Once again, we find ourselves in Malaga, and since we’re playing tourist we opted to do something fun. Because we had so much fun in Granada, we opted to do another Segway tour. This time we worked with the great folks at Segway Malaga Experience. On this tour we were joined by an English family on holiday and we opted for the last tour of the day. It all began at 8 PM from El Puerto de Málaga (the Port of Malaga) and it was buzzing.
Our guide, Alex, gives us all the safety/operation speech, and we were on our way. As you can see, there are a lot of pedestrians out and about, so it makes the tour a bit more challenging (or “technical” as Heidi put it) and and fun. Once we crossed over into the more pedestrian area of Málaga where there are plenty of restaurants, shopping, and some great people-watching we were at our first stop.
In this mini square, we stopped in front of the Episcopal Palace and Catedral de la Encarnación de Málaga.
Construction on the cathedral started in 1528, and finally finished in 1782. That’s… (let’s see…borrow from the 8…) 254 years! That’s a long time to complete a building. The Episcopal Palace is renowned as one of the best examples of civil architecture.
This was kind of funny (to me anyway). I stopped right in front of an older gentleman who was seated at a restaurant table (I’m talking to him right there). I beeped my imaginary horn at him. He was sitting down, and I’m very tall on the Segway, so he turned around in his seat looking to get out of the way. His table mates and I started laughing at his reaction, and he chuckled, and said, “Good one!”.As we continue our tour, we come to the Roman Theater and Visitor Center. This is a place that I could stay at for hours. There are tons of people, and the Roman architecture has been restored. If we get a chance to come back, I’d love to see one of the many plays that are put on in this location. With the Alcazaba in the background, it’s amazing to think of all the history that’s taken place here in Málaga.
Alex explains that there have been three major influences/peoples here in Málaga. He sums it up nicely when he said, “First the Romans, then the Moors, and then the Christians.” That’s obviously the Reader’s Digest version, but it’s pretty true to the mark. In fact, the name of the city founded by the Phoenicians (around 800 B.C.) was Malaca. Malaca is the word for “salt”, which was one of primary things done in this port city, i.e. salting fish.
Now it’s time for us to head up near the top of the Gibralfaro, which is the mountain (hill) on which the Alcazaba is built. It’s a great paved path, and on our way up we see many people riding bikes, running, and walking dogs. It’s a long climb up, so I’m very glad we’re on the Segways, so the climbing part is pretty easy. Near the top of the hill is the Parador de Málaga-Gibralfaro. This is a very nice hotel, with an outdoor restaurant (the food smells delish!). It must be pretty swanky, because a teeny-tiny Coke cost 2 Euros!
While we skipped the bottled sip of Coke, we did partake in the amazing view! We saw not only the port, but also the Plaza de Toros de La Malagueta. We even saw some junior matadors training (no bulls). Off to the far left you see can see the jetty that sticks out. This is where all of the huge cruise ships dock.
With a 15-minute break, we were able to take in the views, chat with our fellow tourists, and rest. Now we head back down. This is really a great area. Given the steepness of the hill, I’m not surprised that we don’t see more tourists, so it almost feels like we have the place to ourselves.
Now that we’re down in the shopping/pedestrian area, we make our way to the Plaza De La Merced. This is a popular place with the locals as the cafés are all bustling. On the north corner of the square is the house where Picasso was born (1881). It’s now a museum, and one block away is the Teatro Cervantes. In the square, there’s a statue of Picasso and a memorial obelisk which commemorates one of the many rebellions that took place in Spain during that time.
Note: Those photobombers were not with us!By this time, it’s dark out, and we’re starting to head back to the port. As we are making our way back, we go through Paseo Parque, and ride around the top of Muelle Uno (the waterfront along the port). We were zigging and zagging through the bollards, and having a great time. Alex then took us to Playa de la Malagueta (beach), and we rode on the boardwalk.
From there we made our way to the area where the cruise ships dock, and had fun lapping around the area. As always, it was time for the fun to come to an end, and we came back to homebase through Muelle Uno. With all of the shopping and restaurants, it was really packed. A big “¡Gracias!” goes out to Alex for a great tour. We all had a great time, and got to experience a part of Málaga that we didn’t even know existed.
If you’re interested in taking a tour through Segway Málaga Experience, they have several options that cover different areas and different lengths (15 minutes to 2+ hours), so there is something to interest everyone. Our tour was the 2+ hour tour and we would love to return and do them all. Fortunately we only live 45 minutes away, so this is very possible. We highly recommend you request Alex as your guide, a funny Italian is Spain. Let them know Wagoners Abroad sent you!
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Segway Málaga Experience
Located directly along the Port of Malaga (parking garages available)
http://segwaymalagexperience.com
+34 649 890 224
malagatours@segwaymalagexperience.com
Organized Tours
There are also many organized tours for you to enjoy from being active on walking or biking tour, to enjoying a food or wine tour. There is so much to do and Viator has so many great offers for you. Click here to see their latest Malaga Deals!
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Disclosure: We partnered with Segway Malaga Experience on this service in exchange for our honest review.