La Concha mountain above the Golden Mile and its pier, Marbella
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Luxury in Spain

Marbella

The glamour of southern Spain: the Marbella Club and the Golden Mile, the superyachts of Puerto Banús, beach clubs and golf under the Sierra Blanca, and sun nearly all year round.

La Concha above the Golden Mile, MarbellaPhotograph: Pedro Luis Domínguez Ruiz

Bienvenidos

From fishing village to the jet set

Marbella was a quiet Andalusian fishing village until the 1950s. In 1954 Prince Alfonso von Hohenlohe turned his family's beach estate into the Marbella Club, and the princes, film stars and bankers of Europe followed him south. The village became a resort, and the resort became a byword for glamour.

The heart of the town is still old. In the Casco Antiguo, whitewashed lanes hung with flowers lead to the Plaza de los Naranjos, the square of orange trees laid out in the 1480s, with its town hall and chapel. West of the town runs the Golden Mile, the stretch of villas and grand hotels towards Puerto Banús, the marina opened in 1970 where the superyachts moor beside the boutiques.

The Sierra Blanca rises behind the coast and shelters it, which gives Marbella its famously mild climate and long sunny winters. Inland, Benahavís and the private estate of La Zagaleta hold some of the finest villas in Europe, and to the west Sotogrande is home to polo and to Valderrama, one of the great golf courses of the continent.

A few words of Spanish
EnglishSpanishSay it
HelloHolaOH-lah
PleasePor favorpor fah-VOR
Thank youGraciasGRAH-thee-ahs (GRAH-see-ahs is also understood)
Good eveningBuenas noches (after dark; buenas tardes earlier)BWEH-nahs NOH-chehs
The bill, pleaseLa cuenta, por favorlah KWEN-tah, por fah-VOR

Where to go

Marbella at a glance

When to go, the one best hotel, table and beach club, and how to arrive privately.

Marbella

Best time to visitMay to June and September to early October are ideal: hot, dry days, a sea warm enough to swim and calmer beaches than July and August. Winter stays mild and sunny, good for golf and long lunches.

  • Stay
    Marbella Clubone of the 25 Finest Resorts

    The address that made Marbella, founded in 1954 by Prince Alfonso von Hohenlohe on the beach of the Golden Mile, with its own beach club and pier.

  • Dine
    Skina

    Marcos Granda's restaurant on the Golden Mile is the only MICHELIN two-star on the Costa del Sol.

  • Beach
    La Cabane

    Open since 1965, it marked its 60th anniversary with a menu by chef Dani García and is run by Grupo Dani García with Grupo Mosh.

Arrive privately
By private jet
Málaga-Costa del Sol (AGP / LEMG), about 50 minutes by car along the AP-7, longer in midday traffic. Universal Aviation Spain runs a private aviation terminal (FBO) at the airport.
By helicopter
Not a regular option.
By sea
Puerto Banús, berths for yachts up to 50 metres, with anchorage for larger ones; about 15 minutes to central Marbella.

Stay

Luxury hotels in Marbella

The Marbella Club, the address that made Marbella, is one of the 25 Finest Resorts of the Mediterranean.

Marbella

Marbella Club

Prince Alfonso von Hohenlohe founded the Marbella Club in 1954 on a family estate by the sea, and helped turn a fishing village into Spain's most glamorous resort town.

Visit website ↗
Friends raising cocktails across a table in a restaurant with green panelled walls
Cocktails with friends

Dine

The best restaurants in Marbella

The finest tables of Marbella and the Costa del Sol, and the beach clubs of the Golden Mile.

Two MICHELIN stars

  • Skina✦✦Marbella

    Marcos Granda's restaurant, now in a former cortijo on the Golden Mile after many years in a tiny spot in the old town, and the only two-star on the Costa del Sol. Visit website ↗

Beach clubs

Sail

Yachting in Marbella

Puerto Banús, the superyacht marina of the Costa del Sol.

Superyacht marinas

  • Puerto BanúsMarbella

    915 berths on 15 hectares of sheltered water, taking yachts up to 50 metres with anchorage for larger ones, set against Marbella's best-known luxury waterfront. Visit website ↗

Cruises

Marbella by sea

How the ships arrive in Marbella, and the luxury lines that call.

Marbella has no cruise berth: ships call at Málaga, about 60 km to the east.

Six of the luxury lines below begin and end voyages here.

The luxury lines that call here

From the lines' own 2026 and 2027 voyages. Ports change from season to season, so check the voyage before you reserve.

Luxury Cruise LinesSuites at Sea

Travel

First-class travel in Marbella

First-class rail and the chauffeurs at our standard. Private jet arrivals are covered in the questions below.

First-class rail

The top class on the scheduled high-speed trains, from city to city.

