As in previous years, my company closes its doors during the holiday season. With my mother, we hesitated between Malta and Andalusia and finally opted for Andalusia, and more precisely Málaga. We wanted to visit several cities in Andalusia, not just Málaga. We booked an AirBnB in Malaga for the duration of our stay (from December, 22nd to December, 29th 2018) and took train/bus tickets to the cities of Ronda, Córdoba and Seville.
We flew to CDG on Saturday, December 22nd 2018 with Air France, whose flight was operated by Air Europa.
Not having done the check-in on the Internet (it didn't work), we did it on a machine directly at the airport.
When we boarded, there was a problem because the seats we were assigned were the ones in front of the emergency exit. Airport agents had to perform several manipulations on their computers before they could validate our tickets.
Unfortunately, several people had time to get on the plane before us while the officers were solving the problem. We had to leave our hand luggage in the hold so that it could be put in the hold because the flight was full.
The flight lasted 2h30; it was delayed because the previous flight to Lisbon was also delayed. I was able to inform Rafael, our host, so that he would not wait too long in the house to welcome us.
Once we arrived at Málaga Airport, we picked up our luggage and took the A bus (€3 the trip) which dropped us off at the Avenida de Andalucia stop (about 45 minutes; journey). We then went to our AirBnB (15 minutes walk) where Rafael picked us up in front of his building. Rafael showed us around his apartment, explained how everything worked and then left us. Very kind Rafael, English is not his strong suit, so he spoke to us in Spanish using a few words in English. My mother and I understand Spanish and speak it a little, so it was not difficult to communicate with him.
Day 1
We flew to CDG on Saturday, December 22nd 2018 with Air France, whose flight was operated by Air Europa.
Not having done the check-in on the Internet (it didn't work), we did it on a machine directly at the airport.
When we boarded, there was a problem because the seats we were assigned were the ones in front of the emergency exit. Airport agents had to perform several manipulations on their computers before they could validate our tickets.
Unfortunately, several people had time to get on the plane before us while the officers were solving the problem. We had to leave our hand luggage in the hold so that it could be put in the hold because the flight was full.
The flight lasted 2h30; it was delayed because the previous flight to Lisbon was also delayed. I was able to inform Rafael, our host, so that he would not wait too long in the house to welcome us.
Once we arrived at Málaga Airport, we picked up our luggage and took the A bus (€3 the trip) which dropped us off at the Avenida de Andalucia stop (about 45 minutes; journey). We then went to our AirBnB (15 minutes walk) where Rafael picked us up in front of his building. Rafael showed us around his apartment, explained how everything worked and then left us. Very kind Rafael, English is not his strong suit, so he spoke to us in Spanish using a few words in English. My mother and I understand Spanish and speak it a little, so it was not difficult to communicate with him.
My mother and I went out for a few errands and a little walk in the city. We also had lunch at Zamarrilla 33, a restaurant located on our street recommended by Rafael.
Day 2 - Ronda
The next day, we went to Málaga station to take the train to Ronda (€46.40 round trip for both of us). There are very few departures for this city: one in the morning at 9:40 am making us arrive at 12:08 pm and a return from Ronda to Málaga in the afternoon at 4:10 pm making us arrive at 6:53 pm. We decided to leave on Sunday the 23rd and return on Monday the 24th, so we booked a hotel in Ronda just next to the station (€35 for one night for both of us).
So the next day, at Málaga station, there was actually no train but a bus to Ronda.
Surprisingly, the journey took much less time than expected (1 hour less).
We got off the bus and checked in at Hotel Andalucia. We were able to access our room despite the fact that we arrived earlier (arrival at 11:30 am and check-in from 1 pm).
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| Hotel Andalucia |
We went for a walk in Ronda, a very pretty little town.
Carrera Espinel
We passed through the Carrera Espinel, a pedestrian street in which many restaurants and shops selling clothes and shoes are located.
Plaza del Socorro
We then turned right into Plaza del Socorro where we attended a Christmas concert in the middle of the street.
Plaza de Torros and Museo Taurino
Then head for the famous Plaza de Toros and visit the Museo Taurino. We were able to enter the Ronda Bullring, the oldest arena in Spain (€7 per entry).
Pedro Romero restaurant
After the visit, we had lunch in the Pedro Romero restaurant recommended by the Routard Guide and located just in front of the Bullring. This restaurant offers a dish based on bull tail but with my mother, we had a delicious paella for €20 each.
Iglesia de la Merced and Alameda del Tajo
Then head for Alameda del Tajo, a pretty wooded alley at the end of which you can enjoy a very beautiful view of the valley.
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| Iglesia de la Merced |
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| Dama Goyesca |
Puente Nuevo
Continuing to the left of the Alameda del Tajo, you can access the Puente Nuevo, which crosses the gorges of the Guadalevín River, which cuts Ronda in two. Very beautiful view!
