Malaga's Automobile Museum

While pretty much every traveller coming to Andalusia has heard of the Picasso Museum in Malaga, the Automobile Museum seems to be a secret gem that even many Costa del Sol residents have never heard of. Yet, it is a treasure trove one can easily devote a whole day to, if you're planning to leave the comforts of your home in Marbella for a weekend in Malaga.

Forget rusty old Fiats and VW Campervans! The Automobile Museum in Malaga houses a vast collection of classic cars from different eras, including modern classics, but it also displays them to their best advantage, surrounded by artefacts and memorabilia of the age they belong to.

The museum is divided into several different collections, dedicated to different periods of motoring history. Collections range from Belle Époque, Golden 20s, Dolce Vita, Dream Cars, English Tradition to Popular Cars that may embrace such classics as the 1960 Aston Martin DB4 Superleggera or 1957 Mercedes 300sl (Gullwing).

The Belle Époque of Motoring

Covering the earliest days of motoring from the late 19th century to the outbreak of the Great War in the summer of 1914, the collection encompasses some of the earliest examples of motor vehicles. Built for the rich elite of society, who were the only ones able to afford a motorcar, the earliest examples still resemble contraptions one might have hitched up behind a horse. However, the motorcar won some many fans so quickly, that cars became more affordable, especially when Ford began mass production of cheap and cheerful cars, many examples of which can be seen in the Art Deco collection.

Art Deco Collection

The Automobile Museum of Malaga has eleven wonderful Art Deco motor vehicle examples on display, including a 1936 Bugatti, a 1930 Studebaker, a 1937 Mercedes 540k and a 1939 Packard. Luxurious, hand-crafted and infinitely elegant, these represent some of the world's most beautiful cars ever built. These are the type of cars early film stars, racing drivers, aristocrats, Chicago's mobsters and shipping magnates might have had. Other early examples include names like DeSoto, Buick, Auburn and Cord.

Dream Cars

For petrol heads of all ages, the Automobile Museum in Malaga has something to offer that they will dream about long after the visit is over. Some of the most famous sports car marques are on display here, names like Ferrari and Maserati, Jaguar, BMW and Lamborghini. Jaguar in particular is well represented with various examples, including MKX, MK2, and XK120 DHC.

If in your head you started to hum John Lennon's "Imagine" while lovingly stroking the matt black Jaguar XK120 DHC, it is no coincidence, for the Lennon's Technicolor Rolls Royce is also part of the museum's collections.

The museum's collections are spread out over 6,000 square meters and display one hundred amazing motor cars from the 20th century alone, let alone the fine examples from the Belle Époque. It's an amazing day out - and all for just EUR 8.50 per person, including free parking for the day.

Special Occasions

Amazingly, the museum can be hired for special occasions, so if you were thinking of where to hold your wedding reception or celebrate your retirement to Marbella after years of slaving away in some City of London office, this could be the place for you. Be the Great Gatsby for the day or pretend you're Al Capone, the choice and theme of the event is entirely yours and the museum does its best to find the right memorabilia to stage the event.

The museum hosts a variety of themed dinners, live music shows and vintage fashion shows, too, so even if you're not crazy about old cars, there may be events that will interest you (see
http://www.museoautomovilmalaga.com/en/ for further information).

And that's the greatest thing about living at the Costa del Sol, there's so much to discover, even after having lived there for a while, no week is ever dull or the same. If you are thinking of purchasing a retirement home in Marbella, Benehavis or Fuengirola, now is a good time to start looking, for prices are stabilising and are forecast to rise in 2015.