Feria de Málaga

Málaga’s feria is really two ferias, and the mistake most visitors make is going to only one. The feria de día happens in the historic centre from around noon: the streets fill, bars pour cartojal (a sweet local wine sold by the bottle), and people dance sevillanas on the pavement in ordinary clothes. It winds down late afternoon.

The feria de noche is somewhere else entirely — the Cortijo de Torres fairground, a bus or taxi ride out of the centre, with casetas, a funfair and music until dawn. The two barely overlap. If you stay in the centre after dark, you have missed half of it.

It opens with fireworks over the Malagueta beach on the Friday night and runs eight days. Expect the city to be loud, hot and full; hotel prices roughly double, and the centre is not the place for a quiet dinner.

Getting here is easy — see airports in Andalucía and trains. Málaga is also the base most first trips start from: the Málaga province guide has the wider picture.