The best things to do in Mijas — top beaches, activities, attractions and days out, handpicked for tourists, families and locals alike.
Mijas Pueblo is the classic white village of the Costa del Sol — a tangle of steep lanes 430 metres above the sea. Start in Plaza Virgen de la Peña, walk to the rock-cut chapel of the village's patron and the Muralla gardens for the view, and look into the oval bullring, the Picasso ceramics at the CAC and the miniature museum. Most of it is free, and all of it is walkable in a morning.
Then there's the rest of Mijas: the Sierra behind for hiking (Pico Mijas is a proper half-day climb), the golf valleys of La Cala Resort and Mijas Golf, and down on the coast La Cala de Mijas with its beach, tower and the Senda Litoral boardwalk running six flat kilometres along the shore.
The water park on the Mijas side of Fuengirola — slides, a wave pool, a lazy river and toddler areas. Summer season only (roughly May to September); check opening dates before you go.
Plaza Virgen de la Peña, Mijas Pueblo
The village's best-known and most-debated tradition since the 1960s — donkeys and donkey carts for hire from the main square. Many visitors now prefer to photograph the bronze donkey statue instead; the town hall regulates working hours and conditions.
A small contemporary-art centre in the village with a notable collection of Picasso ceramics, alongside works by Dalí and changing exhibitions. A cool, quiet hour away from the souvenir shops.
Urbanización Calanova Golf, La Cala de Mijas
A scenic, undulating 18 holes just inland from La Cala de Mijas, with wide fairways and views to the sea and the Sierra de Mijas.
Avenida del Compás, Mijas Pueblo
A quirky museum of miniatures in a caravan-shaped building — a painting on a grain of rice, sculptures on pinheads and other oddities collected by a travelling hypnotist. Twenty entertaining minutes.
Plaza de la Libertad, Mijas Pueblo
The village folk museum in the old town hall — rooms recreating traditional Mijas life, from the olive press and wine cellar to a country kitchen. Small, inexpensive and genuinely local.
Urbanización Torrenueva, Mijas Costa
A polished adults-only beachfront hotel between La Cala and Calahonda whose pool club and restaurant are open to day visitors — sunbeds by the water, à la carte dining and regular live entertainment.
A tiny chapel carved into the rock in the 17th century to house the image of the village's patron — on a clifftop viewpoint with one of the best panoramas over the coast.
A short, steep path from the top of the village up through the pines to a small white hermitage on the hillside — about half an hour up, with a fine view back over Mijas and the coast.
Plaza de la Constitución, Mijas Pueblo
The parish church beside the Muralla gardens, built in the 16th century on the site of the old mosque and castle — its bell tower was once a defensive tower.
Landscaped gardens along the remains of the old Moorish walls at the top of the village, with a clifftop path and sweeping views down to Fuengirola and — on a clear day — across to Africa.
Urbanización La Cala Golf, Mijas Costa
The largest golf resort in Spain — three 18-hole courses (América, Asia and Europa) in the hills behind La Cala, plus an academy, hotel and spa.
A relaxed beach restaurant and lounge on La Cala's seafront for a long lunch, sunbeds and sundowners — easy-going and popular with residents.
The glossy option at Riviera del Sol — a beach complex with an infinity pool, sunbeds, a restaurant with wide sea views and a fitness area, open from brunch until late.
Camino Viejo de Coín, Mijas Costa
Two long-established courses in the valley behind Fuengirola — Los Lagos, wide and watery, and the tighter Los Olivos — both originally designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr.
Sierra de Mijas, from Mijas Pueblo
The 1,150m summit of the Sierra de Mijas, topped by a white weather 'golf ball' — a steep, signposted half-day hike from the village with views from Málaga to Gibraltar. Take water; there is little shade.
Sitio de Calahonda, Mijas Costa
The sandy beach below the residential hills of Calahonda and Riviera del Sol at the western end of Mijas — sunbeds, beach bars and the far end of the coastal boardwalk.
The main village beach of La Cala de Mijas — sandy, well kept and right in front of the square and the tower, with sunbeds, showers and chiringuitos along the back.
Faro de Calaburras, Mijas Costa
A rocky, low-key stretch below the Calaburras lighthouse between Fuengirola and La Cala — more for rock pools, snorkelling and windsurfing than sunbathing.
The long beach running east from La Cala — a mix of sand and rocky patches, quieter than the village beach and good for a walk along the shore.
Paseo de la Muralla, Mijas Pueblo
A curiosity from 1900 — a small bullring that is oval rather than round, squeezed onto the rock at the top of the village. Visit for the odd shape, the little museum and the view from the stands.
Plaza Virgen de la Peña, Mijas Pueblo
The main square of Mijas Pueblo and the natural starting point — café terraces, craft shops, the tourist office and the free Wednesday flamenco show, with the lanes of the white village climbing away behind.
A flat wooden boardwalk along the shore from La Cala de Mijas west towards Calahonda — around six kilometres each way, past coves, watchtowers and beach bars. Easy, pushchair-friendly and at its best early or at sunset.
The pine-covered mountain behind the village is laced with colour-coded walking routes of all lengths, starting from the old quarry road above the pueblo — the easy way to get some altitude and shade.
Plaza del Torreón, La Cala de Mijas
The squat 18th-century watchtower on the seafront at La Cala de Mijas — the village's symbol, now a small interpretation centre on the coast's defensive towers, in the square by the beach.
A stylish beach club and restaurant on the sand at La Cala de Mijas — sunbeds, cocktails and Mediterranean plates, a step up from the traditional chiringuitos either side.
The main square, the rock-cut Ermita de la Virgen de la Peña, the Muralla gardens and viewpoints, the oval bullring, the CAC art centre with its Picasso ceramics, the Casa Museo folk museum and the Carromato de Max miniatures. Allow a morning.
By car it's about 15 minutes up from Fuengirola, with a large public car park at the entrance to the village. Buses run from Fuengirola bus station. There's no train; the nearest station is Fuengirola.
Yes — the flat Senda Litoral boardwalk from La Cala de Mijas along the coast, the short climb to the Ermita del Calvario above the village, and the colour-coded Sierra de Mijas trails up to Pico Mijas (1,150m).
Mijas Pueblo is the white mountain village. Mijas Costa is the coastal strip of the same municipality — La Cala de Mijas, Calahonda and Riviera del Sol — with the beaches, boardwalk and golf. Las Lagunas, the third centre, adjoins Fuengirola.