Retiree on the Road – Wintering in Spain 2022 – #2 (The Big Picture)

The first thing I want to say in this second post regarding my winter adventure in Spain, is that I began to write this piece on Tuesday, February 8, 2022, 10 days after we arrived here on the Costa Del Sol. It does not appear that either the Love-goddess or I are sick, so it looks like our strategy allowed us to dodge the Covid bullet on the way over. Our safe-travel plan worked. 🙂

Additionally, this second post in the series is going to be about the big picture considerations that you need to know about when contemplating wintering on the Costa Del Sol in Spain. Let me paint a picture for you. Most of these photos were taken in the last week. I have generally identified those that were taken earlier.

1) This map shows you most of Spain. If you let your eyes wander down to the most southern part, you will find the city of Malaga, just east of the Rock of Gibraltar. Malaga is the travel hub for the region. You will typically either fly into Malaga or arrive here by train from some other northerly point in the country.

2) Let’s zoom in on the specific area we are talking about. The Costa Del Sol, as it is defined (check Wikipedia or Google Maps) is the area from just west (left) of Malaga stretching all the way further westward to about halfway between Estepona and Gibraltar. More functionally, the whole southerly coast, from close to Gibraltar, all the way east (right) past Malaga and Torre del Mar to the town of Nerja, are included in discussions about what towns make up the Costa Del Sol. It is in this area that you will be staying, if you come.

3) One of the benefits of wintering in this area is the number of amazing Spanish cities that you can get to quite easily for overnight visits. It is even relatively easy to get to the Algarve in Portugal if you want to check it out… we have done it. There is lots to see and do.

You can get to these places via the reliable regional bus system, or you can rent a car and drive yourself. The area has excellent highways. The driving times in the image below will give you a sense of just how close you will find all these other great places to visit. The distances are measured from the town of Fuengirola where we stayed in 2019.

4) This is to remind you why we travel to warmer climes in winter. We retired Canadians have had the great pleasure of enjoying many wonderful Canadian winters… i.e. we are sick of them and like to think we have earned the right (and the privilege) to spend our winters some place sunny and warm. 🙂

I took this photo on the day in January 2019 that we boarded a plane and started our journey to the Costa. It was so cold that our flight was delayed for three hours because of a backlog created by the ongoing de-icing of all planes.

5) Just because you are going away for two or three months does not mean you have to pack every article of clothing that you own to take with you. Just like any other travel experience, travelling light is best. If you get to Spain and find that you forgot something important, not to worry, there are lots of great stores with great fashions where are you can buy whatever you need.

We travel with these 26-inch soft shell Samsonite suitcases you see pictured here. We also each carry a small a backpack that contains our electronic gear and a few essentials that we take on the plane with us.

6) We keep telling our friends to avoid trying to fly to Malaga in one hop. Unless you are flying Air Transat out of Montreal you will normally be flying into some other European city, sitting there for many hours before catching a connecting flight down to Malaga. It makes for a long and arduous travel day.

Before the pandemic, we were in the habit of flying to some other city in Europe that we wanted to check out and staying there for two or three days before flying or going by train to Malaga. This has allowed us to have great stays in Dublin and Lisbon In 2019, we flew Air Canada to Madrid and hung out there before catching a High-Speed Train down to Malaga.

If you are insistent on getting to Malaga in one day, then fly the Portuguese national airline TAP to Lisbon and then catch their little commuter flight across to Malaga. If you do it on the right day, you will have only about an hour and a half layover in Lisbon.

7) If you are into golf in a big way, you are in luck. The other nickname for the Costa Del Sol is the Costa Del Golf. The whole area is awash in beautiful golf courses. This is a club rental facility in the arrivals area of the Malaga airport. You can also rent at most clubs. Yes, a little more expensive than golfing at home, but the course layouts and scenery are amazing.

8) If you are a history buff, it abounds on the Costa Del Sol. The Costa and the whole Andalusia region are steeped in the rich history of the Roman empire, the 700 plus year Moorish period, and modern Spanish history. This photo was taken in Malaga in 2019. You see the well-preserved Roman amphitheatre sitting directly below the Moorish Alcazaba.

9) This is what it is all about. Life on the edge of the Mediterranean. I took this picture last week. We will we be wandering up and down this miles-long marbled boardwalk every day for the next two months – AND, sitting on restaurant patios sipping beverages and dining as we watch the waves roll in.

10) The entire Costa Del Sol is lined with these wide beautiful beaches. This one in Marbella has just been cleaned and groomed in preparation for the influx of spring visitors.

11) The beaches do get used on every nice day by locals and visitors – especially on weekends. I took this photo in Fuengirola on March 3, 2019. It was a Sunday, and the locals were out doing the “Paseo” along the boardwalk.

12) February 1, 2022. Tell me, would you rather be shovelling the driveway or sitting on the patio of one of the many waterfront venues sipping a coffee or an adult beverage? 🙂

13) Lots of fun things to do. 🙂

14) There are cultural things to do as well… Flamenco in Nerja, 2018.

15) I took this shot as we were out grocery shopping earlier in the week. It should give you a bit of a sense of why this area is considered to be dramatically beautiful. You have the amazing waterfront of the Mediterranean backed by low but rugged mountain ranges up and down the entire coast.

15) Another lovely enhancement in the area. Most of the towns and cities line some of their streets with orange trees. And at this time of year the oranges are fully in bloom (or ripe).

17) This is absolutely delightful as well. Everywhere you go, you see clusters of Bird of Paradise plantings.

18) Another typical view of the mountainous background while driving along the four-lane highway that serves the entire coastline.

19) This 2018 photo is from the town of Nerja. Most of the coast is relatively flat and the beaches roll on for endless miles. However, up in this the north-east area, the coast becomes ruggedly beautiful.

20) And finally, February 1, 2020, 11 AM… The reason we come to Spain for the winter. 🙂

Up Next: A look at accommodation on the Costa.