Cambridge, Mass.-based writers David Lyon and Patricia Harris
explored the Costa del Sol recently to see if one of EuropeÆs first
beach resorts was faded or ready to attract todayÆs sophisticated
sun seekers. Their evaluation follows:
COSTA DEL SOL, Spain -- Two days after Easter we found ourselves
feasting on mixed fried fish and tiny clams in the small fishing
village at the west end of Torremolinos. Every table at the
restaurant was full, the sky was cloudless and waves lapped on the
brown, sand beach literally steps away. It was everything we had
feared weÆd miss. We always envisioned SpainÆs most established
beach resort as a forest of concrete towers with a low-rent
ambience -- a redneck Riviera, if you will. Two weeks of research
here showed us how wrong we were.
What is the Costa del Sol?
Definitions of the Costa del Sol vary, but for practical purposes
it consists of a 53-mile stretch of SpainÆs Mediterranean coast
starting from Malaga and stretching south to Estepona. What is not
in dispute is the areaÆs natural charms: 325 sunny days a year and
a dramatic landscape where mountains tower just inland from the
sea.
Other areas of the southern Spanish coast may have more
extensive dunes, whiter sand or bigger surf, but the Costa del Sol
has 50 miles of clean swimming beaches with an average water
temperature of 64 degrees. According to Diana Serop of the regional
tourism authority, the Costa del SolÆs chief competition is
domestic: the Balearic and Canary islands and, to a lesser extent,
the Costa Brava between Barcelona and the French border.
Torrie, I adore ye
Driving into Torremolinos, the Malaga suburb that launched
mass-market tourism in the Costa del Sol in the 1950s, is
disconcerting. Most approach roads funnel into congested, poorly
signed streets where buildings were thrown up in great haste 30 to
40 years ago. But the strand near the beach is another world. It
may be lined with apartment buildings and often vast hotels, but we
found parking easier than in Boston, and once we left the car, we
could (and did) walk everywhere on the new 4.7-mile uninterrupted
pedestrian promenade by the ocean.
Except for beachside restaurants and chiringuitos (snack bars
that verge on restaurants), all the large-scale construction lies
at least 100 feet from the edge of the beaches. The density in
Torremolinos fails to dim the appeal of the beach and the
promenade. In fact, Torremolinos retains much of the basic pattern
we observed throughout the Costa del Sol: a delightful beach
flanked by a fishing fleet on one end and a yacht marina on the
other, the core of an old town (casco antiguo) and a less
appealing, modern commercial center.
The key to enjoying Torrie, as Torremolinos is called here, is
to settle in near the beach, walk to the old quarter and avoid the
rest of town until you have to go to the airport.
A Needed Face-Lift
Faced with an aging infrastructure, the Costa del Sol has made
dramatic efforts in the last two years to remain an appealing beach
destination. Upgrades all along the Costa del Sol are proceeding. A
bypass road was built in 1992 to ease beachside traffic congestion
and a new high-speed expressway between Estepona and Malaga should
be finished in June.
New construction continues, but itÆs largely low-profile
townhouses and resort hotels. Many older properties are being
completely renovated or gutted to create new resorts out of old
ones. ôLetÆs face it, some places were getting a little tired after
40 years,ö said Serop. ôEven the newer places feel the pressure to
upgrade continuously to be able to compete.ö
Move over, mass market
Nowhere are the changes Serop refers to more evident than in
Marbella, which has turned the region into a jet-set destination.
As we drove into town, we were cut off by a Bentley, a Rolls-Royce,
a BMW and a sleek Rover sedan. Along the Costa del Sol, only
Marbella could support a car rental agency like Sheik Motors, with
its fleet of $100,000-plus vehicles available by the day, week or
season. The pedestrian casco antiguo sports a bevy of fine jewelers
and haute couture shops, and the marinaÆs 400 slips are packed with
yachts.
Twice a day the west side of town echoes with the amplified call
to prayer from the shining white mosque built by Saudi ArabiaÆs
King Fahd. (Many of MarbellaÆs estates belong to gulf oil
millionaires.) MarbellaÆs style consists of subtropical garden
estates containing low-rise communities of bungalows and
townhouses.
The properties that originally launched Marbella as a mass
market destination -- Marbella Club and Los Monteros -- have
entirely reinvented themselves. Marbella Club finished renovations
in late March. At that point, Los Monteros was still gutted; stacks
of gleaming marble slabs sat awaiting installation. New Monteros
owner Le Meridien is investing $1.5 million in Los Monteros, which
is scheduled to reopen July 1.
Even the once-threadbare Andalucia Palace, which houses the
Marbella Casino, is looking regal again. In mid-April, Puente
Romano, which has set the luxury standard for Marbella for the last
decade, finished renovating all sections built before 1997. WeÆve
been told that celebrities like Tom Cruise and Sean Connery favor
Puente Romano for its tennis club, but these luxury properties are
also high-end options in many tour packages.
The retreat of choice
Our favorite town on the Costa del Sol, Estepona, lies at the
other end from Torremolinos. Graceful and low-rise, with the
coastÆs largest fishing fleet, Estepona evokes the Costa del Sol
before the tourism boom. Despite a flurry of new construction near
the yacht marina, the town stands back 100 yards or more from its
broad, uncrowded beach. The old townÆs small restaurants set their
tables beneath orange trees on squares arranged around bubbling
fountains.
Until the luxurious Las Dunas resort opened in 1997 on the
eastern edge of town, Estepona was mostly a haven for self-directed
travelers willing to settle for more modest accommodations than
those described above. (A Kempinksi resort is scheduled to open
near Las Dunas in July. See article, Page E.) Estepona, too, has a
long paseo by a fine brown-sand beach, a lively entertainment and
dining scene around its marina and an underground parking complex
that solves the most vexing problem at every beachfront.
We also discovered EsteponaÆs climatic appeal: Prevailing
breezes make it the most temperate spot on the Costa del Sol --
cooler in the summer, warmer in the winter. Its western location
makes it a good base for day-trips to Gibraltar, Morocco or into
the mountains to see the ancient, white, clifftop town of
Ronda.
Something for everyone
The new Costa del Sol confounded our expectations. Spruced up
and ready for a new generation of tourism, the region offers three
distinct approaches to Spanish surf and sun: high-density resorts
and bustling beaches on its east end, a flashier and more luxurious
middle belt centered on Marbella, and a more contemplative western
segment anchored by Estepona.