Nerja Or Estepona (as places to base yourself in Spain)

Nerja Or Estepona as places to base yourself in Spain

We know Nerja well having lived there for 2 ½ years. During that time, a few people we knew decided to move from Nerja to Estepona. Estepona seemed like the new ¨hot spot¨. Even now, almost 2 years later, Estepona is a place that regularly comes up as one of the trendiest places to move to on the Costa del Sol.

So what are the two towns like? And how are they different? (because they really are very different).

We visited Estepona earlier this year, spending 4 days exploring the town. I’ll tell you how I think the two towns compare.

I also asked a couple of people I know – Louisa who lives in Estepona and Wayne who lives in Nerja – on their opinions on the current state of the two towns. They include their thoughts below.

Nerja

I’ve written at length about Nerja on this blog. When we arrived in 2020, during the height of Covid, it was a pretty and quiet town with friendly locals. It was surrounded by nature. By mid-2022, with travel restrictions gone and Covid in the rearview mirror, the town was inundated with expats and tourists. The locals were like extras on a movie set. It was then that we started planning our exit from Nerja, something we did in early 2023.

Still, there were some great things about Nerja. It’s a compact town where you can find anything within a 15-minute walk. Parking is a pain and I know people with cars hate the parking in Nerja – but for us as people who get around on foot we found everything within easy reach. It’s very pedestrian friendly.

We loved the choice of restaurants in Nerja, especially the abundance of Indian restaurants. I’ll admit we took it for granted but – having lived in Antequera and now in Granada – you won’t find the amount of choice you have in Nerja in many other places. You also have a few supermarkets (Iranzo’s being the best) where you can buy groceries from around the world. We’d often go there to stock up on Asian noodles, Indian sauces and German beer.

Behind the town are the mountains of the Sierras de Tejeda, Almijara and Alhama Natural Park. If you like nature and hiking, Nerja is well located. I miss the hikes and the hiking tours that I would often take (with Jon Keo hiking tours).

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For us, the above were the highlights of Nerja as a base. Others appreciate the beaches (which are mostly in coves, requiring you to descend some steps to get to), the many bars (lots of Irish pubs so a pint of Guiness is never far away), and the many social clubs. Besides the hiking I mention above there are tons of opportunities for language exchange and other social events. The Club Internacional De Nerja is great and always organizes something.

Weather: basically year-round sun. No complaints. But we hated the hot and humid summers. It’s one of the reasons we moved inland (where yes, the thermometer gives you higher readings. But the humidity is much less and we personally cope better in a drier climate).

Public transport: if you don´t have a car, you’re stuck taking the bus to get east or west. The good thing is that there’s quite a lot of buses (usually at least 1 an hour). It’ll take you about 1 hr, 15 min to 1 hr, 30 min to get to Malaga. It’s not ideal and after a while we hated taking that bus which was always late.

But really, Nerja is a lovely place to live and has everything you want as an expat. Its downfall is due to its success – there are just too many expats and too many tourists in Nerja which has led to the usual problems (overcrowding and overpricing of everything including rents. That’s if you’re lucky enough to find an apartment…).

More reading (I wrote this in early 2023 before we left Nerja); What’s it like living in Nerja? The Pros and the Cons

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Estepona

Estepona was the last stop on a trip we did hitting many of the spots west of Malaga on the Costa del Sol.

Estepona is bigger than Nerja. I googled the population of both towns: Nerja had approx. 22,000 residents registered in January of 2024, Estepona has approx. 77,000 residents. Whereas Nerja is mostly limited to an old town of low-rise buildings, in Estepona you’ll see neighbourhoods with tall buildings of 8 to 10 stories (I got in trouble somewhere calling them ¨highrises¨. So I’ll just call them ¨taller¨ buildings). Most locals, along with some expats, live in these neighbourhoods. The more expensive properties are in the old town (where you’ll see traditional 1 to 2 storey buildings) and also along the coast where, again, buildings are ¨taller¨. We stayed in a 6 story building (Apartamentos Miguel Angel. Great stay) 2 blocks from the beach and it was typical of the architecture here.

Apart from it being bigger with more tall buildings, the 2^nd thing that struck us about Estepona was that it still has a lot more Spanish flavour than Nerja. One of the first things we did upon arriving was to have coffee and breakfast in a café near the ayuntamiento. We were the only foreigners there. Other people, all Spanish, came in and ordered coffee or a tostada. That struck us as very different than Nerja.

Where you see the foreigners is when walking along the beautiful promenade (I´ll get to that soon) or in the old town. There you´ll see expats/tourists have a coffee or beer and chatting among themselves. And if you make your way to the old town´s beautiful main square (Plaza de las Flores) then you´ll see almost everyone sitting there is a foreigner.

