The best of October in the Costa del Sol

September 26, 2024
Last update: October 15, 2024

October in the Costa del Sol is great. The weather is pleasing and welcoming, there are two major ferias going on – one in the beginning of the month, another in the middle – and to close the month, there are Halloween events everywhere! There are also castañas asadas (roasted chestnuts) which are available uniquely during the fall, and lots of seasonal deserts made with chestnuts. October is a delicious month to be in the Costa!

The weather in October in the Costa del Sol

The rainy season in the Costa del Sol runs from October to May… or not. Run is too much to describe it – it is more like it slowly walks from October on, if it does. From my experience, it rains very little, and more during the nights than during the days. There are way more blue-sky days than gray days; plenty of people still go to the beach in October in the Costa del Sol, and walking around in shorts is still the rule during daytime. At night or very early in the morning, though, you may prefer to wear trousers and to add a sweater.

October in the Costa del Sol weather — Accuweather graphic for the actual temperatures in Malaga in October 2023.

Weather-related data for October in Malaga (data from Weather2travel):
🏊 sea temperature: +19^oC
🌅 Sunrise times: 08:13 am (October 1) – 07:41 am (October 31)*
🌙 Sunset times: 08:01 pm (October 1) – 06:21 pm (October 31)*
🌼 Average number of daylight hours: 11
☀️ Average number of sunshine hours per day: 7

* Note that the daylight saving (wintertime) finishes on the last weekend of October. Precisely at 03:00 a.m. from Sunday, clocks jump back to 02:00 a.m.

The weather information above is for Malaga (city), but as the towns are so close together, you can extend this information to the surrounding areas as well. Torremolinos, Benalmadena, Fuengirola, Mijas, Marbella and Estepona, as well as Rincón de la Victoria, Torrox and Nerja, should not differ much.

What to pack for October in the Costa del Sol?

Over the years I’ve been living in the Costa del Sol, I’ve taken a lot of pictures. In many of them – as you would expect – there are people around. Here are a few of those pictures, each and every one taken on October of previous years, where you can see what people are wearing. The goal is to give you a good idea of what to pack to feel cozy on October in the Costa del Sol! You can click on each image to enlarge it. 😉

October in the Costa del Sol - Malaga, open air

If you are coming in the beginning of October, bring bermudas, dresses and light coats; if you are coming on the end of the month, bring them in black and a scary costume too! Plus jeans and tennis, because the time is perfect to walk around and there is a lot of interesting stuff going on this month in the Costa.

Remarkable dates

October 12 is the National Day of Spain; surprisingly, there is no big celebration associated with it, but Fuengirola’s Feria del Rosario scheduled a celebration of the National Day to happen in the Plaza de la Constitución on the 12th at noon. In the end of the month, there is Halloween, which is a very big deal in the Costa del Sol!

Food of the month

While walking around the Costa, try the roasted chestnuts! They are available in stalls that appear (magically!) on the streets after the chestnuts are harvested. They start to appear around mid-October, and last while there are still chestnuts available – which is usually until mid-November. They are a delicious and healthy snack – unique, right?

October in the Costa del Sol - roasted chestnuts — A roasted chestnut stall in Malaga, October 2023

Events in October in the Costa del Sol

Culture and Entertainment guides

The best places to look for cultural events are the official monthly entertainment guides of the Town Halls websites and their Facebook counterparts. Some cities update them more frequently than others, and usually information is posted just a few days before the event itself; despite that, they are the most complete source of information about cultural (and sometimes not so cultural) events in each city. Below, a super useful list:

For Malaga city: Visita Málaga guide and Facebook
For Torremolinos: Torremolinos Cultura guide and Facebook
For Benalmadena: Benalmadena guide and Benalmadena Cultura
For Fuengirola: Fuengirola guide and Agenda Fuengirola
For Mijas: Mijas and Cultura Mijas
For Marbella: Marbella and Cultura Marbella
For Estepona: Cultura Estepona and Facebook

Feria del Rosario in Fuengirola

The Feria de Fuengirola, also known as Feria del Rosario, will happen from October 6 to 12 in 2024. The distinctive aspect of this feria is that it is also a horse show event, with horses and carriages throughout the city, particularly during the processions / parades. There will also be shows every night of the event, and of course, a funfair and daytime attractions going on in the Recinto Ferial and on other parts of the city. If you are in the Costa del Sol during those dates, don’t miss the opportunity to visit the Feria de Fuengirola, an incredible event on a fantastic place!

October in the Costa del Sol - Poster for the Feria de Fuengirola 2024

Feria de San Pedro Alcántara in Marbella

The Feria de San Pedro Alcántara, in Marbella, is the last feria of the season. It is a large celebration that attracts locals and tourists alike, to a traditional event that lasts almost a week. It’s quite impressive. Marbella is an enormous city that spreads through the cost, and San Pedro itself, one of its neighborhoods, is large enough to be considered by many a town in its own right. In 2024, the Feria will happen from October 15 to 20, and the main attractions are the horses, that will have their own space in the Recinto Ferial!

Film Festival in Benalmadena

Every October, Benalmadena presents a new edition of its Film Festival, the Festival Internacional de Cine de Benalmadena, FICCAB. This year, it will happen from October 19 to 26, both in the Casa de la Cultura, in Arroyo de la Miel, and in the Centro de Exposiciones, in Benalmadena Costa. You can check the full program here! 🙂

Halloween

Ready to enjoy Halloween in the Costa del Sol? What a terrific idea! If you are afraid there are no such celebrations in Spain, you may feel mortified to know that yes, there are, and many! And they are great (I mean, terrible)! Spain celebrates the date in style, with city-wide parties, decorated calabazas (pumpkins), telarañas (spiderwebs), scary ghosts, werewolves, witches, vampires, lost souls, all kinds of spirits, sodas, sweets, and tapas! Check our Halloween in Spain and in the Costa del Sol to know more about how this tradition is celebrated locally, and come back for more as October goes on and the towns release their Halloween programs for 2024!

Conclusion

If you are thinking about coming to the Costa del Sol in October, I think you are thinking right. October has great weather, great foods and great events, plus less tourists and lower accommodation prices than summer! Come and enjoy the amazing experience that is October in the Costa del Sol. See you around!

Next: Train Stations in Malaga – Splendid stops and a secret

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