DON'T go to Marbella if you fancy a cheap-as-chips summer holiday with no distractions beyond sun, sea, and sangria. DO pay it a visit if you'd be happy to pack your other half off to sample its dozen-or-so golf courses or horse-riding centres, leaving you free to frolic in style with the über-rich and famous.
In contrast to the Costa del Sol's typical high-rise, happy-hour resorts, Marbella is upmarket indeed, glistening with chic restaurants, bars, boutiques and designer labels. Sure, everything costs quite a bit more than anywhere else on those shores, but perhaps you'll scoop a jetsetting new amour into the bargain. Surely that's an improvement on another another dodgy pair of castanets?
Boasting a picturesque bay-side setting at the foot of the Sierra Blanca mountains, Marbella is also fortunate to have hung onto a good portion of its historic quarter. Orange-scented squares, cobbled streets, the 16th-century Town Hall, the Greater Church of la Encarnación, and the remains of a 9th-century Arab fortress are all there to be explored when you aren't too busy hanging out on the main drag ogling the likes of Antonia Banderas or Melanie Griffith.
You won't struggle to find yourself a spot of sand, either: if the two main strands of El Faro and La Fontanilla don't satisfy you, miles and miles of beautiful coastline stretch out on either side of town, offering 22 other beaches to perch on.
You'll only need to go a short distance to the south, however, to reach Puerto Banús, whose marina pulls in the largest and most lavish yachts gracing the seas, and whose bars and nightclubs attract the clientele to match. Don your finest haute couture knockoffs, and who knows what member of the A-list you might bump into?
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