Puente Viejo
We took Calle Armiñán and then Calle Cuesta de Santo Domingo to go to Puente Viejo where we met cute little sheep. We then turned back through the Jardines de Cuenca before returning to the hotel where we had dinner (Serrano ham sandwiches and hot chocolates for less than €9).
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| Jardines de Cuenca |
Day 3
For our last day in Ronda, we wanted to visit the Museo Lara and then take the famous Camino al fondo del Tajo (the path at the bottom of the ravine).
We had breakfast at the hotel (orange juice, hot chocolate, butter toast, pâté and ham cream) for less than 6€ and then checked out.
Museo Lara
On the recommendations of the Guide du Routard, we bought our ticket at the tourist office and paid €4 for both of us instead of €8, very interesting.
The Museo Lara contains a collection of weapons, clocks and all kinds of objects related to witchcraft (instruments of torture, poisons and many others).
Plaza Duquesa de Parcent and Iglesia de Santa María de la Encarnación
After the Museo Lara, we went to the Plaza Duquesa de Parcent where the Iglesia de Santa María de la Encarnación is located.
Camino al fondo del Tajo
We then passed through Calle Manuel Montero, Plaza Mondragón and Plaza de María Auxiliadora to reach the path at the bottom of the ravine. A 15-minute walk that offers a magnificent view of the valley and the waterfall.
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| Calle Manuel Montero |
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| Plaza Mondragón |
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| Plaza de María Auxiliadora |
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| Plaza de María Auxiliadora |
We went back to the station to return to Málaga (bus at 4:10 pm). Here too, we arrived in Ronda earlier than expected. Unlike the outward journey, the bus was almost full.
We went home and then went out to do some shopping. We wanted to book a restaurant not too far from home to celebrate Christmas Eve but it was a little late. So we decided to order a pizza from Telepizza but the pizzeria next door was closed as well as the Corte Inglés, a shopping centre (on Google, it was indicated that these two brands were open). So we ate in an Asian restaurant right next door and decorated for the occasion. Several Spanish families spent Christmas Eve in this restaurant.
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| Eggs soup |
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| Shrimp rice |
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| Chicken and curry rice |
Day 4 - Málaga
Paseo del Parque
On this Christmas day, we walked along the Paseo del Parque, a nice walk near the Málaga park.
Palmeral de las Sorpresas, muelle Uno and Mirador Princess Ferris wheel
We arrived on the Palmeral de las Sorpresas and the muelle Uno.
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| George Pompidou center |
Playa de la Malagueta
We ended up towards the Playa de la Malagueta.
Castillo de Gibralfaro
Then head for Castillo de Gibralfaro. We didn't visit it but we went for a walk. Very nice walk that allows you to have a view of the city, especially the port and the Málaga Bullring.
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| Bullring |
Alcazaba
We then went down to the Alcazaba, which was closed.
Málaga Cathedral
Finally, we passed in front of Málaga Cathedral before returning to our AirBnB.
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| Nativity scene |
Day 5 - Córdoba
Mezquita-Catedral
On that day, we went to Córdoba by train (about an hour's journey with 2 stops just before getting off at Córdoba). We went directly to the Mosque-Cathedral (1€10 each) of Córdoba, a beautiful monument divided into several rooms.
The Mezquita-Catedral of Córdoba is the only large mosque preserved in Spain in its original structure and it is also one of the largest in the world. It is considered to be the most important Islamic monument in the West.
Visitors arrive through the Court of Oranges, which is the main access to the mosque. The minaret overlooks the courtyard.
The prayer room, the main chapel and the sacred chapel are other elements of the Mosque-Cathedral that visitors can admire.
Calleja de las Flores
Once out of the Mezquita-Catedral, we rushed into the Calleja de las Flores, an alleyway decorated with flower pots and plants leading to a very pretty square.
Puerta del Puente and Puente Romano
We then went to the Puerta del Puente to cross the Puente Romano at the end of which is the Torre de la Calahorra and the Museo vivo de Al-Andalus, which we did not visit.
Molino de San Antonio
Along the Guadalquivir River, we came across the Molino de San Antonio.
Plaza del Potro, Posada del Potro and Centro de flamenco Fosforito
We then climbed up to Puente Romano and continued to cross the Puente de Miraflores.
We wanted to see the Plaza del Potro and the Centro de flamenco Fosforito. La Posada del Potro is a house from the 15th - 16th century that houses the Centro de flamenco Fosforito, a centre dedicated to flamenco.
Iglesia San Francisco in the Calle Compas de San Francisco
We continued on our way to lunch and came across the Calle Compas de San Francisco where the San Francisco Church is located.
La Taberna Salinas restaurant
On the advice of the Guide du Routard, we wanted to have lunch at La Taberna Salinas, a restaurant renowned for its Cordovan specialities. There was a line and 5 tables before we could settle in. We waited 30 minutes before one of the restaurant employees managing the reservations set us up. A little anecdote, he reminded me a lot of Santa Claus.
