What’s on in Malaga in November 2026

It hardly seems possible that it’s already time for the events in Malaga in November post – where has the year gone? But 10 months have indeed slipped by, so here’s the latest in our monthly series bringing you a round-up of what’s on in Malaga in November.

The month comes with several highlights. Top of the list is the Malaga Jazz Festival, celebrating its 40th anniversary this year with some big-name concerts. There’s also some great dance, foodie treats, flamenco and art plus the usual monthly markets.

And the event lots of people have been waiting for – the official switch-on of Malaga Christmas Lights. Read on to discover the best things to do in Malaga in November.

Note that this post currently refers to information for 2025. We’ll be adding new information for 2026 as we receive it, so bookmark the page and pop back often. Or sign up for our free newsletter that always includes a round-up of forthcoming events.

Start the month with a day off!

The autumn’s a busy time for public holidays in Malaga. The month starts with a day off and then there are two at the beginning of December:

Sunday 1 November – is the official holiday, but because it’s on a Sunday, the ‘real’ public holiday is Monday 2 November, so businesses and banks will be closed. Most shops, bars, cafés and restaurants will, however, be open for business as usual.

Heads-up for December – Sunday 6, Monday 7 and Tuesday 8 December are all public holidays.

Read more about public holidays in Malaga.

Malaga Jazz Festival

One of the biggest annual events in Malaga and this year the Festival celebrates 40 years. The main concerts take place in the Cervantes Theatre from dates to be confirmed in November.

Find out who’s playing when in our dedicated post about Malaga Jazz Festival. For information on free concerts around the city during the Jazz Festival, scroll down to the music section. 

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Malaga Gourmet Tour

Malaga hosts the Michelin Guide Gala Dinner this year and to celebrate, there are several associated gastro events going on this month.

Beyond the Star

22 billboards themed around Michelin stars are on Calle Larios until 8 November. They go behind the scenes and explore the chefs’ kitchens, produce and background – the secret ingredient to success.

Gastro Fest

The Malagueta bullring turns into a giant showcooking kitchen on Saturday 8 November, when the best chefs in the province explain how to make their signature dishes. You can then try the creations at wallet-friendly prices as you listen to live music. Tickets for this charity event (in aid of local charities including food kitchens) are on sale via this link.

Gourmet and Cultural experiences

The Michelin restaurants around the province – including the 3 in Malaga city (Restaurante José Carlos García, Kaleja and Blossom) – have paired with cultural activities until 24 November. When you dine at one of the restaurants, fill in a form to get tickets for the following cultural venues:

• Carmen Thyssen Museum
• Wine Museum in Malaga
• Nerja Caves
• Museum of Engraving in Marbella

The organisers of this event will then contact you to provide you with tickets, valid between January and March 2026. More details (in Spanish only) here.

Malaga Tapas Tour

‘Taste Malaga, tapa by tapa’ begins on 7 November and continues until 23 November at more than 60 bars and restaurants in the city. You’ll find the participating venues in the old quarter, Huelin, Teatinos and Pedregalejo-El Palo, all of which have created a tapa for the occasion.

Tapas and a San Miguel beer (the official sponsor) cost from €5 to €7, and the bites range from typical Malaga dishes such as gazpachuelo and ensaladilla rusa to more modern creations, including a doughnut with prawns and strawberry caviar.

For a full list of participating venues, their tapa creations and a map showing the location, click here.

Gastrowine

Enjoy a weekend of fine wining and tapas, plus workshops and live music at La Térmica from 28 to 30 November. 18 wineries from Malaga province are taking part, alongside six local restaurants. Workshops include wine cocktails, chocolate and wine pairing, neon make-up… There are also activities for children.

All workshops are free, but you need to sign up beforehand. For a full programme of events and links to sign-up, click here.

Friday 28 and Saturday 29 November – noon to 10.30pm

Sunday 30 November – noon to 6pm

Film in Malaga in November

Fantasy Film Festival 

Fancine is back in Malaga and celebrating its 35th edition this year from 12 to 18 November. The Festival shows a long list of weird and wonderful films including shorts, at different venues around the city, mostly at the Albeniz Cinema (in Calle Alcazabilla) but some at Malaga University.

This year’s main theme is to be announced. Films are shown in their original language with Spanish subtitles.

