Mama MálagaPostsCosta del SolThe ultimate pocket guide to the street markets of the Costa del Sol

The ultimate pocket guide to the street markets of the Costa del Sol

June 4, 2023

Last modified on: October 15, 2024

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The street markets of the Costa del Sol are amazing. If you like street markets, you’ll be in heaven in the Costa del Sol. And who doesn’t like them? They are lively places, full of bargains and of people (but not crowded). Popular in most of Spain, the colorful mercadillos attract both locals and tourists selling a wide variety of items: you can find clothes for the whole family, hats, glasses, shoes, bags, fresh vegetables, candies, spices, beautiful locally made ceramics, plants (that are lovely in those ceramic vases), toys, handcrafted items and so much more. These are great places to find authentic local gifts for the family back home.

They happen in every city in the Costa, and actually in almost every city in Malaga province. All you need to know to find them are the days of the week and the location where they are happening. To help you with that, here is a summary of the weekdays and locations where the mercadillos (street markets) happen in the Costa del Sol. Their working hours vary a bit, but as a rule of thumb, they are all open between 10:00 and 14:00. If you arrive too early, you may see the market stalls being built.

Let me clarify something before we dig in, because I know it causes confusion: the markets listed here sell new goods. There are several flea markets around the Costa del Sol, called rastros in Spanish, but the rastros are not the same street markets as in this list. They have their own scheduled and different locations. 😉

Malaga

Malaga has not less than 3 weekly street markets. One happens on Sundays, at Avenida de las Malagueñas, in the Recinto Ferial de Cortijo de Torres and the other two on Wednesdays and Saturdays at the parking lot at Avenida de Europa, 32.

Above, location and directions to Malaga’s Sunday street market; below, the same for Malaga’s Wednesday and Saturday street markets.

Torremolinos

Thursdays are the days of the street market in Torremolinos, at Avenida del Real, in the Recinto Ferial of Torremolinos, close to the Plaza de Toros (bull ring). The closest train station to it is Montemar Alto, but it takes a good 20 minutes walk from the train to the market.

Benalmadena

Benalmadena’s street market happens every Friday on Avenida Manantial 1, on the parking lot next to the (now closed) Tivoli Park. It is accessible by train – leave at Benalmádena-Arroyo de la Miel station and either ask for the Mercadillo or follow Calle Mercurio. If you are doing the hop-on hop-off bus trip, that you can buy upfront from here, it is the stop number 8. If you want to see the market, make sure you hop off there on a Friday! On the other days of the week, this place is just a free-to-park parking lot.

Fuengirola

There are two street markets in Fuengirola. One on Tuesdays, that happens at Avenida Nuestro Padre Jesús Cautivo, in the Recinto Ferial of Fuengirola, and one on Sundays, at Calle Méndez Nuñez.

Above, location and directions to the Tuedays market in Fuengirola; below, the same for the Sunday market.

Mijas

The street market of Mijas happens in the La Calla de Mijas area, twice a week – on Wednesdays and Saturdays, both in the Recinto Ferial (which is used as a parking when there is no market or feria).

Marbella

Marbella also has two mercadillos: one happens every Monday at Avenida José Manuel Vallés, and the other, every Saturday on the famous Puerto Banús.

Above, Monday market; below, Saturday market in Marbella.

Estepona

In Estepona, the street market happens on Wednesdays at Calle Eslovaquia.

Street markets per week day:

I once went to the market in Benalmadena and asked the vendors where they were on the other days of the week. I got so many answers!!! All of them participated on other weekly markets too, but each on different locations and days. My conclusion from that small research was that even though the different markets have some of the same vendors, the markets are also are unique, each with their own blend of offers.

Monday: Marbella
Tuesday: Fuengirola
Wednesday: Malaga, Mijas and Estepona
Thursday: Torremolinos
Friday: Benalmadena
Saturday: Malaga, Mijas and Marbella
Sunday: Malaga and Fuengirola

Conclusion

And these are just the weekly street markets of the Costa del Sol. There are many more!! Many localities have also rastros (flea markets) that offer second hand products, and other open street markets that happen once a month or with other frequency. If you want to know more, check the Mercadillo semanal website, for information on street markets all around Spain, including specialized markets such as antics, medieval or Christmas markets. 😉 By the way, thank you for supporting local businesses!