If you want to have lunch in a Spanish restaurant in Spain, you might as well try a Spanish speciality. So we ordered a sangria (about €2.25) and bull tail stew (€9.50). The sangria was very good and the stew, served with homemade fries, was exquisite. I expected a meat with a strong taste like game, but that was not the case. The sauce was so good that we even ate the bread served with it, never mind if it added a few euros to the bill.
One thing to know, the bread served at the table in Spain is not free if you eat it. If the server counts it in the bill when you haven't touched it, don't hesitate to say so. This is what happened to us in Ronda in the restaurant serving paella. We hadn't touched the bread, but the waiter counted it for us. We let him know and he took it off the bill.
Good surprise, the bread was not charged in the Taberna Salinas, we did well to eat it!
Mari Paz Churrería restaurant
After tasting our bull stew that was fingerlicking good, we wanted a dessert. So we had a thick hot chocolate and churros not far from La Taberna Salinas at Mari Paz Churrería's house. We paid €5.80 for both of us.
Alcázar
We then passed near Alcázar but did not visit it. There were too many lines anyway.
Caballerizas Reales
On the other hand, we entered the Caballerizas Reales where horse-drawn carriages are on display. There is also the possibility of attending an equestrian show but we could not see it because it took place in the evening and that would have made us miss our train back to Málaga.
Luis Navas statue and Puerta de Sevilla
Then head for Luis Navas statue and the Puerta de Sevilla.
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| Luis Navas statue |
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| Puerta de Sevilla |
Plaza de las Tendillas
Walk on the Plaza de las Tendillas through the shopping streets of Concepción and Gondomar.
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| Corinthian columns near the town hall |
We ended with Claudio Marcelo and Capitulares streets where the town hall and the Iglesia San Pablo are located. On the side of the town hall, beautiful Corinthian columns dating from the 1st century can be found.
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| Iglesia San Pablo |
Day 6 - Málaga
Citron restaurant
That day, we had lunch in Citron restaurant, also recommended by the Guide du Routard. It does not offer Spanish specialities but delicious eclectic dishes. We ordered kimchi and gambas gyozas as starters, langoustines in coconut and curry sauce and salmon steak. We had a banana toffee and a brownie as desserts.
Walk in Málaga
Once we were full, we strolled around Málaga and discovered streets and alleys decorated with beautiful tags.
Day 7 - Seville
For our last full day in Spain, we took the train at 06:45 to Seville (1 hour 55 minutes).
Barrio de Santa Cruz
We spent most of the day in the neighborhood of Santa Cruz.
Catedral
We could not visit the Cathedral, La Giralda and Real Alcázar because there were too many people in the queue, with or without tickets.
Salt and Sugar tea-room
We went to have breakfast at Salt and Sugar's to warm ourselves up because it was a little chilly in the morning.
We then walked through the Santa Cruz district via Calle Rodrigo Caro, Plaza de Doña Elvira or Jamerdana.
Calle Rodrigo Caro
Plaza de Doña Elvira
Jamerdana
Jardines de Murillo and Paseo de Catalina de Ribera
We ended up with the Gardens of Murillo and the walk of Catalina de Ribera.
Plaza de España
We then headed for the Plaza de España, a magnificent square that reminds me a lot of Venice with its bridges (4 of them symbolizing the 4 kingdoms of the Spanish crown: Castilla, Aragon, León and Navarra) spanning the basins and its boats.
We had the chance to attend a flamenco performance.
A little anecdote, a scene of the Star Wars Clone Attack was shot here!
Cristina and Co. restaurant
We returned to the Santa Cruz district to have lunch at Cristina and Co., a restaurant recommended by the Guide du Routard, where we ate a paella with tuna and Iberian pork while sipping delicious sangria.
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| The bill presented in a tin can |
We then strolled through the streets and went shopping before returning to take the train back to Málaga.
In the evening, we ordered pizzas from Telepizza but they were not good at all, so do not order there.
Day 8 - Málaga
This last day in Spain, we preferred to sleep in before going to the airport. This time, we took the C1 metro (10 minutes of travel and €1.80) instead of the A bus.
It was still impossible to check in online, still the same error message (there is probably a problem with the Air Europa website because we heard people complaining about having the same problem when we queued to get on the plane). So we checked in directly at the Air Europa counter this time.
We had lunch at the airport (penne with bolognese sauce for my mother and burger with fries for me which was really not very good).
Our plane was 30 minutes late, it's definitely a habit with Air Europa!
We were still placed on the seats near the emergency exit but this time, no problem when scanning our tickets and we were also able to place our suitcases in the cabin.
There was a lot of turbulence during that flight, for almost an hour, it didn't stop and it made one of the passengers sick and to whom it was the first time it happened.
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