For full information and to book tickets, check out the website.  (Note that the English-language version this year refers to last year’s dates and programme.)

Art documentary

You can watch The True Story of Tamara de Lempicka and the Art of Survival at the Pompidou Centre on Monday 10 November at 5.30pm. The documentary looks at the life of this renowned art déco artist and her continual reinventions of herself. Q&A session afterwards with Julie Rubio, the director and de Lempicka’s great-grandaughter. The film is shown in English with Spanish subtitles and the Q&A session is in English with simultaneous translation in Spanish.

Free entry, but you need ticket, available from the museum box office from 5pm on the day.

What’s on in Malaga in November – Christmas lights

The switch-on date is just about in November this year; it takes place on Friday 28 November from 6.30pm. Actors from the circus-theatre act Imagine (produced by Sohrlin Andalucía, the theatre group run by Antonio Banderas) will perform a specially choreography number to switch on the lights for the first time. The gospel choir, Verson Libre, will provide the music afterwards.

The 2025 display takes a lot from last year, but removes the angles and replaces them with stars. The theme is called ‘A Nativity of Light’ and each star will display a central rosette with a scene from the Nativity in it. 16 stars and rosettes sit on the 32 columns stretched along the entire length of the street.

The light and sound shows take place at 6.30pm, 8.30pm and 10pm every evening except 24th and 31st December until 4 January.

Read details of other Christmas attractions in this article. Subscribers of our free fortnightly newsletter will also get all the details – sign up here.

Need a hotel in Malaga in November?

If you’ve decided to visit the city this month, book your accommodation as soon as possible. To help you do this, Guide to Malaga has two free valuable resources:

Our Guide to Where to Stay in Malaga – an area guide to all the different districts in the city, listing nearby attractions, distance to public transport connections and the beach, and their pros and cons.

Our list of tried and trusted accommodation – recommended hotels in Malaga and why Guide to Malaga users stayin them.

Guided tours at Malaga Botanical Gardens

These lovely botanical gardens (one of the best places to enjoy autumn in Malaga) have several events in October:

To book your place, call +34 051 926 180, WhatsApp +34 639 914 055 or email infojbotanicomalaga@gmail.com

Guided tours

A 90-minute stroll around the grounds to discover the gardens’ history and anecdotes. Tours take place on Saturday 8 and Saturday 15 November in the morning and cost €8.05 per person. Private tours (minimum three people) in English and French are also available.

Family fun

Explore the gardens through games, puppets and puzzles on Sunday 9 and Sunday 23 November October from 11am to 2pm. Tickets cost €6.90 for children up to 16 and €9 for adults.

Flamenco events in Malaga in November

International Flamenco Day is on 16 November. We are waiting for confirmation on special events in Malaga to celebrate the day. 

Andalucía Flamenco

The Cánovas Theatre (in El Ejido district – Google map link here) has a flamenco festival during November, with seven concerts. They take place between 7 and 29 November, and include Daniel Casares on the guitar, Mercedes de Córdoba and the Ballet Flamenco de Andalucía with dance performances, and several singing concerts.

Tickets cost from (the amazingly cheap) €18. More information (in Spanish only) and link to book here.

Free flamenco fusion performance

Yoel Vargas, one of Spain’s top contemporary flamenco dancers, performs Óbito at the Pompidou Centre on Saturday 8 November at 6.30pm. His fusion of flamenco and contemporary dance explores the universal culture of grief.

Free entry, but you need a ticket, available from the box office from 5.30pm on the day.

Free flamenco concert

Local group, Cuadro de Adrián Santana (song and dance), performs at the MVA Auditorium on Calle Ollerías on Monday 24 November at 7.30pm.

Tickets are free, but you need to get yours from the box office on the day (available from 7pm onwards) or from the Municipal Fiestas Department in Camino de San Rafael 99 (available from 9am onwards – you can get here on the No 20 bus from the Alameda Principal).

Musical events in Malaga in November

November welcomes a long list of musical and dance events in Malaga and as usual, there’s something for all tastes and budgets:

Godspell, the musical

Antonio Bandera’s next musical as a director arrives in his Soho Theatre on 30 October. Godspell, a renowned Broadway musical, tells a story of hope and love against the odds.

