About us
Welcome to Guide to Malaga, a tourist information site run by me, Joanna Styles. I’ve lived in Malaga and the Costa del Sol since 1990, and during that time, have discovered a true passion for Malaga. On this page, you’ll find out how Guide to Malaga all began; read about our milestones; discover why this guide is different; learn about our values; and find out how Guide to Malaga can help you if you’re a tourist or a business.
And don’t forget – if you own a business in Malaga offering quality services or products to English-speaking tourists, get in touch to find out how we can help you.
Who is Guide to Malaga?
The main face behind Guide to Malaga (and creator and owner) is me, Joanna Styles, a freelance journalist and copywriter. I specialise in several topics including travel. Not only do I write about travel, but I update travel guides for the American Fodor’s Essential Spain and the UK publications, Rough Guide to Spain and Rough Guide to Andalucía. And most important of all? I’m a real fan of Malaga.
When I’m not writing or researching stuff for Guide to Malaga, you can find me running on the seafront in the bid to get below 2 hours in the next half-marathon (in the 2021 edition I only managed 2’04”!). Or strolling under the Pergola, my absolute favourite spot in town. Or enjoying a foodie treat – usually fish on the beach or tapas in town – with friends, my husband or, best of all, my two daughters when they pop back home from London.
You can read more about me wearing my copywriter hat on my website.
How it all started
The beginnings
I first visited Malaga on a grey January day in 1985 on my way to 6 months of learning Spanish in Granada. My first impressions? Noisy, dirty and not much to see. But despite the unpromising start I married a local and ended up living nearby on the Costa del Sol.
Over the next 30 years we visited Malaga often – my mother-in-law lived in the city for years and my elder daughter was born here. During this time we’ve watched Malaga become a destination in its own right. Literally from ugly ducking to swan. Admittedly, there are still some rough edges, but if you’re like me, you don’t mind a city with some grit.
In January 2015, my husband and I moved to Malaga from Marbella and began to really discover the city. We realised that apart from a few token pages included in the Costa del Sol section, Malaga didn’t get much mileage in travel guides. So, I set about rectifying this and gave the city more space in Fodor’s Essential Spain.
But that still wasn’t enough and Malaga deserved much, much more.
The app
So, I created Guide to Malaga, the only English travel guide dedicated to the city exclusively. The project began life as an app for mobile phones. The 5 Best of Everything in Malaga included personal recommendations on just about anything in the city. I also launched a website to sell the app and included a blog section.
I’m not exactly proud of the app sales figures, but eternally grateful for those who bought it and loved it (and they really did 😍 ). But the blog was something else – in the space of 15 months, Guide to Malaga started to position itself on Google. Readers wrote asking for more and my fingers whirred away on the keyboard as I produced at least one new article a week.
The guide
By autumn 2017, Guide to Malaga was attracting serious traffic so it was time to take the plunge. I discontinued the app and turned the blog into the entire website. 2018 saw an exponential rise in traffic and visitors – every single month broke the previous record. And Guide to Malaga started to make a real name for itself as the go-to source for information about Malaga, events and things to do.
In early 2023, it was time to revamp the website again and this is the result. A faster, slicker site that zips away on mobiles. We’ve also upped the visuals and showcased much more of Malaga. Several of the great photos are by Manuel Rueda, a local photographer who brings out the best of the city.
Guide to Malaga milestones
February 2015
I move to Malaga and discover there’s no dedicated travel guide in English.
August 2015
I launch the app and website for Guide to Malaga 1.0.
2016
The blog section on the website grows massively to reach over 150 posts; Google starts to notice Guide to Malaga; I launch the newsletter. I win the annual Costa Press Club Communicator Award for Guide to Malaga.
2017
I realise that users are more interested in the blog on Malaga than the app so take the plunge and say adiós to the app (that was harder than it sounds because it was my baby).
January 2018
Guide to Malaga 2.0 website goes live with the blog converted into dedicated sections.
February 2018
I bring in the experts (aka Fiona Catchpowle) for the Facebook page and Guide to Malaga starts to make waves especially for information on events in Malaga.
August 2018
Simon Gompertz from BBC News gets in touch and Guide to Malaga features on the national news in the UK.
July to September 2018
Traffic rises to almost 90,000 visits and over 35,000 users.
October to December 2018
The website breaks yet more records with over 142,000 visits and over 53,000 users. Guide to Malaga becomes the source for information about Christmas in Malaga.
January to March 2019
The first quarter of the year used to be quiet for Guide to Malaga, but this year is different. The site receives over 155,000 visits and over 55,000 users. Our newsletter reaches almost 3,000 subscribers and the social media pages see engagement soar.
January 2021
Guide to Malaga features on Spanish state TV on their flagship current affairs programme, Informe Semanal. I talk about Malaga and Brexit, pointing out how important it is for an agreement on the 90-day rule for long-term visitors from the UK.
