They’re the two largest cities in Andalusia. So which to visit?
For me it’s not even close. It’s Seville.
I’ll go through the different reasons why Seville should be your choice (if you have to choose).
Tourist Attractions – Malaga or Seville?
Seville has the Real Alcázar (one of the top 3 highlights of Spain), the Seville Cathedral (one of the top Cathedrals in Spain), the gorgeous Plaza de Espana, the impressive Metropol Parasol, some great private palaces (Palacio de las Dueñas, Casa de Pilatos, Palacio de la Condesa de Lebrija), and lots of amazing churches (the Basílica de la Macarena, Iglesia Santa María La Blanca, and Capilla de San José are our favorites). There’s more…we spent 2 months in Seville and were constantly amazed by the highlights as well as by the overall attractiveness of the city (more on that in the next section).
A self-guided walking tour. We’re big fans of self-guided audio tours because they’re totally flexible, inexpensive and because you don’t have to spend the day with strangers. Have a look at these options for a Seville walking tour.
Malaga has attractions as well: the Malaga Cathedral is very impressive, the Alcazaba is a Moorish castle overlooking the city and is worth a visit. Castillo de Gibralfaro is the absolute highlight in Malaga (in our opinion) – another Moorish castle sitting atop Mount Gibralfaro. The views over the city are fantastic and walking the walls reminded me somewhat of walking the city walls in Dubrovnik. Malaga also has a few well-known museums including the Picasso Museum.
As far as tourist attractions there is no comparison. Seville’s highlights are arguably the most impressive of any Spanish city. Malaga’s highlights are, overall, pretty average.
Attractiveness of the city – Malaga or Seville?
Seville is a beautiful city, an old city with great architecture, lots of winding streets, and palm trees. It’s what you imagine when you think of Andalucia. The are lots of beautiful squares and neighborhoods.
Malaga has an attractive old town as well but it’s small and you’ll see a lot of modern splashed among the old. You’ll find some pretty squares. But where Seville is about history and culture, Malaga is an industrial port city. They’ve done a lot in recent years to clean up Malaga’s port, building a pedestrian promenade (Palmoral de las Sorpresas) with palm trees right next to the port. You’ll see stores, restaurants, gardens, and museums along the way including the eye-catching Pompidou Center. But overall it’s not very attractive and the cranes and silos are always within view. Also, Malaga’s skyline and beaches are dominated by highrise apartment buildings – something you don’t see in Seville.
Seville is a beautiful city. It falls on many lists as one of the Most Beautiful Cities in the World. Malaga just can’t compete with that.
Beaches
Malaga lovers will point out that Malaga has beaches. Seville doesn’t. I’ll be really honest though – Malaga’s beaches aren’t anything. They’re unattractive, there’s no scenery. If a beach to you is just sand and water then fine, you’ve got a beach. But…
For some nice beaches, go to Torre del Mar or Nerja.
Summing it up
Malaga is fine. It’s interesting and we’ve passed through and visited the city many times. Sometimes you need a bit of big city stimulation. But if you’re comparing the city to a supermodel of cities like Seville, there is just no competition. Seville is the obvious choice.
Related: Seeing the highlights of Seville- and saving money!
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Do not disagree that Seville is beautiful. But Malaga is wonderful and the fact you see cranes and a proper working city is part of its appeal to me. It’s real Spain. And it has a wonderful old town, amazing food markers, and prices are great. Yes the beach is a city beach but the fact there is nowhere to swim in Seville is a big issue when it’s 43 Celsius!
Thanks Alex. We don’t have to agree. But one thing that constantly annoys me is when people bring up temperatures in the interior (we’re living in Antequera right now). Yes, if you look at the thermostat, the interior is hotter. But the coast is much more humid and, in my opinion, harder to take. We lived in Nerja for over 2 years and we’ll always take the dry heat of the interior vs the humidity of the coast.
I gotta say, I was a bit worried when I saw the title. Seville vs Malaga? But I was relieved at your conclusion! We’ve spent many months in Seville, including the last three Christmases and New Years (and King’s Day parades)—but, alas not this one. And I’m always astonished at the beauty of the city, the magnificence of the buildings. And the history? Oh my!
Thanks, Frank.
Have you been to Malaga Paul? I’d be curious about what you think of it.
But yes, in my mind no competition.