Libretto is in Spanish, but the story is easy to follow and the cast and live music are top-notch.

Performances take place Tuesday to Friday at 7pm, at 2 and 7pm on Saturday and at 2pm on Sunday. Tickets cost from €28 and are available online here (note that you buy them via El Corte Ingles) and at the theatre ticket office in Calle Cordoba 13, Tuesday to Saturday 11am to 2pm and 5.30 to 8.30pm.

St George’s Church

This month’s concert is on Saturday 15th November at 8pm, with pianists Jorge Lechado and Natalia Kuchaeva. Tickets cost €20 and are available online. The church is in the grounds of the English Cemetery on Avda Pries, diagonally opposite the Malagueta bullring.

Free Municipal Band concerts

The Municipal Band has two concerts this month:

Sunday 9 November at noon in the Auditorio Eduardo Ocón – this band stand in the Paseo del Parque hosts the concert with a programme featuring Mendelssohn, Huggins, Holst and Reed. Free entry and there are seats.

Sunday 23 November at noon in the Instituto Vicente Espinel – this high school (in the heart of the old town on Calle Gaona – Google map link here) hosts a programme including works by Strauss, Artola, Offenbach and de Haan. Free entry, but you need to get a ticket available from this link from Thursday 20 November at 11am. Note that the link doesn’t work until then.

Free Jazz Concerts

This year, as usual, there will be a series of jazz concerts at the following venues as part of the Malaga Jazz Festival.

Saturday 8 November at 1pm – El Gremio jazz group play in the Auditorio Curro Romero (Google map link here). Get there on the No 8 or No 11 bus from the Alameda Principal (allow 30 minutes).

Saturday 8 November at 6pm – Escandaloso Xpósito plays saxophone in Plaza Jerónimo Cuervo (in front of the Cervantes Theatre).

Sunday 9 November at 1pm – Dani Domínguez, accompanied by piano, trombone and double bass, plays in the Auditorio Curro Romero (Google map link here). Get there on the No 8 or No 11 bus from the Alameda Principal (allow 30 minutes).

Sunday 9 November at 6pm – Carmen Lancho (vocals) and the Jose Carra Quartet perform in Plaza Jerónimo Cuervo (in front of the Cervantes Theatre).

Entry is free to all the above concerts and seats are provided in Auditorio Curro Romero.

Concerts in the city centre

There are also free jazz concerts in squares and hotels. Dates and times to be confirmed.

Venues include

• Hotel La Chancla in Pedregalejo
• Plaza de la Merced
• Novotel Suites
• Hotel Ibis Malaga Centro
• Hotel Molina Lario

Free concerts in the museums

This month has the following freebies:

Bishop’s Palace

This chamber music concert is in conjunction with the current exhibition showcasing art treasures belonging to the House of Alba and takes place on Saturday 15 November at 7.30pm. Concerto 1700 will perform a series of works by Boccherini, Brunetti and Nardini. Free entry, but get in the queue early!

Museum of Malaga

The Aurum Ensemble perform Mozart, Cras and Britten on Sunday 23 November at noon. Free entry and we’d recommend arriving early (say 11am) to grab your seat.

Russian Museum

Pianist Emin Kiourktchian Tedtoev plays Chopin, Brahms and Rachmaninov at the Russian Museum on Sunday 23 November at noon. Free entry, but you need a ticket, available from the museum ticket office from 11am on the day.

Can’t come to Malaga this autumn and missing the food?

Why not create great Malaga food in your own kitchen? Our foodie ebook, Malaga Fine Wining & Dining, includes 11 exclusive recipes served in Malaga’s best restaurants, 2 with Michelin stars.

Easy to create and make plus a chef’s top tip for each one and a Malaga wine pairing suggestion. Our cookbook has received the thumbs-up from some real foodies too – see their reviews here. All for just €8.95. 

Art exhibitions in Malaga this month

As usual, there’s an excellent choice of world-class art in Malaga this month.

Jorge Rando Museum

As well as the permanent exhibitions, you can see one combining the work of Pablo Picasso and Jorge Rando. Their shared theme is bullfighting and you can see engravings by Picasso made between 1929 and 1960 and paintings by Rando from the 70s.

