Public transport in Málaga: Everything explained

The public transport network in the province of Málaga is not one of the best in Spain and can be difficult to understand. As all the information is in Spanish and rarely in English, I’ll leave you with a complete guide to getting around Malaga with as little pollution as possible

Málaga Metro

Malaga’s metro is still under construction and currently only has two unfinished lines.
Although it is not very wide, it is very useful for its speed and low cost, as you can get from Misericordia Beach to the city centre in just a few minutes.

Málaga Metro Timetables

The metro is open from Monday to Thursday from 06:30 to 23:00.

Fridays from 06:30 to 01:30.

Saturdays from 07:00 to 01:30.

Sundays and holidays from 07:00 to 23:00.

On certain specific dates the metro timetable is extended, such as during important sporting events, Easter or New Year’s Day.

For more information, visit the official website of the Malaga Metro.

Málaga Metro Prices

The cost of a trip on the metro is €1.35. However, if you buy a rechargeable card for €1.8, the journey costs 82 cents. This card also allows up to 9 people to travel together on the same card (you must board together within 3 minutes).

In the Malaga Metro you can pay with MetroPay. If MetroPay is activated, you can go to the metro entrance barrier and pay directly, without having to go to the ticket machine.
Attention! In Malaga you must use your ticket to exit the metro!

Regional Train from Málaga to Costa del Sol and Airport

There is a train that runs along the west coast of Málaga from the city center to Fuengirola. Unfortunately, it does not go any further (Estepona, Marbella…) and there is no train to the east (Nerja, Frigiliana…). To reach these villages you have to take the bus (keep reading to see how to take the buses).

As you can see on the map below, the C-1 line stops at the airport (Aeropuerto), the main train and bus station (Maria Zambrano) and the city centre (Málaga Centro Alameda).

Although not as useful for tourists, there is also the C-2 line, which takes you to towns such as Álora, Pizarra or Cártama.

You can find all the official information on this website.

Prices of the regional train to the Costa del Sol and Airport

The prices varies depending on which zones you are travelling. You can see the zone division on the map in the previous section.

Zone	Price
1/2	1,8€
3	2,05€
4	2,7€
5	3,60€

How to go to Caminito del Rey with train

If you want to go to el Caminito del Rey with the public transport, the best option is taking a train! There are daily trains that go there (“El Chorro) in just 52 minutes. You may take a train to Sevilla that stops at “El Chorro” or a regional train from Málaga, whose last stop is “El Chorro”.

You can see the trains on the day you want to travel on this website. You must select “El Chorro” as your destination and María Zambrano (Malaga’s main station) as your departure.

The price is 3,5€ each way.

Málaga Buses

There are countless buses in Malaga and it would be impossible to explain all the lines in the province. For this reason, I provide you with some useful links so that you can see for yourself which lines you need to use. In this link you can see all the existing lines, here you can find the different prices, and finally here is a route planner.

Please note that the buses do not work like in other European countries and you have to get on through the driver’s door to buy the ticket or show it to him.