Fuengirola is a large town and municipality located at the heart of the Costa del Sol in the province of Malaga. It is a major tourist destination with 8 km of beaches and has a variety of cultural/historical attractions and an average annual temperature of 18°C.
Before talking about the current town, let’s go over a bit of its history. Near the town by the Castillo Sohail contains remains of an early ‘Ibero-Punic’ or Phoenician settlement, which at some undefined point became occupied by the Romans. During this period the town was known as Suel and was mentioned in the writings of Pompunius Mela as a coastal town, by Pliny as an oppidum (fortified town) and by Ptolemy.
There is more than simple mentions in literature though; Roman baths were discovered in Fuengirola in 1961, as well as a Roman villa which contained the well known statue “Venus of Fuengirola” (exhibited in the Fuengirola Museum). A series of architectural components, believed to be from the Mijas quarries had also been found in Fuengirola, specifically Los Boliches, which have been formed into a temple entrance that can be seen on the Paseo Maritimo (seafront) of Fuengirola.
After the Romans, little is known until the arrival of the Arabs. The Sohail Castle was built by Abderraman the third in the 10th. During this period the towns name change from the roman Suel to the Arabic Suhayl. This appears to have been a period of growth for Fuengirola, where the surrounding lands were used to feed camel. A renowned Islamic scholar, Al-Suhayli, was born during this period and has become one of the seven saints of Marrakech.
At some point prior to the reconquista in 1485, the town burnt down and its inhabitants fled to Mijas. There was also a shift in its name and town became known as Jirola. The area remained uninhabited, not for lack of trying to repopulated, and was seeded to Mijas.
The area did not develop at all until the 17th century when the threat of North Africa pirates was eradicated. When area did not have any historic interest until October 15ht 1810 when the Battle of Fuengirola took place. This was during the Peninsular War and involved 200 polish troops defeating an Anglo-Spanish force of approximately 3.000 men.
Fuengirola did not become independent from Mijas from another 30 years and remained a quiet fishing village until the 1960’s.
Since then Fuengirola has changed quite dramatically. As a major tourist destination the town has developed to include a range of hotels, sports clubs, a yacht harbour, restaurants, bars, discotheques, and broad beaches along a promenade (Paseo Maritimo) extending for 8km.
There is also Fuengirola Zoo which was modernized in 2001 to feature “tropical-forest” dwellings. The zoo now specializes in captive breeding of endangered species, group research and tropical-forest education.
In 2000 the Castillo Sohail was completely renovated and begun to host festivals and concerts throughout the summer. Additionally the grounds around the castle were landscaped in 2002 making the castle one the main cultural and historical landmarks in the area.
Fuengirola itself is largely urban in character, with many apartment blocks, though some narrow streets can be found with many low-rise villas and townhouses, especially in areas of Los Boliches.
In the last few years there has also been considerable commercial development north of the town with the recent construction of a large shopping centre (Miramar) a Retail Park and a large branch of El Corte Ingles. All of this development, plus developed transport infrastucture, has increase demand for property in Fuengirola
By the last census Fuengirola has around 60.000 inhabitants of which around 20% are foreign born (north European, Moroccan and Argentinean).
Source: Costa del Sol property blog
Before talking about the current town, let’s go over a bit of its history. Near the town by the Castillo Sohail contains remains of an early ‘Ibero-Punic’ or Phoenician settlement, which at some undefined point became occupied by the Romans. During this period the town was known as Suel and was mentioned in the writings of Pompunius Mela as a coastal town, by Pliny as an oppidum (fortified town) and by Ptolemy.
There is more than simple mentions in literature though; Roman baths were discovered in Fuengirola in 1961, as well as a Roman villa which contained the well known statue “Venus of Fuengirola” (exhibited in the Fuengirola Museum). A series of architectural components, believed to be from the Mijas quarries had also been found in Fuengirola, specifically Los Boliches, which have been formed into a temple entrance that can be seen on the Paseo Maritimo (seafront) of Fuengirola.
After the Romans, little is known until the arrival of the Arabs. The Sohail Castle was built by Abderraman the third in the 10th. During this period the towns name change from the roman Suel to the Arabic Suhayl. This appears to have been a period of growth for Fuengirola, where the surrounding lands were used to feed camel. A renowned Islamic scholar, Al-Suhayli, was born during this period and has become one of the seven saints of Marrakech.
At some point prior to the reconquista in 1485, the town burnt down and its inhabitants fled to Mijas. There was also a shift in its name and town became known as Jirola. The area remained uninhabited, not for lack of trying to repopulated, and was seeded to Mijas.
The area did not develop at all until the 17th century when the threat of North Africa pirates was eradicated. When area did not have any historic interest until October 15ht 1810 when the Battle of Fuengirola took place. This was during the Peninsular War and involved 200 polish troops defeating an Anglo-Spanish force of approximately 3.000 men.
Fuengirola did not become independent from Mijas from another 30 years and remained a quiet fishing village until the 1960’s.
Since then Fuengirola has changed quite dramatically. As a major tourist destination the town has developed to include a range of hotels, sports clubs, a yacht harbour, restaurants, bars, discotheques, and broad beaches along a promenade (Paseo Maritimo) extending for 8km.
There is also Fuengirola Zoo which was modernized in 2001 to feature “tropical-forest” dwellings. The zoo now specializes in captive breeding of endangered species, group research and tropical-forest education.
In 2000 the Castillo Sohail was completely renovated and begun to host festivals and concerts throughout the summer. Additionally the grounds around the castle were landscaped in 2002 making the castle one the main cultural and historical landmarks in the area.
Fuengirola itself is largely urban in character, with many apartment blocks, though some narrow streets can be found with many low-rise villas and townhouses, especially in areas of Los Boliches.
In the last few years there has also been considerable commercial development north of the town with the recent construction of a large shopping centre (Miramar) a Retail Park and a large branch of El Corte Ingles. All of this development, plus developed transport infrastucture, has increase demand for property in Fuengirola
By the last census Fuengirola has around 60.000 inhabitants of which around 20% are foreign born (north European, Moroccan and Argentinean).
Source: Costa del Sol property blog
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