Overall however, I found the mix of locals/expats much more balanced than Nerja. I found this article online which states that Estepona is the 2^nd fastest growing towns/city in Spain (after Torrevieja). And you can see a lot of construction around which attests to that. But (for now) I didn´t find the foreigner mix overwhelming. But that’s maybe because in my mind I’m comparing it to Nerja.

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The best things about Estepona? The beach and its long promenade are phenomenal. The whole coastline is beach and it looks very clean*. We´re not beach people…but if you are you´ll love the beach in Estepona.

*In Nerja people would warn us of the ¨brown tide¨. There seems to be a big argument about that, some people saying that it’s algae. But the algae argument seems to come mostly from people needing to promote Nerja. Go online and most people will tell you that it’s raw sewage. Some of our Nerja friends who are beach people told us that it’s indeed what it is and that it happens frequently, especially at Burriana beach.

The promenade in Estepona goes down the coast as far as you can see. We walked to the bus station to the east and to the marina to the west. That´s 3 km of promenade and we´d see people riding their bikes, walking, jogging. Fabulous. And it keeps on going beyond, so I’m not sure how long it really extends…And it’s immaculate. Plants and flowers have been planted, there are clean bathroom stalls, there are art installations and showers. Really, really great. If you spend your time outdoors you’ll love Estepona’s promenade.

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Likewise the old town is pretty with little streets lined with colourful flower pots. I’m not going to tell you that Estepona’s old town is exciting. With the exception of Plaza de las Flores, it’s a bit boring to tell you the truth. BUT they’ve done an incredible job beautifying it with flowers and art. It’s very pretty.

Whereas Nerja is a compact little town, Estepona stretches along the coast (with the exception of those neighbourhoods with ¨taller¨ buildings that I’ve mentioned previously). Estepona isn’t the easiest place to get around on foot. The bus station for example is about a 20-minute walk out of town in the middle of nowhere. The marina is in the opposite direction. The truth is that you`re better off with a car in Estepona (more on that soon).

After a couple of weeks of travel, I had high hopes of getting good Indian food in Estepona. Any place with a large population of expats usually has a couple of Indian restaurants. The funny thing in Estepona is that the better rated Indian restaurants are on the road out of town (need a car). There was one at the marina so we took a trek there – only to find it closed. We had Chinese food instead. Overall, during our 4 days there, we weren’t impressed by the restaurant selection in Estepona.

Public transport: When we left Estepona we had a bus scheduled for Malaga. We walked out of town to the bus station where, already 30 minutes late, we were told that our bus would be another hour. So it ended up that our bus was 90 minutes late…which meant that we missed our connecting train in Malaga. It screwed up our whole day and it reminded me of one of the reasons why we left Nerja…except that public transport in Estepona appeared to be even worse than Nerja.

More: What’s Estepona like? Our Impressions

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So Nerja or Estepona?

This is just my opinion. You might think otherwise depending on what’s most important to you.

I prefer Nerja to Estepona. I like that Nerja is built in traditional Spanish style, I like it´s pretty old town and it´s compactness. I like that it’s so scenic. I used to enjoy walking around the bluffs between the beaches, climbing up stairs and enjoying the views (Estepona, on the other hand, is flat).

Nerja is more exciting, has more eating options and has that natural park behind town (I´m sure there´s some great hiking around Estepona. But I´m not sure it can beat the options around Nerja).

Estepona has those great beaches and the promenade. But other than that, it is very sedate and too quiet for my taste. I´d get bored. Restaurants aren’t great, neither is public transport.

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If you love beaches and you have a car, your conclusion might be different than mine. The American couple we knew who moved to Estepona cited 3 main reasons:

1) Lodging. They had a really hard time finding a suitable apartment in Nerja (where owners have no reason to accommodate you in any way because demand exceeds supply) but were able to find something nice in Estepona. Mind you this was in 2022…

2) Parking and getting around (they had 2 cars and would go everywhere by car).

3) Cleanliness. They talked about what a great job the administration did in Estepona. No brown tide there (going to the beach was of importance to them).

They were bang on all their points and I can understand their choice of Estepona over Nerja.

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Nerja and Estepona today

Are both towns heading in the same direction?

I asked a few expat friends I know in Estepona and Nerja if they could give me an update on their lives in either town.

The first was Louisa who settle in Estepona in 2020.  We interviewed her in 2021, back then she was in love with Estepona. Now she’s preparing to move to Valencia.

Louisa on Estepona in 2024

I am so excited about my move to Valencia from Estepona. I’d like to explain why I am leaving beautiful Estepona.

Estepona is stunning, with 16000 flowerpots adorning the old town, beautiful beaches and an amazing climate. I moved there 4 years ago and hoped to settle there permanently, but things did not turn out as I thought.