  • Renfe AVE, Prémium

    The top fare in Confort, the first-class carriage of Spain's high-speed AVE, with 2+1 seats.

  • Iryo, Infinita Bistró

    The top class of Iryo, Spain's private high-speed operator, in a first-class carriage at the end of the train with 2+1 seats. A light meal and drinks are served at the seat, and the ticket is flexible.

Chauffeurs and self-drive

  • The Luxury Car Hire ClubMarbella

    Prestige car hire from an office at La Quinta Golf and Country Club above Marbella, with collection and return at Málaga Airport. It owns its cars, among them Ferrari, Lamborghini, Rolls-Royce, Bentley and Porsche. Visit website ↗

Shop

Luxury shopping in Marbella

The quayside boutiques of Puerto Banús.

The great shopping streets

  • Muelle RiberaPuerto Banús, Marbella

    The quayside of Marbella's superyacht marina, facing the moored yachts, where Louis Vuitton, Dior, Bulgari and Fendi keep boutiques on the Ribera, with Hermès and Chanel also in the port. Visit website ↗

The great marques

Official showrooms, most by appointment.

  • Bentley MarbellaSan Pedro de Alcántara

    The official Bentley dealership for the Costa del Sol, run by C. de Salamanca from its prestige site on Avenida Norberto Goizueta, a short drive west of Puerto Banús. Visit website ↗

  • Ferrari C. de Salamanca MarbellaSan Pedro de Alcántara

    The official Ferrari dealer for southern Spain and the flagship marque of C. de Salamanca, a house founded in 1907 by the Marquis of Salamanca. Visit website ↗

  • Lamborghini MarbellaPuerto Banús

    Lamborghini's showroom in Puerto Banús, which opened in summer 2025 as the marque's third in Spain, serving the Costa del Sol, with Ad Personam personalisation. Visit website ↗

The Great Marques: showrooms, factories and cars to hire ›

Experience

Events and things to do in Marbella

The Marbella year: the great events, month by month; each event's own website gives this year's dates.

Golf

Health spas

  • Buchinger WilhelmiMarbella

    The home of therapeutic fasting, a method created by Dr. Otto Buchinger over a century ago and now run by the fourth generation of his family. Visit website ↗

  • Marbella Club Thalasso & WellnessMarbella

    A beachfront thalassotherapy spa with a seawater pool, personal wellness programmes and food from its own organic gardens; named on The Times and The Sunday Times list of the world's 50 best spas in 2025. Visit website ↗

Sport and motoring

  • AscariRonda

    A private members' club in the hills near Ronda, inland from Marbella, set on an estate of more than 180 hectares around a 5.4-kilometre circuit of 26 corners, also used by carmakers for launches. Visit website ↗

  • Museo Automovilístico y de la ModaMálaga

    Nearly a hundred restored cars, from the Belle Époque and Art Deco years to coachwork by Figoni and Bugatti, share the former Tabacalera building with a collection of haute couture from Chanel, Dior, Givenchy and Balmain, across thirteen themed rooms. Visit website ↗

Live

Luxury real estate in Marbella

A home in Marbella: the agencies and advisers at our standard, for the purchase and for life after it.

Prime real estate

  • Drumelia Real EstateMarbella

    Luxury agency based near Puerto Banús with about 20 years in the Marbella market, known for exclusive listings in the area's top neighbourhoods. Visit website ↗

  • Spain Sotheby's International RealtyBarcelona and Madrid

    The Sotheby's affiliate for Spain, brought together under the Vivium group in 2025, with offices in Barcelona, the Costa Brava, Madrid and La Moraleja, Palma, Port d'Andratx, Ibiza, Formentera, Menorca, Marbella, Alicante and Seville. Visit website ↗

All the leading agencies in Spain ›

Looking for a home in Marbella? Write to travel@TheMediterranean.com and we will introduce you, in confidence, to the right agency.

Branded residences and new developments

  • St. Regis ResidencesFinca Cortesín, Casares (Costa del Sol)

    Spain's first standalone St. Regis-branded residences, developed by Caledonian with Marriott: 46 two-, three- and four-bedroom residences and penthouses designed by Studio MK27 (Marcio Kogan) with interiors by Lázaro Rosa-Violán, with St. Regis butler service and Finca Cortesín golf and beach club access.

  • Design Hills Marbella by Dolce&GabbanaGolden Mile, Marbella

    Sierra Blanca Estates' collaboration with Dolce&Gabbana, more than 90 apartments and penthouses of up to five bedrooms on a hillside plot of nearly 90,000 m², each furnished with Dolce&Gabbana Casa pieces.

  • EPIC Marbella furnished by FENDI CasaGolden Mile, Marbella

    Sierra Blanca Estates' three-phase scheme of 74 residences, 56 of them designed and furnished by FENDI Casa, with three- to five-bedroom apartments and penthouses, a private spa and a 25-metre infinity pool.

