you get on????

My apologies for my delay in updating you on our visit to Malaga but I returned immediately to work but had not forgotten my promise.
Yes, we flew out on the Sunday and stayed in the hotel Sol Don Pablo in Torremolinos which we had booked on the web through Alpharooms. We took a taxi from the airport and we asked the fare first. It was 15 euros. Check in was easy and we were very impressed with our stay at this hotel which is one of three on the same site. It is tastefully furnished, very clean and the hotel staff were extremely helpful and friendly. The food was excellent. The hotel is well situated being just across the road from the beach. It is close to shops and restaurants. It is a short but uphill walk to the town and the railway station. However, you can take a lift up and down to avoid the hill. Cost is 0.50euro per person each way.
Trains this time of year to Malaga are every half an hour but most important of all they run on time. It takes around 25 minutes. The return fare for both us came to under 5 euros. A bargain! We got out at the Malaga Central station and went straight to an information booth nearby to obatin a map and some directions. We decided not to take the tour bus as most places we wanted to visit were within walking distance. We went to the lovely Cathedral. Even if you aren`t religious you should visit here as it is very impressive. We also visited the Picasso museum. I liked the visit but it didn`t do much for my wife. Art is a personal thing! On to the Roman Theatre and Alcazabar. We then decided to take the long hard walk up to the castle. All the way up the views are spectacular but those from the top and inside are superb as you can see all the city. We also walked down as we wanted to see the beach area but it is hard work. You can take the bus to and from the castle.
Malaga is a lovely city. It is a big city but very Spanish and quaint. It has lots of alleyways with little cafes and bars. We loved it and so will anyone else. For the ladies there are plenty of shops and a designer centre too. We will go back again.
Just to add other advantages of staying in a hotel in Torremolinos is that there is some evening entertainment in the hotel ( if required ) an indoor pool ( for the one day it rained), and we were able to walk in to Benalmadena which has a lovely marina. We also took the train in the opposite direction and visited Fuengirola which is the same fare as to Malaga. We did a lot during our 5 days but one thing is certain we will go back to the area again - especially Malaga. We went out of season and I am not so sure what the area would be like in high season. Sorry to go on so much but I hope it helps others wishing to visit the area.
Alan