Spain Malaga - Holiday Inn Express

[Romelle]

While I got this hotel directly from the Holiday Inn web site, I thought I might still offer Malaga bidders some information. I wanted the hotel just for the last night before departure, sl wanted one close to the airport. Neither Hotwire nor Priceline separates the downtown area from the airport area, so I booked directly.

The hotel is a 2* on Priceline, and for the rate was entirely satisfactory. No complaints here. Quiet, good breakfast, quick check-in, clean, etc. It doesn't have a shuttle to the airport, but instead is less than 1/2 a block to a bus stop where buses come more less than 30 minutes apart and get one to the airport in 5-10 minutes. It also is walkable, although that takes about 25 minutes and goes over enough rough and variable surfaces that a roller-bag would be a problem (I had a back-pack).

However, I learned there is such a good network of trains and buses in the Malaga area I'll opt to bid next time. The train has a stop right at the airport. Several bus lines stop right at the airport. For that matter, the train runs through Torremolinas, Marbella and a couple more cities, so anywhere along that line could be a good location.

The other lesson learned was when we arrived at the Malaga airport with a rental car at the beginning. Very tired from a long and confusing drive, three people, hot. We opted to take a cab to the hotel. My brother and sister-in-law speak Spanish and the cab transaction happened very quickly in Spanish. I didn't understand it, but learned upon arrival that the driver had said the fare would be a fixed 19 Euro rate and this was how they did it. I'm suspicious we could have obtained a better rate if we had insisted on him setting his flag and using the mileage rate.

Romelle