Private healthcare

  • Hospital Quirónsalud MarbellaMarbella

    The main private hospital of the province of Málaga, open for about 50 years, with 75 specialties, seven associated centres on the Costa del Sol and a long record of treating international patients.

International schools

  • Aloha CollegeMarbella

    A not-for-profit British school founded in 1982 in Nueva Andalucía for ages 3 to 18, offering IGCSE, A-levels and the IB Diploma; it was among the first schools in Spain to teach the IB in English. Visit website ↗

  • Sotogrande International SchoolSotogrande

    A day and boarding school offering all three core IB programmes, with the IB Diploma authorised since 2000, serving the families of Sotogrande and the western Costa del Sol. Visit website ↗

Plan your trip

Luxury travel in Marbella and the Mediterranean: your questions answered

Plan your journey to Marbella

Where is Marbella?

On the Costa del Sol in Andalusia, southern Spain, between Málaga and Gibraltar, sheltered by the Sierra Blanca mountains. Málaga airport is about 50 minutes away by road and takes private jets; Gibraltar is about an hour to the west.

What is Marbella famous for?

Its glamour since the 1950s, when the Marbella Club opened, the Golden Mile of villas and grand hotels, the superyachts and boutiques of Puerto Banús, its beach clubs and golf, and a mild climate with sun nearly all year.

When is the best time to visit Marbella?

May to June and September to early October are ideal: hot, dry days, a sea warm enough to swim and calmer beaches than July and August. Winter stays mild and sunny, good for golf and long lunches.

Where are the best luxury hotels in Marbella?

Marbella Club (one of the 25 Finest Resorts).

How do you arrive in Marbella by private jet?

Málaga-Costa del Sol (AGP / LEMG), about 50 minutes by car along the AP-7, longer in midday traffic.

Which are the best restaurants in Marbella?

The finest table on our list: Skina.

Do you tip in Marbella?

Not expected as in the US. In restaurants, 5–10% for good service. Round up taxi fares. Luxury hotels: porters €2–5 a bag, housekeeping €5–10 a day.

What should you wear in Marbella?

Shoulders and knees covered in churches and cathedrals. Several towns fine people for walking the streets in swimwear or shirtless away from the beach, including Barcelona (€120–€500), Málaga and Marbella (€300–€750) and Palma (€100–€200). On yachts, soft-soled or bare feet on deck. Smart dress for fine dining; jackets are rarely required.

Beyond Marbella

More in Spain

Ibiza, Mallorca, Barcelona, Madrid and Seville, and the Mediterranean beyond.

SpainLuxury Spain Holidays: Mallorca & IbizaExplore SpainThe MediterraneanTwenty-two countries and Gibraltar, first class onlyExplore the MediterraneanPlan your journeyFrom your home to Marbella, with the costsOpen the trip planner
A driftwood fire burning on the sand at dusk
A fire on the sand at dusk

Customs and etiquette

Customs and etiquette in Marbella

How Spain does things.

Language
Spanish (Castilian) nationwide; Catalan, Valencian, Galician and Basque are co-official in their regions. English is widely spoken in luxury hotels and fine restaurants in the main resort and city areas.
Greetings
Two cheek kisses are usual between women, and between men and women, even on first social meetings; men usually shake hands. In business and with older people, a handshake and señor / señora are the safe start.
Dress
Shoulders and knees covered in churches and cathedrals. Several towns fine people for walking the streets in swimwear or shirtless away from the beach, including Barcelona (€120–€500), Málaga and Marbella (€300–€750) and Palma (€100–€200). On yachts, soft-soled or bare feet on deck. Smart dress for fine dining; jackets are rarely required.
Dining
Lunch is the main meal, rarely before 2 pm; dinner seldom starts before 9 pm, often 10 pm or later in Madrid. Book ahead for well-known restaurants. Meals are long and unhurried; the bill comes only when you ask.
Tipping
Not expected as in the US. In restaurants, 5–10% for good service. Round up taxi fares. Luxury hotels: porters €2–5 a bag, housekeeping €5–10 a day.
Good to know
Many smaller shops close for a long midday break (roughly 2–5 pm) and on Sundays; the evening paseo (stroll) around 8–9 pm is a fixture of town life.
Tourist tax
Hotels add a tourist tax per person per night: at a five-star hotel in Barcelona, €12 since spring 2026, with further rises planned; in Mallorca and Ibiza, up to €4 in summer.

Every list on this page is checked by hand and dated: last checked October 2026. Hotels, restaurants and events link only to their own official websites, where confirmed.

The Mediterranean Season Letter

Where to be, every season

Four letters a year, one for each season: the Mediterranean from spring to autumn, and Beyond the Mediterranean, into the Alps, in winter. The one best hotel to book, and the events worth crossing a sea for.