There’s not much going on here, not much social life. There’s the International club of Estepona which some friends joined. But they stopped going because they said everyone is so old (and they themselves are in their late 60’s). There are Facebook groups for yoga on the beach, cycling and walking in the hills. But they’re not really my thing. There are very few cultural events aside from those put on by the Spanish including occasional classical concerts which I often attended. If you’re used to ¨big city¨ cultural events or live music, you’ll be disappointed, there´s just not much going on.

Estepona is great if you like to go for a meal and then have an early night, if you like long walks along the beach or cycling in the hills. If you like spending your life in bars, it’s also great, but that’s also not my thing.

Public transport is also limited, and I hate having to drive everywhere. I find restaurant menus and food quality very average, and shops don’t cater for an eclectic taste. It’s a typical small town and I haven’t managed to adjust, so my move is more about me than Estepona.

Estepona has changed a lot in the last 4 years, the elderly residents who used to sit on chairs outside their houses have disappeared in favour of Airbnb apartments. Restaurants that used to open at 8 and close around 2, now open at 6 and close at 12 due to the amount of northern European visitors. This year the numbers of visiting Spanish fell dramatically based upon my observations and there was a general absence of large Spanish families eating centrally.

Much of the change is due to changes in the town itself. It has been cut in half by the beach pedestrianisation and bringing beach items, food and luggage after a drive from the north is not much fun. Also, restaurant and bar prices have risen dramatically – I’d say that they’d doubled.

This year the age profile of visitors was much lower than previous years (again based on my observations) and these people were looking for different nightlife in the old town, which traditionally was to be found in the port. New bars and hotels seem to be opening everywhere. The local Spanish population has been priced out of the old town. Spanish friends have moved to places like Estepona Golf, served by unreliable public transport. The port also has a very uncertain future.

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Wayne on Nerja

I ended up in Nerja in 2022. I had travelled from Malaga to Estepona, called on over 100 rentals and places needed a ridiculous deposit, agency fees, and proof of employment in Spain. One woman even said she wanted an Interpol police check!

Finally after 2 months, I got a phone call about a townhouse I had been interested in. The potential renters decided to back out and it was ready if I wanted to see it. “Where is it?”  “Nerja” they told me.

The owner is British. Nice guy and he didn’t even raise the rent this year. I pay 950 Euros for a 90 m² condo. It is big, bright, fully furnished, including dishes, everything except towels. What I’m paying for rent is a really good price. Everybody tells me, especially for what I’m getting.

The pros and cons over the last 2 years:

Pros

• The locals are warm, funny and friendly.
• The town is very clean. Everywhere.  I am always seeing people from the town painting, picking up garbage, sweeping the streets.
• The Malaga airport is about 40 minutes for me with my car, depending on traffic and that’s not bad.

Cons

• Winter is very quiet, summer is insane. I read somewhere that they said this year we are expecting 200,000 visitors and I think the population right now is just about 21,000. The beaches are impossible from end of June until beginning of September.
• The restaurants raise their prices for the MENU DEL DIA from 8 EUR to 13.50 during the summer. Last summer it was 11 Euros.
• You have to watch out for pickpockets. Lots of people getting their stuff stolen.
• There is no place to park, especially not in the parking lot of this neighbourhood.
• There is not really anything you’d call a fast food place. Once in awhile I would like a burger and fries and I don’t want to pay 20 EUR for something simple to eat. I drive to Velez-Malaga to McDonalds or Burger King.
• Health care. There is a hospital which is only open until 9 pm. When you have the Spanish health card you can go to the local clinic, but then again, between midnight and 06:00 there isn’t anyone there other than a paramedic. Then they tell you go to Velez-Malaga. The few health clinics don’t accept any kind of insurance so you pay upfront.  Until I had my Tarjeta Sanitaria, I was nervous, because if I got really sick I’d have to go to Malaga to the nearest private hospital open at night.
• Buying. I’d like to buy but it’s impossible to find an affordable place. Small studio apartments are close to 200,000 EUR. There was a decent townhouse for 129,900 last Fall but it sold within a day. Nothing in my area under 250,000 (even if it needs work). There are ads for villas and small houses for 800,000 which are almost up to the highway maybe 2 kms from town.  Unaffordable.

I like Nerja and would like to eventually buy. But the prices so crazy. I thought of moving up towards Alicante but have visited the region on three occasions and found the towns a lot dirtier than Nerja. On the other hand, I can probably get something like what I have now for at least 50000-75000 EUR less.

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Conclusion

Nerja and Estepona are both pretty places but also both quite different. Which you prefer probably depends on your lifestyle.

But they have something in common: Both are, in varying degrees, very popular with foreigners looking to find a base on the Costa del Sol. Maybe too popular?

Related: Where to live as a retiree in Spain? Places…and comparing Theory vs Reality

Related: Where to live on the Costa Del Sol