I also talk about tourism in Malaga on Cadena SER radio in their special feature on the sector.
February 2021
Guide to Malaga launches its biggest ebook yet, Your Guide to Moving to Malaga & the Costa del Sol, 170 pages packed with information on how to have a smooth, easy and stress-free move.
Summer 2021
Tourism starts to return to the city and Guide to Malaga web traffic soars again. The website welcomes around 1,000 people a day, all looking for up-to-date information about Malaga.
Autumn 2021
Our Newsletter subscriptions rises to over 6,000 and the Newsletter opening rates regularly top 65%. (If you know anything about marketing, that’s a massive percentage!) And we celebrate our 6th anniversary – how time flies…
December 2021
We launch another ebook, The Guide to Buying Spanish Property, which does what it says on the tin, i.e. tells you everything you need to know about buying real estate in Spain.
March 2022
We feature in a big article in the UK broadsheet, The Times – it was a real pleasure to sing Malaga’s praises and get a mention in such a major publication. Our Newsletter subscribers number over 7,500 and every Newsletter gets an open rate of 70%. (Thank you!). And the website continues to welcome around 1,000 people a day.
May 2022
We start working in earnest on a sister project that aims to share the Guide to Malaga success with the rest of Malaga province.
July 2022
We launch Costa del Sol Road Trips, our little sister, selling e-guides to themed road trips around the Costa del Sol. We just love the logo and the look, and have had very positive feedback so far. And also this month, and just for fun but 100% true, Guide to Malaga receives an Instagram message asking us if we’d like to promote dog outfits seeing as we are “such a stylish dog”. 🐶 Either our profile description is way, way off or the dog outfit manufacturer needs some new glasses…
Autumn 2022
Our website gets busy-busy in the run-up to Christmas, the first proper one since 2019. As as result, traffic regularly hits 2,000 visitors a day and our Newsletter subscribers reach over 8.500.
January 2023
We get a brand new website as Guide to Malaga 3.0 goes live. It’s a complete change, with new design and back office techy stuff, so it’s zippy on mobile, but above all, (and most importantly) much more user-friendly. You should now be able to find what you need quickly and easily. The new layout also gives us a chance to offer great Malaga businesses better ways of showcasing their products and services.
January 2024
Guide to Malaga finishes its busiest year ever. We welcomed over 386,000 visitors over the 12 months in 2023 and reached over 10,000 Newsletter subscribers. Thank you!
September 2025
Guide to Malaga celebrates its 10th anniversary – where did that go? And as we blow out the candles, we welcome in our second decade as the number one website in English about Malaga city.
Our goals for the next 10 years?
✅ Continue to provide the best (= most accurate and up-to-date) information about Malaga as possible.
✅ Continue to champion Malaga and to support local businesses.
✅ Stay true to our principles of quality over quantity, and to promote activities, venues and sights in the city that underline our belief that you don’t need more tourists to be successful, you need the right sort of tourists. (And yes, they’re the ones who visit our website and subscribe to our Newsletter!)
March 2026
The Connecto website interviews me about tourism and Malaga – you can read what I said here.
What’s different about Guide to Malaga
It covers everything
And when we say everything, we mean literally that. Guide to Malaga has all the information you’ll need from tourist offices and toilets to tours and tips; from recommended restaurants to great hotels; from monuments to museums; travel tips and advice; and event information that is second to none.
It covers everywhere
You’ll find the well-trodden tourist trail as well as nooks and crannies only known to the locals (that is until we mention them of course 😉 ).
It’s up-to-date
Travel guides go out of date sooo quickly – the minute you print one something has changed. Guide to Malaga brings you the latest information about changes in prices, opening times or closed venues. And we tell you about the new stuff as and when it happens.
It’s a labour of love
Our passion is Malaga and we love to share the best of the city. We cover the places we like, the hidden corners we discover, the restaurants we enjoy…
It’s in English
And only in English (just right click your mouse and get Google to translate the page if you want your own language).
It’s only about Malaga city
There are a ton of websites dedicated to the Costa del Sol and Andalusia, but none exclusively about Malaga city. Except for Guide to Malaga.
- To share our passion for Malaga so that every visitor can discover the city’s true potential.
- The positive promotion of Malaga as a holiday destination.
- The promotion of businesses in Malaga with proven quality, value and service.
- Always going the extra mile and providing a value-added user experience – both in the content we provide and the service we offer.
The Guide to Malaga values
Promoting your business on Guide to Malaga means:
Why do business with Guide to Malaga?
Find out more
Discover exactly what Guide to Malaga is all about in our media pack in English or en español.
Get in touch and ask us for specifics.
Sign up for our free newsletter, fortnightly emails with the latest on Malaga events and news plus information about what’s new on our site.
And of course, browse our website for (literally) everything you need to know about Malaga!
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