Torremolinos is quiet at night

[Miro]

Good to hear your views - and nice that you like the place for what it is It does have some good points. I read recently that it's been nominated as a Unesco World Heritage Site - http://highlife.ba.com/Destinations/The ... geNumber=4. Mmmmm...
Anyhoo....for lovers of really, REALLY loud heavy metal rubbish in a town centre location with lots of beer tents etc., tonight you have another chance to enjoy "Magic Saturday". They're warming up (if not tuning up) right now as I type - my keyboard is vibrating already! Just get off the train at Torremolinos and you'll find yourself at stage left.

[laswalkirias]

Even as a lover of malaga City, I still think Torremolinos isnt as bad as many people think it is
It is a S[anish town and if you scratch the surface it is definatley Spanish and quite beautiful in places.
Yes the nightlife has quitened down on my recent trips but it is better than a night out in London for many reasons
The english lager louts are not welcome or comfortable in Torremolinos and It has a special place in my heart and it was a springboard for my love of Spain and Malaga City
It is very underrated

[gerryh]

We went for a short holiday to Torremolinos in early April this year.
Thoroughly enjoyed ourselves there, it's a nice place.
It seemed very quite at night which suited us.
Cheers
Gerry

[MarkF]

I anticipated a dump, yet was pleasantly surprised, I would not go so far as to call it beautiful, but it was pleasant enough. I do think there is an opportunity to be a CDS Sitges and did not think the gay area was seedy at night, it appeared entirely "normal", just woman-free!

I suppose that if I visited in November, with far fewer visitors, then it might appear tired but IMO it appears nowhere near as tired as Fuengirola does.

Oh, the shop (convenience store) directly behind the station entrance tried to short change me on every single visit. Same guy, same argument, every single visit.

In Malaga I did notice some Brit stag/hen parties at the feria, not seen those there before..........

http://memories-of-torremolinos.blogspot.co.uk/

[Beachcomber]

I have unearthed the Drifters by James Michener which is mentioned by Miro earlier. It really is a strange book but very readable once you get into it. I knew I had it somewhere but I don't think I got around to reading it before.

[biribiri]

Thanks to MarkF for the link. http://memories-of-torremolinos.blogspot.co.uk/
I thought I would have a quick look and ended up spending a couple of hours reading everything on the site

[katy]

Interesting blog, love old photos. Can't believe they wrecked the whole of the CDS in a couple of decades.

[Pamela1]

I don't think they did wreck it, we did, in our quest for sun, sea and sand..

[Miro]

Good atmosphere in town today for the Féria. The main (Nogalera) square is hosting live music (v.loud as usual) and a good selection of tents offering drinks & tapas, from 13:00 to 19:00 until Monday. Get off the train and you're there! Enjoy.

Some more old photos: http://www.guateque.net/0torremolinos60.htm

And I presume this is referring to the Trafford Centre that was planned years ago out behind the Aquapark: https://www.euroweeklynews.com/news/cos ... ing-centre

[katy]

Thanks for posting the old photos, really interesting. Amazing how quickly the coast changed once they discovered concrete.

[Miro]

Ice skating (on fake ice) now on in the main square! €1.00 for half an hour, including boots. Mainly for the kids I think. Enjoy!

[Miro]

Well, it wasn't quiet Friday night. Danza Invisible (world famous in Malaga in the 80s) performed a one-off home town gig in the Nogalera square to about 2,000 people (mostly middle aged!)
Great atmosphere, even if the music was a bit rubbish! Simple Minds they are not. The bars and restaurants did a roaring trade.
Hope this is the start of more stuff like this.

[Miro]

Pedestrianisation work on the main road through town is well under way, and stalls are being set up for a Christmas market which looks like it will be bigger than anything we've had here previously.
There will be free parking from 4th Dec to 7th Jan in the public car park with entrances on Avda Manantiales & Rio Mesa, also at the Picasso Cultural Centre a bit further out of town.

[katy]

Are you the towns new tourism officer

[Miro]

Just an interested observer of recent events!
Since the new mayor replaced the old *beep* who had been in power for more than 20 years, Torremolinos has been mentioned in the press far more than I ever remember in the past, for one thing or another. It's almost like the place is coming out of a "dark" period and starting to regain some recognition at last. Today, for example, I read that the free Xmas hampers for pensioners, which cost the ayto. €135,000, are being scrapped in favour of new schemes to help the genuinely needy - seems like a good idea; after all, let's face it, most Spanish pensioners earn more than the majority of working age "mil euristas". And when the new council came in to power, a load of old (out of date) hams were found lurking in a store room at the town hall The annual ballroom dance competition has been scrapped; apparently it was costing the council huge amounts to host it, and the chap organising it for the last 20 years made €35k for doing so. No doubt he was a good mate of the former mayor. Time will tell, but it does seem like things are looking up for the town that started it all...but I assure you, I have no vested interest! Just passing on info for anyone who's interested

[Miro]

The lights are on, the glühwein is flowing, food trucks serving all sorts of snacks - and there will be an ice rink too (real ice apparently, in a big marquee) although I don't think it was open last night. Things definitely looking up in Torrie

[Pamela1]

Miro,

Please keep passing on your info regarding Torremolinos..i am always interested in reading about what is happening there. We have been visiting Torre for many years and although we now have our property in the Granada area we still have a few days in Torre either when we arrive or before we depart..The Christmas decorations look fantastic and it must feel very Christmassy walking down San Miguel Street.

[Miro]

It's been a few months since my last post on this thread, so a quick update:
Last weekend's Gay Pride apparently went down a storm (I could hear it going on from where we are, close to the centre, but didn't bother going out to see it) and next weekend there's another big cultural event planned in the Nogalera square, and the bars around there are all doing rather well on the back of all the activities. There's certainly been a change since the new mayor took over, as reported in today's Sur in English; I think the mere fact that Torremolinos is now getting regular mentions in the press when it never did before says something. Unfortunately, the sort-of pedestrianised main road, which has been closed to traffic since November, still hasn't been paved so it looks a bit half-baked, but things are happening: McDonalds are reopening (in their former location in the centre) after several years' absence, and some of the locales along the main road which have been empty for years are also finally being reopened. A new Irish bar has opened (Guinn's), a new seafood place (above Mercadona), a new pizza place, a new cafe, a new shoe shop....maybe, just maybe, the place is getting back on it's feet after years of neglect.

[Pamela1]

Thank you for posting an update Miro, i enjoy reading your posts about Torremolinos and yes it does sound like it is picking up...Have you noticed a big increase in tourism? i know lots of hotels are full during the school holidays and many have been as early as Jan this year...

We were there in April and encountered the road works, it was like a jigsaw puzzle navigating a different route up to the Carihuela..Just a case of not knowing all the back streets...

[wollie]

i see spain as having a bumper season as it is now pretty well the safest holiday destination in... i'll bet mcdonalds have access to advance booking numbers...

thanks for info...