Things to do in Marbella

One day in Marbella

Start in the old town: the casco antiguo is compact enough to cover on foot before lunch, and the old town guide lists the places to eat inside it. For the meal itself, pick from the eat index: every venue in it holds a 4.5 star Google rating or better across at least 200 reviews and runs its own website, and The 100 ranks the whole index by the published house score. Spend the afternoon on the sand: the beaches guide maps every beach with its official bathing water class, and links each of the 43 beach bars in the chiringuito census to the beach it actually stands on. For the evening, Puerto Banús is the concentrated option: the Puerto Banús guide covers the marina's restaurants, and the nightlife guide ranks the 22 bars, cocktail rooms and clubs that cleared the same rating bar as everything else in the index.

Three days

With a second day, match the morning to the calendar: the markets guide lists the town's 5 street markets by day, hours and address, read from the ayuntamiento's own listings, so a Monday morning means Las Albarizas and a Saturday means Puerto Banús. The afternoon is the beach club decision: the beach club census covers 14 of them with entry policy and prices, and the Sunbed Index prices the sunbed at each one the same way, so the number is on the page before you commit to it. Day three is the day trip: the Gibraltar day trip guide does the border run leg by leg, and if the real question is whether to base yourself in Marbella or in the city, Marbella or Málaga answers it with the figures the site already holds.

A week

A week is when the 17 golf courses come in: the golf guide lists green fees course by course, each one read from the club's own published rate card, and names the clubs that publish no rate at all. It is also enough time to leave the postcode: the neighbourhoods index breaks the coast into its neighbourhoods with the eat index mapped onto each one, and the Benahavís guide covers the hill village behind the coast. Check the weather pages before committing a day to the sand, its twelve month pages carry AEMET's own climate normals, and the events calendar keeps the annual calendar, Carnaval to Navidad, each date read from the organiser's own page. Getting in and out is its own guide: the getting here guide covers bus, taxi and car with every fare traced to its operator, and the airport guide does the airport run in detail.

The guides, one per question

• The eat index222 venues past one entry bar: 4.5 stars or better across 200 or more reviews, own website, photographed.
• The 100The whole index ranked by the published house score.
• The beachesEvery beach with its official bathing water class, chiringuitos mapped to the sand they stand on.
• The chiringuito census43 beach bars this season, menus linked, prices dated.
• The beach club census14 clubs with entry policy and prices, sourced.
• The Sunbed IndexOne comparable sunbed price per club, measured the same way every time.
• Bars and nightlife22 bars, cocktail rooms and clubs that cleared the index bar, Puerto Banús mapped.
• Golf, course by courseGreen fees from each club's own published rate card; no rate published, listed as exactly that.
• The marketsDay, hours and address for every street market, from the ayuntamiento's listings.
• The annual calendarRecurring dates, each read from the organiser's own page.
• Weather by monthAEMET climate normals across twelve month pages.
• Málaga Airport to MarbellaEvery way in, with fares and times sourced.
• Marbella to GibraltarThe day trip, leg by leg.
• Marbella or MálagaThe comparison, answered with figures the site already holds.
• Getting to MarbellaBus, taxi and car, every fare traced to its operator.