Story 7: Marbella

Marbella is located in the south of Spain between Fuengirola and Estepona. From Málaga it is about a 45 minute drive to Marbella. Marbella is best known to the famous people from the Netherlands or any other country in Europe who often go here on holiday or even have a holiday home here. Yet Marbella has not only been a pleasant destination for the rich of the earth. Thanks to excavations in and around Marbella, much more is known about how humans used to live. This is partly because there was already a city before Marbella was built. The city of Marbella became especially large during the time that the Arabs were in charge in the south of Spain, this was the case during the Middle Ages. Then the city became more like it is today, but Marbella owes its name to the Moorish domination.

A clear characteristic of Marbella is that the port is not there for the transport of people and goods. It is in fact a typical pleasure port and this means that when you walk along the quay here you will encounter the most luxurious yachts. It is often the case that wealthy tourists come to the place with their yacht to moor there and have a holiday. The harbour, which bears the name Puerto Banús, is one of the most famous in the world. So, it can also be nice to go to Marbella to admire the port of Puerto Banús. 

A few kilometres from Puerto Banùs you will find the charming old town centre, or Cascao Antiquo. The old centre has some narrow streets and small squares full of white houses, old churches and orange trees. Something that you will see along every wall here are colourful flowers that bloom all summer long. The scents of the flowers and the oranges give you the feeling that summer is infinite here. 

The highlight is Plaza de Los Naranjas, this is the central square which is located in the old centre. The first trees were planted in this orange square in 1941. On the square you can see a beautiful fountain and some famous buildings, such as the Casa Consitorial, Casa del Corregidor and Ermita de Santiago. Enjoy a cup of coffee in the square while you can watch people walking by from all over the world or look at the old Spaniards gathering on the square to talk to each other or play a game. Something that you must do when you are in Cascao Antiquo is stroll along the Arabic city wall and admire the 17th-century Casa de Corregidor.