The last week of February and with the winter months nearing their end spring is clearly on its way. Tomorrow February 28 is Andalusia’s bank holiday day, which as we mentioned in previous blogs, is the day marking the commemoration of the formation of the Andalusian community. We previously emphasized ‘White Week’, a popular week in Malaga and the surrounding areas when the youngest members of households are off school; many families take the opportunity to travel to the Sierra Nevada and ski. As others may not have the possibility to have the whole week off, we decided to write about the list of activities that are available on this special day.
We believe that Marbella is one of the best cities to celebrate Andalusia’s bank holiday, giving the opportunity to enjoy this special day in the Costa del Sols leading city, or enjoy a quick getaway to many of the other wonderful places Andalucía offers. Several key locations this community offers include; the city of Granada, Seville with its charming atmosphere, Cádiz after the annual carnival, Malaga or the beautiful and flirtatious Ronda, all within a two hours’ drive from Marbella. Being able to live on the exclusive Golden Mile and having the option of visiting and enjoying Andalusian culture and heritage is a true privilege.
The city of Granada for example, boasts great energy throughout the week. A day in the sun surrounded by a blanket of snow when skiing in Sierra Nevada is an ideal day out, but the city itself with its long history is also a wonderful place to consider. Without a doubt walking through the Alhambra is a breath-taking experience, with world heritage gardens and historical towers, its grand rooms and patios are globally renowned. For the more adventurous; a rare activity is a trip in a hot air balloon over the city of Granada creating life long memories, alternatively if you can fly over the Gorafe desert in the area of Guadix, one of the best places to enjoy the heights with amazing views, once a lake, today a dry unique landscape formed by water and wind creating spectacular mountain formations. We recommend trying this unbeatable experience mixing adrenaline rushes with a sensation of floating.
If Granada, Seville or Cádiz seem too far, the city of Malaga is only 40 minutes away. Recently named of ‘Museum City‘ or ‘The New Barcelona’ thanks to many improvements in recent years, becoming a magnet attracting artists, also known for being the birthplace of Pablo Picasso. Without entering a single museum you can enjoy wonderful street art; Malaga’s Soho area boasts a large variety of street art with wonderful murals and impressive graffiti from some of the best current artists world over.
Strolling through the streets visiting unique coffee shops, seeing hip-hop dance competitions and many street entertainers helps make this up and coming city become alive. Alternatively for a complete change of scenery and immersion into a ‘classical’ artistic environment, the city is full of grand avenues and pedestrian commercial areas, elegant restaurants, historical architecture and ancient monuments combine seamlessly with a wide range of museums such as the Carmen Thyssen Museum, the Pompidou Centre and the Pablo Picasso Museum.
A special place reserved for a quieter lifestyle is the city of Marbella with return visitors year in year out. If you have more time to spend in the area why not have a look at our blog “A whirlwind tour of Marbella” with full information on our beautiful city. Our city offers large variety when it comes to things to do, fantastic weather thanks once again to the microclimate created by our backdrop ‘La Concha’ mountain. An ideal bank holiday to enjoy sports by either playing tennis at the famous Puente Romano courts or with golf in any of Nueva Andalucía’s renowned golf courses. A great new aquatic sport for the beach lover is scuba diving, Marbellas paradise doesn’t stop on the surface, and there is much to see under the sea. Going down into the tower on La Playa del Cable is fantastic for beginners, and for the more experienced divers we recommend ‘La inmersión de la Torre’ where marine flora and local marine fish are the protagonists. If on the other hand, the mountains are more to your taste, inland tourism does not disappoint. Here you have several trails for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, buggy excursions and jeep safaris, discovering beautiful landscapes with panoramic views that will take your breath away.
Our city offers fantastic activities and things to do year round, even if it’s just a quiet stroll through the old town, discovering new restaurants as our beautiful city doesn’t cease to renew and reinvent itself. When you see the Andalusian flag blowing in the wind, smile and enjoy the little pleasures that you can experience day in day out in a place like Marbella.