Open Monday to Friday 10am to 2pm and 4 to 8pm, Saturday 10am to 2pm. Free entry. The museum is on Calle Cruz del Molinillo 12, on the northern edge of the old quarter. Don’t miss the Mercado de Salamanca market opposite.

We’ve included this art museum in our North of Malaga old quarter walking tour.

Casa Natal Picasso

Picasso’s birthplace is currently showing ‘Animating History: Rep in the Casa Natal Picasso’. The Argentinian artist, Miguel Repiso (aka Rep), has created a series of videos that accompany the tour of the house. The animations explore parts of Picasso and his family’s daily life in the house and Malaga. Until the end of December.

Picasso: Life with Françoise

You can also see this exhibition showcasing sketches of Françoise Gilot, one of Picasso’s muses. The works offer a glimpse into their relationship and how she shaped his work. As Gilot herself said, “I was never just his model. I was his companion and much more. I was involved in his life and his art, and in my own way, collaborated with his creative process”.

Open daily 9.30am to 8pm. €3 (€4 combined ticket to visit the house).

Bishop’s Palace

This lovely space opposite the Cathedral has the exhibition, Casa de Alba Patronage and Collecting (Mecenazgo y coleccionismo en la Casa de Alba), which showcases 250 pieces (paintings, sculptures, decorative art and documents) from the house of Alba.

The collection, from the Alba’s three palaces in Spain, is one of the largest and most significant in Europe. Top treasures include a portrait by Goya, drawings by Rembrandt, letters from Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria, and works by Gainsborough and Reynolds.

Free guided tours available in English on Fridays at 5.30pm and Saturdays at noon. Book your place ahead by emailing mediacionculturalmalaga@fundacionunicaja.com or calling +34 952 624 862.

Open Monday to Saturday 10am to 2pm and 4 to 7pm, Sunday 10am to 2pm. €3 Until 11 January.

Carmen Thyssen Museum

The museum continues to showcase Spanish art from the 18th and 19th centuries seen in the permanent collection.

The museum also has the following temporary exhibitions:

Telluric and Primitive

Practially everyone who’s anyone in modern Spanish painting has something on display in this exhibition, showcasing the nation’s artistic obsession with primitive art and essential earthy elements. This leitmotif of art in the 20th century created its own avant garde movement, resulting in the masterpieces on show. Signatures on the works include Barceló, Chillida, Miró, Picasso, Saura and Tapiès.

Until 1 March 2026.

Rembrandt the Engraver

Most of us think Rembrandt’s legacy are his great paintings, but as this exhibition shows, the Dutch artist was also a magnificent engraver. This collection of 35 works showcases his skill in this genre, with the engravings focusing on portraits (including self portraits) and religious themes. 23 October 2025 to 18 January 2026.

Open Tuesday to Sunday 10am to 8pm. Entry costs €12 (€8 if you’re resident in Malaga province). Free entry on Sundays after 4pm.

La Térmica

This cultural centre on the western seafront is showing Entelequia by Cuban artist, Diana Fonseca. The small exhibition explores entelechy (the state of perfection with its own purpose) and consist of paintings, sculpture, video and installations. Until 15 February 2026.

Free entry. Open Monday to Friday 11am to 2pm and 5 to 8.30pm, and Saturday 11am to 2pm.

Get to La Térmica Cultural Centre by walking along the western seafront or on the No 7 bus from the south side of the Alameda Principal (get off at the Santa Paula stop).

Picasso Museum

Note that the Picasso Museum is super busy this year, so we’d recommend getting a ticket in advance to avoid long queues.

The most-visited museum in southern Spain has a permanent collection, called Picasso: Structures of Invention. The exhibition shows the 20th century’s greatest artist’s creative process through 150 works. You can also see 22 works from his La Californie sketchbook, which he drew in Cannes in 1956.

Genius Loci

This temporary exhibition showcases the work of one of the biggest figures on the contemporary art scene, Farah Atassi. A couple of her Picasso-inspired pictures featured at the museum in 2024 and this year, she gets her own show. Until 14 December.

Picasso: Memory and Desire

The museum welcomes another major exhibition this year when it explores how Picasso saw the passing of time and history, and applied his interpretation to his work. This collection takes Study with Plaster Head (Picasso painted it in 1925) as its springboard and juxtapositions his work with other significant 20th century artists.

