Sightseeing

April 2013
Málaga's fabulous art-deco theatre, Teatro Cervantes, will be playing host to internationally acclaimed violinist Jesús Reina, who is performing his Mendelssohn concerto from 5 to 6 April. www.teatrocervantes.com

January 2013
Don't miss the the fascinating temporary exhibition at the Picasso Museum this month. Entitled The Grotesque Factor, and centered on ugliness as reflected in art, it includes over 270 paintings, sculptures, drawings, engravings, books, documents and fragments of film donated by collections all over the world (museopicassomalaga.org).

Key Areas

January 2013
Take a Costa detour if you're cruising by the coast and visit Benalmádena's Puerto Marina port with its upmarket shopping mall within easy strolling distance of the main harbour. The architecture here is a cross between Mr Whippy and Far East fantasy and there are plenty of cafés and bars if shopping is not your style.

December 2012
Granada is less than two hours from Málaga airport. The city is full of romance and folklore, as well as being home to one of the most brilliant jewels of universal architecture - the Alhambra, which dominates the city from its hilltop perch.

Day Trips

January 2013
El Chorro - This is an area of spectacular gorges, mountains and picturesque villages set around the Guadalhorce dam, just 50km northwest of Málaga. Take a look at the perilous El Camino del Rey that snakes along the gorge walls up to 100m above the river, named after Alfonso X111 who walked along here when he opened the dam in 1921. Don't attempt to do the same these days (unless you have serious abseiling ability, that is).

December 2012
Head inland to white villages like Guacin and Monda, which are increasingly attracting foreign residents escaping from the clamour and crowds of the coast. The result is more bars and better restaurants coupled with the white-washed simplicity of traditional pueblo blanco life.