Shopping on the Costa del Sol is both similar and different to shopping in the rest of Andalucia. Like the rest of this region, plenty of small, often family-run, shops still pack out the streets of small towns and big cities alike; and, like the rest of the region, hyper-markets are cropping up everywhere and providing tough competition to small businesses.
If you're visiting the Costa del Sol and hoping to shop for interesting souvenirs to take home with you, you'll probably want to take excursions just inland from the Coast in order to find traditional souvenirs. For example, in the mountain village of Tolox, just an hour from the eastern end of the coast, local men carve kitchen utensils during the summer months when the regional government pays them to sit at lonely outposts throughout the mountains watching for signs of forest fires. In Ronda, just inland from the western side of the coast, locals are known for the fine furnishings they produce.
If you decide to stay on the coast then you will mostly find the typical trinkets and ceramic wares sold throughout this region. It's also easy to find African imports, especially from nearby Morocco. The prices are much higher than they would be in Morocco, but usually still quite reasonable.
The Costa del Sol can also be a great place to shop for great fashion, especially in Marbella. And all along the coast you'll find shops full of locally fashioned leather goods, from purses to shoes to coats. Also, there is a thriving local lingerie business with many items sold in small shops in the centre of produced by women living in the surrounding countryside and pueblos.
Residents on the Costa del Sol will find that this is one of the easiest areas in Málaga to find just about anything and everything. Thanks to the international climate that is created by so many different nationalities living together, products from all over Europe and the world are sold at various key points along the Costa del Sol, such as Dunnes Stores in Fuengirola and Málaga and the Iceland food chain that has stores on the coast as well. Scandinavian shops and German bakeries dot the coast and Asian and Arab markets can be found by asking members of their respective communities to point you to the nearest outlet in your area.
Shopping areas throughout the Costa del Sol
EL ZOCO SHOPPING CENTRE -
Mikas-Costa, Costa del Sol, Spain
LA CAÑADA SHOPPING CENTRE
Ctra. De Ojen, Marbella, Spain
OASIS SHOPPING CENTRE -
Marbella Downtown, Costa del Sol, Spain
RICARDO SORIANO 20 SHOPPING CENTRE -
Avda. Ricardo Soriano, Marbella Downtown, Costa del Sol, Spain
ELVIRIA SHOPPING CENTRE -
Elviria, Marbella East, Costa del Sol, Spain
CRISTAMAR SHOPPING CENTRE -
Puerto Banus, Costa del Sol, Spain
EL CORTE INGLES SHOPPING CENTRE -
Puerto Banus, Costa del Sol, Spain
MARINA BANUS -
Puerto Banus, Costa del Sol, Spain
NUEVA ANDALUCIA SHOPPING CENTRE -
Nueva Andalucia, Andalucia, Spain
LA COLONIA SHOPPING CENTRE -
San Pedro de Alcantara, Andalucia, Spain |