The exhibition showcases the work of numerous artists, all influenced by some aspect of Picasso’s creativity. The specially curated collection includes paintings, sculptures and installations, carrying the signatures of talents such as Léger, Cocteau, Magritte and Man Ray.

14 November 2025 until 12 March 2026

Open daily 10am to 6pm. Tickets €13, free Sundays after 4pm. While you’re there, do visit the lovely café in the patio.

Buy tickets in advance for the Picasso Museum.

Pompidou Centre

The latest exhibition, To Open Eyes, looks at how artists view their surroundings and interact with those looking at their art. The six sections include a wide range of installations, paintings, sculptures and videos. And as usual, they all provide plenty of food for thought.

Read about the latest collection at the Pompidou Centre

AM CB

A new exhibition opens on 20 November, celebrating the work of Annette Messager and Christian Boltanski, two of the most renowned French artists since the 1970s. Around 30 of their works – photography, paintings and installations – illustrate their styles and how each influenced the other. Until 6 April 2026.

Open Wednesday to Monday 9.30am to 8pm. €7 for the permanent exhibition, €9 for both. Free Sundays after 5pm. 

Buy tickets in advance for the Pompidou Centre.

Russian Museum & MEET

After several months of closure, the Russian Museum has reopened its main exhibition spaces and incorporated MEET (Malaga Espacio Expositivo Tabacalera). MEET intends to showcase private collections of art without a Russian theme.

Time for Looking (1970-2000)

One of Spain’s most prominent photojournalists, Marisa Flórez, has a retrospective of her award-winning photography from 18 November. The large photos, mostly black and white, and portraits, illustrate Spanish history, politics, daily life and celebrities from the last 30 years of the 20th century.

As well as photos of strikes, protests and riots in the early years of the Transition (1975-983), Flórez’s pictures include politicians, royal families and iconic moments in recent Spanish history. The series of photos taken when Picasso’s Guernica returned to Spain in 1981 is particularly interesting.

Art in painting during the Austria dynasty

This exhibition showcases European masters from the 16th to 18th centuries from the private collection belonging to Antonio Sanz Peinado.

You can also see three temporary exhibitions:

The Adventure of a Collector

Some of Jose María Castañé’s magnificent collection of Russian art is on display, including masterpieces from the late 19th century to the mid-20th. Like the main exhibition in the museum, this selection focuses on the Avant-Garde.

Hidden Jungle

Works by Chinese artist, Chen Chumnu (who received a scholarship from the Casa Natal de Picasso), depicting nature and organic forms with dreamlike landscapes. This exhibition is small and accompanies you as you enter the museum upstairs.

Anna Pavlova – A life sans frontières

This exhibition pays homage to one of the world’s greatest ballarinas, Anna Pavlova who spread ballet throughout the world in the 1910s and 1920s. Consisting of original photos, programmes and posters plus some audiovisual material, the exhibition tells the story of Pavlova’s extraordinary talent and life. Until May 2026.

Open Tuesday to Sunday 9.30am to 8pm. €8. Free on Sundays after 4pm.

Markets in Malaga in November

With Christmas on the horizon, Malaga markets are a great place to start your Christmas shopping. As well as the usual Sunday arts and crafts markets on Muelle Uno and on the western seafront promenade:

Red Friday

Arts and crafts stalls, vintage items, food trucks and live music make up this fun cultural/market event at La Térmica. This month’s edition is on Friday 7 November 7pm to midnight. As usual, there are live performances and music

Free entry, but you need a ticket, available via this link.

El Zoco

The arts and crafts market takes place on Muelle Uno every Sunday in November from 11am to 6pm. 

Merced Market

This lovely market takes place on Plaza de la Merced on Sunday 2 November from 11am to 7pm.

Soho Market

More great arts and crafts on display on stalls in Calle Tomas Heredia in Soho on Sunday 23 November from 11am to 7pm.

Organic and local produce markets

Stalls selling produce grown locally in the Guadalhorce River valley on Saturday 8 November on Calle Cervantes and Paseo de Reding (near La Malagueta) and Saturday 22 November in Huelin Park. 10am to 2pm.

Next month’s post will of course be about events in Malaga in December so stay tuned for all the information you need about Christmas in Malaga.