I will be traveling to costa del sol in may and I am presently debating on transportation for the trip. We will be flying into Malaga and staying in Marabela so I was looking at taxis and shuttles and there costs. I am also tinkering with the idea of renting a car because the costs seem very comparable for a nine day trip. So I have a couple of questions

- what is the best way to get to and from the airport to marabela?
- Are there some spectacular places outside of marabela that would convince me to rent a car Vs staying put?
- How is parking in this area of the world?

Any tidbits would be appreciated.
mm_traveler

There is no Marabela in Spain; there is a Marbella though.... You need to get a good Southern Spain/Andalucia guidebook pronto. I strongly recommend Fodor's (for obvious reasons, but DK Kindersley guides and Frommer' are pretty decent as well. In a synopsis, the idea of going to Marbella and staying put in Marbella for 9 days is completely crazy.

Your absolute best option is to rent a car at the Malaga Airport (AVIS is pretty good) and plan on road daytrips, that region is amazing for driving tours along the coast, into mountain's White Villages, national parks (Grazalema), spectacular sights (The Alhambra in Granada). All of this is much, much better enjoyed if having the flexibilty of a car. It does require good planning though, including the use of outstanding map resources such as Michelin Maps. No offense, but strong advice to watch cities's names spelling, it can make a world of difference.

Absolutely rent a car. Marbella is essenially a beach resort - and unless all you want is a beach holiday (are you staying at a resort hotel with tennis and golf?) you will be bored stiff IMHO.

With so many great towns and cities to explore from Marbella on day trips a car is really a must.

We are doing the same in May and decided to rent a car at the Malaga airport. I found Avis to be the best price. I do have some reservation about the drive to Marbella, and just hope that good directions will get me there. I welcome any tidbits as well!!
Mo

We stayed in Marbella old town in December and caught a coach from Malaga airport direct to Marbella coach station, in the summer they run every hour, in winter every 2 hours from outside the terminal. The cost was less than 5 Euros each (single). We then got a taxi the short distance to our hotel. Can't remeber cost but was not expensive. This could be an option if you didn't want a car for the whole holiday, however you need to compare cost of hiring car in Marbella with picking one up at airport.

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay in Marbella last May. The easy day trips from there are Puerto Banus, Tangiers, Tarifa, Ronda, and Gibraltar. (We found Gibraltar to be a big waste of time.)

Your hotel will have other suggestions.

There is very good bus service in the area, but for a reason I can't fathom, it is difficult to get ACCURATE information about schedules without trekking to the bus depot, where, in Marbella you may have to do business with a mean-spirited lady who takes glee in giving tourists a hard time.