If you are travelling into Marbella and don’t want to hire a car, the public transport links here are pretty good with a reliable and extensive bus services. There is a new high speed train service currently under construction which will be based under the new runway at Malaga Airport and run from there along the Costa del Sol as far as Estepona, but estimated completion of this is currently in 2009. So until then hiring a car, taxis or the bus services are your only option.

Marbella Bus Station is located slightly north of Marbella in Avenida Trapiche which is just 100 metres north of the bypass that runs behind Marbella. To get to it you have to cross the bypass which runs from west to east behind Urbanisation El Cenit, and you will find it just to the left of the big roundabout. There is a taxi rank just outside the Marbella bus station and it is about a 20 minute walk to the centre of Marbella and 30 minutes down to the sea front by crossing the road bridge next to the bus station and going straight down the road away from the mountains which are behind you.

There are left lockers at the bus station in two different sizes. To use them you should purchase a token from the machine next to the lockers at a cost of €3 or €4. The machine gives change and you can leave your luggage there all day. If you leave something in the locker and have to reopen it you will have to pay again as you cannot open them twice.

Marbella offers good transport communication links to the Costa del Sol with regular buses running to Algeciras, Almeria, Benahavis, Benalmadena Costa, Cadiz, Coin, Cordoba, Estepona, Fuengirola, Granada, Jaen, Jerez, La Linea, Malaga, Marbella Hospital, Nueva Andalucia, Ojen, Ronda, San Pedro, Seville, Torremolinos and Ubeda. There is also a high speed coach link from there into Malaga Airport which takes about 45 minutes and costs just over €4.

Bus fares in southern Spain are very reasonable and you can get a single fare from Marbella to Cadiz for under €17, Estepona for under €2.50, Granada for €14, Ronda for just over €5 and Seville for just over €15. The buses run very frequently over the summer months, but during the low season in the winter the services are reduced. You can find out more details of timetables and fares at www.ctsa-portillo.com.