by Kosta Kasa
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by Kosta Kasa
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Our team has lived on the Costa del Sol for 20 years and now with two toddler CEOs of our own, aged two and three, we understand the importance of having fun activities to do with your little ones to burn off some of their never-ending energy and give yourself a much deserved break! While older children may be happy chilling by the pool and relaxing, younger children may not. Check out this list based on some of our own personal favourite activities that our whole family enjoy.
Parks
The Costa Del Sol has an amazing variety of amazing parks for children & toddlers of all ages, although having little ones ourselves we have managed to narrow down a list of our absolute favourites, taking into consideration that not every park has much needed shady areas for little ones to cool off or the climbing frames are sometimes just too much for little legs!
Paloma Park is located in Arroyo de la Miel in Benalmadena and is well known on the Costa del Sol for its family-friendly amenities and beautiful gardens. Our littles love it here due to all of the cute wildlife such as chickens, rabbits, turtles, ducks, geese, peacocks and even swans. As if that wasn’t enough for animal-crazy little ones, the park has a small zoo with mountain goats and emus, and a huge lake where kids can feed the ducks.
Want to have a picnic? Paloma Park has plenty of green spaces that are perfect for a family picnic and it’s an excuse to spend a beautiful afternoon outdoors. The park also has two amazing play areas, with one smaller section for children aging from 2 years old and a bigger climbing frame for children ages 3+.
Parque de la constitución Marbella:
Located just behind Marbellas famous promenade with amazing restaurants and beaches, you can find one of our absolute favourite parks. It’s a very quiet and tranquil park with beautiful gardens to have a picnic and our kids’ favourite play area! The play area is almost completely shaded by beautiful large trees and all of the play frames are adequate for children ages 2 and above. We love an afternoon at this park followed by an ice cream on Marbella’s paseo.
Overlooking the sea, the amazing Parque Bateria, located in the town of Torremolinos, has a huge 9,000 square-metre lake where your family can take a nice boat ride. Throughout this history-themed park, you’ll find a historic defence tower. At the top of the tower there is an incredible viewpoint with panoramic views of the whole Coast. They also have one of the biggest children’s play areas on the Coast with a merry-go-round and multiple climbing frames and activities for little ones.
Animal lovers day out
Our little girls are animal obsessed, so we know any day trip out involving animals is going to be a massive hit! Here are our top animal day trips out.
Located in Fuengirolas Old town, this is by far our top pick for a zoo for toddlers, as it is a great size for little legs and there aren’t many hills to have to push a buggy up.
There are currently around 200 species that you can visit in the park; most of them endangered or with the risk of becoming so – also encompassing particularly unique examples such as the Sumatran tiger and the Roloway monkey.
Another great activity is this indoor aquarium located in Benalmadena. Although small, it does take us around 40 minutes to walk through with our very curious little ones. The location makes this a great day out, as it’s on Benalmadena’s Marina where you can have a lovely stroll around the aquarium and cool off before having a walk down the beautiful harbour to grab a bite to eat and enjoy the views.
They also have some amazing boat tours that leave from Benalmadena Marina, so you can even see dolphins in the same day!
Full days out
Here is a list of our favourite full days out with little ones! All of these activities are perfect for the whole family to have a great day out while little ones are occupied and happy.
Located in Las Lagunas, Mijas, this is by far the best waterpark for young children. Most waterpark rides in Spain are for children ages 6+ however this waterpark has multiple slides suitable for most children ages 3 and above (dependant on your child’s height).
They also have a wonderful kids splash zone and a large pool with wave shows that everyone can enjoy.
Mundo Mania is both of my littles’ favourite day out! Located in Cancelada, Estepona.
Mundo Mania is the Costa del Sol’s biggest indoor, outdoor play centre and party centre for toddlers, youngsters, teens, mums, dads and even grandparents! They have a fantastic assortment of leisure and play facilities offering hours of fun for all the family in a safe and friendly environment.
They have two main indoor play areas; one for children ages 1-3 and another for children aged 3-12. Both play areas are safe and suitable for their age groups.
In summer and warmer seasons, they have an outdoor wet zone with fun water toys and water features for little ones to splash and play to get a break from the hot Spanish summers! Outdoors you will also find trampolines and sport pitches for playing football.
There is plenty of great snacks and drinks to enjoy as well as ample seating inside and out.
This activity is only suitable for young kids aged 4 and above. If you have children ages 4 and above this should definitely be on your list of places to visit!
Located in Elviria, Marbella, it is the largest adventure park (on ropes!) in Andalucia, located just 500 meters from the beach, Aventura Amazonia consists of 83 challenges in the trees and 20 ziplines distributed over 6 adventure circuits: MiniKids, Kids, Explorador, Jungla, Aventura and Deportivo, and 3 training circuits. You can also launch yourself on the longest treetop zipline in Andalusia, an amazing 240 meters in length.
The MiniKids area offers adventure challenges and a zipline, for kiddies from the age of 4 to 7, and also serves as a creche for parents who want to do the circuits and have nowhere to leave their little ones.
Beaches
There is a wonderful selection of beaches along the coast, however not all are suitable for young kids, as some have rocks even in the shallow areas, extreme drops in water depth, a strong current and so on. Here are our two favourite beaches for children under 6:
Playa Ancha in Casares:
Based in Casares, Playa Ancha is a gem on the Costa del Sol. This gorgeous natural beach spans 1,300 metres long and 50 metres wide. Its calm waters are particularly ideal for families with young children. In 2019, it was awarded a blue flag – a designation provided by the FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education) to beaches that meet the strict environmental standards.
Playa Del Pinomar in Marbella:
Playa de Pinomar in Marbella is one of the biggest stretches of beach in Marbella at 350 metres long, along with
Playa el Alicate and Playa de Costa Bella, which are both nearly 2 kilometres long. Its accessibility, long list of amenities and location make it the best beach for your family trip to the Costa del Sol.
I hope you enjoyed hearing all about our favourite activities for family-fun holidays on the beautiful Costa del Sol.
If you are planning on staying on the Costa del Sol, feel free to contact our friendly team for the best recommendations and holiday homes to suit you and your family.
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