Torremolinos Museum Project to enhance Tourist Experience

The authorities in charge of the Malaga Province are increasingly recognising that there must be more on offer at the Costa del Sol than just fine weather, beaches and nightlife, if tourism is to continue its upward trend. Residential tourism accounts for a healthy chunk of annual revenue flowing into municipal coffers. Holiday home owners in Marbella, Fuengirola or Torremolinos contribute greatly to their local economies, whenever they come for a visit.

Following several new projects to enhance the tourist experience in Marbella, Fuengirola and various neighbouring resorts, Torremolinos has made 1.5 million euros available to get a new municipal museum project off the ground.

Torremolinos' History

The museum was initially planned to open its doors to the public in 2011, but the world-wide economic crisis put a stop to many such projects at the Costa del Sol. The museum is going to contain collections of art and photography as well as educational sections that will document the town's heritage.

At present the working title of the new museum, which is a lovely white-washed mansion located at the Plaza Picasso, is the "Museum of Fine Arts, History and Popular Traditions of Torremolinos". The museum's collections will be spread over four floors, spanning ca. 4,000 square metres of floor space.

The municipal museum aims to tell the town's history and will contain many fine archaeological finds from local digs. The town is most likely to have been founded by Romans, although local excavations revealed that this was already a human settlement long before the Romans arrived.

The art collection will reputedly include a painting by Italian artist Allesandro Lando. The painting depicts the municipality's patron, the Virgen del Carmen, and shows her embarking at La Carihuela Beach. Exhibits on loan from the Fundación Cuns Gonzalo may showcase 20th century paintings by influential Spanish artists.

Torremolinos' Future

Located some 46.6 km distance from Marbella, a short 34 minute drive along the AP-7, Torremolinos has gradually shed its image as a "cheap" holiday destination. The town is located just 13 km from Malaga, allowing sun and beach-hungry tourists to use Torremolinos as their base during a stay in Andalusia and still enjoy the cultural delights of Malaga and Marbella. A regular train connect Torremolinos to Malaga.

Creating attractions that can be enjoyed during the winter is an important step towards year-round tourism and therefore year-round employment for all. Torremolinos once had a reputation as a "spam and chips" holiday destination only the Brits could truly enjoy and has perhaps struggled to differentiate itself from other resorts at the Costa del Sol in recent years.

However, situated on the western shore of the Bay of Malaga, Torremolinos is a great day trip destination for Marbella residents who want to enjoy a change of scenery without having to travel far. Famous for its array of bars and nightclubs, Torremolinos has much to offer during summer, when the largely British expat community comes into its own and parties the nights away.

Back in the 1950s, when the small fishing village began to transform itself into the first tourist resort at the Costa del Sol, glamorous Hollywood stars came to enjoy the town's amenities, including Marlon Brando, Ava Gardner, Orson Welles, Frank Sinatra and Grace Kelly.

Today the town has a slightly down-market feel about it, with fast-food chains dominating the seafront, although in recent years a healthy smattering of seafood bars and alternative restaurants has sprung up that have earned the town a reputation for outstanding cuisine.

Boasting around 7 km of coastline along which run a seafront promenade and lovely sandy beaches, Torremolinos has much to offer during summer. The municipal museum project will address the need to create a better balance, to offer cultural attractions that will stand up to the competition of what is on offer in Malaga and Marbella and will attract not just summer tourists but also resident day-trippers from neighbouring towns.

A second-hand, four-bed villa costs around 299,000 euros in Torremolinos, about as much as a newly built luxury apartment with two bedrooms and two bathrooms in Marbella.