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The
Costa del Sol extends along the 161 kilometres of coastline
belonging to the province of Málaga. It is located in the south of
Spain, in the western extreme of the Mediterranean. In reality the Costa
del Sol actually extends for some kilometres into the next province, one
of these areas is the port of Sotogrande towards the Straits of
Gibraltar.
The
city of Málaga is the capital of the province and is a central
reference point to divide the east and west of the Costa del Sol. The
main towns in the east of the Cost del Sol are; Nerja (50km from
Málaga); Torrox (46km); Vélez- Málaga (35km) and Rincón
de la Victoria (12km). The western towns are; Torremolinos
(15km from Málaga); Benalmádena (22km); Fuengirola
(27km); Mijas (31km); Marbella (58km) and Estepona
(85km). There is a fast and efficient main road that stretches the
length of the coast and in the west there is also a toll motorway.
The
province consists of 7,276 square kilometres of mountainous
territory, however there is a good road network which makes travelling
in the area easier. The coastal areas are relatively flat compared with
the rest of the province and this is evident from the higher demographic
development.
The
population of Málaga stands at 549,135 people, which means it's
the sixth largest urban centre in Spain. Apart from the two historic
cities of Antequera (40,181 people) and Ronda (34,385),
which are located in the interior of the province, most of the towns of
a significant size are: Marbella (98,823); Vélez-Málaga (53,071);
Fuengirola (41,713); Estepona (37,557); Mijas (35,423) and Torremolinos
(35,408) are situated along the coastline.
On
a lesser scale, there are towns like Nerja and Rincón de la Victoria
that still have a developed infrastructure and numerous hotels. The
province is divided into six different regions: Málaga, La Axarquía
(east coast and interior), Antequera (north of the province), Ronda
(north-west), Valle del Guadalhorce (located between Ronda and Málaga)
and west Costa del Sol.
The
majority of the towns in the Costa del Sol are centred around the region
of La Axarquía, there are four towns with a population over
10,000 people, but most of the towns have a population from 1000 to 5000
people. The area surrounding Ronda does not have any towns that
exceed 5000 people and has a predominance of villages with a population
of less than 1000. In Antequera and the Valle de Guadalhorce the
population in the majority of towns ranges between 1000 and 5000 people.
The most populated area is Málaga itself, where none of its
surrounding towns have less than a population of 5000 and the majority
of them have in excess of 15,000.
The
Costa del Sol has a Mediterranean climate with relatively high
temperatures for Europe. The eastern regions have a subtropical nature
and has hotter summers than the western regions. The western regions are
defined as having a mediterranean-oceanic climate and both the summer
and the winter seasons have lower temperatures than the eastern regions.
The interior of the province is sheltered by the chain of mountains that
runs adjacent to the coast which results in a pleasant continental
climate. One of the most attractive features of this is its three
hundred days of sunshine that the Costa del Sol receives each year.
Although
the Andalusian summer has intense temperatures ranging from 25 to 30
degrees celcius, it is not noticeably that hot. The annual average
temperature is 18 degrees and during the winter the lowest expected
temperature during the day is 14. The region receives about 500mm
annually. The coastal areas receive under 400mm of rainfall a year and
even the most humid areas of the interior receive an average of about
600-800mm. The kind of climate you can expect here in the Costa del Sol
almost guarantees a holiday without any unexpected surprises.
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