Sunday is the day that sorts the towns around Malaga for anyone travelling without a car. Álora keeps its last train back at 10.45pm all week and Torre del Mar its last bus at 9.49pm, but Almogía, 59 minutes away by bus on weekdays, has no return service at all on Saturdays and Sundays, and a Sunday in Colmenar shrinks to 5 hours 23 minutes between the first bus in and the last bus out.
Which towns near Malaga can you visit without a car? Álora by C-2 train, with the last ride back at 10.45pm every day; Torre del Mar, Alhaurín el Grande, Coín and Antequera by Consorcio bus, Sundays included; and Mijas through Fuengirola. Almogía has a ride back on weekdays only, and no bus reaches Comares.
A day trip without a car here means a morning service out and an evening one back on the network of the Consorcio de Transporte Metropolitano del Área de Málaga, the public authority that runs 98 lines, two of them the Renfe Cercanías commuter trains. Fares go by zone jumps, from €1.75 to €6.25 cash, and the timetable codes treat Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays as one group, so a holiday that falls on a weekday runs like a Sunday.
Which towns work on a Sunday, and which only on weekdays
Seven towns have a ride back to Malaga after 7pm on all seven days, and the difference between them is how late that last departure is. The table is ordered by the Sunday return, the day that cuts the most.
| Town | How you get there | Journey time | Last departure back, Monday to Friday | Last departure back, Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Álora | C-2 train | 39 to 41 minutes | 10.45pm | 10.45pm |
| Mijas Pueblo | C-1 train, then bus M-122 from Fuengirola | 46 minutes by train plus 25 by bus | 10pm | 10pm |
| Torre del Mar | M-380 on weekdays; M-366 and M-367 at weekends | 50 minutes on the express | 9.49pm | 9.49pm |
| Nerja | ALSA bus | 1 hour 25 minutes | 9.55pm | 9.55pm |
| Alhaurín el Grande | M-132 | 50 to 51 minutes | 9.45pm | 8.55pm |
| Coín | M-230 and M-167 | 1 hour 5 to 1 hour 10 minutes | 7.55pm | 8.05pm |
| Antequera | M-253 | 1 hour 11 minutes | 7.30pm | 7.30pm |
| Colmenar | M-252 on weekdays; M-251 at weekends | 45 to 55 minutes | 7.23pm | 5.08pm |
| Almogía | M-250 | 59 minutes | 4.20pm | no ride back |
| Comares | M-360, which stops at Olías | n/a | no service | no service |
Saturday has its own twists: the last bus back from Alhaurín el Grande moves to 9.30pm, and from Colmenar to 6pm.
How long you get in each town on a Sunday
Measured from the first useful arrival to the last departure, a Sunday gives you 14 hours 4 minutes in Álora and 13 hours 35 minutes in Mijas via Fuengirola, the only two above 13 hours.
Torre del Mar follows with 11 hours 33 minutes, from the 10.16am arrival of the M-366 to the 9.49pm M-367, and Alhaurín el Grande with 11 hours 5 minutes, 9.50am to 8.55pm. Coín gives 9 hours 35 minutes: the M-167 leaves Malaga at 9.25am, arrives at 10.30am and heads back at 8.05pm, and Sunday is the only day its farmers’ market, the Mercado Agroalimentario del Guadalhorce, opens, as covered in the Coín guide. Antequera gives 9 hours 19 minutes on the daily 9am M-253, from 10.11am to 7.30pm; what to fit into that time is in Antequera from Malaga.
Where your bus or train leaves from in Malaga
Most Consorcio buses to these towns start at the Malaga bus station on Paseo de los Tilos, next to María Zambrano railway station, so a plan that mixes bus and train stays within a few minutes’ walk.
- Bus station, Paseo de los Tilos: Mijas, Alhaurín el Grande, Coín, Antequera, Colmenar, Almogía and Torre del Mar.
- Muelle Heredia terminal, by the port: the second stop of the Torre del Mar express and of the Olías line, handy if you are staying near the centre.
- Málaga Centro-Alameda and María Zambrano: the C-2 to Álora and the C-1 to Fuengirola, whose stops are mapped in the west coast by train.
The Álora trains run 14 times on weekdays and 8 times at weekends, the first weekend one leaving at 8am and arriving at 8.41am; the full network is in the Malaga Cercanías trains.
How to reach Mijas at the weekend, via Fuengirola
The direct M-112 is a weekday bus: 4 departures from Malaga at 6.35am, 9.50am, 1pm and 9pm, taking 1 hour 32 minutes via Torremolinos and Benalmádena. On Saturdays, Sundays and holidays it runs once, at 3.25pm, and its only return leaves Mijas at 11.20am, so it cannot carry you there and back.
At weekends, take the C-1 train to Fuengirola, with trains from 5.20am and the last one back at 12.20am, reaching Málaga Centro-Alameda at 1.06am, and change to the M-122, which reaches Mijas Pueblo in 25 minutes. On Sundays it starts at 8am from Fuengirola and the last one leaves Mijas at 10pm; Monday to Saturday it starts at 7.20am. Pay with the card and the bus counts as a transfer, €0.39 on top of the train, if you board within 90 minutes. The village itself is covered in Mijas Pueblo.
Which towns look close but have no bus back
Line M-360 is called Málaga-Olías-Comares, yet its timetable stops at Olías, it runs on Mondays and Fridays only, leaves Malaga at 1.30pm and comes back from Olías at 8am. Comares, in the Axarquía, needs a car. If you hire a car instead, see Comares, the Málaga village you can only reach by car.
- Tolox: the M-344 carries the town’s name, but the stops the Consorcio publishes end at El Palo, in Coín, with one weekday departure at 2.15pm and one return at 7.23am.
- El Burgo: the M-330 timetable ends at the Zalea junction, in Pizarra.
- Almogía: weekdays only, last bus back 4.20pm; at weekends the single 7.30pm departure has no return that night.
- Valle de Abdalajís: the M-256 arrives at 1.46pm, and its only afternoon return, at 1.50pm, ends in Antequera.
Setenil and Ronda sit outside the Consorcio network: Setenil only has buses on weekdays, as explained in Setenil from Malaga, and Ronda has no train while its line is being rebuilt, as covered in Ronda from Malaga.
How much the bus costs, in cash or on the card
No booking needed: the single ticket is bought from the driver in cash, priced by zone jumps from Malaga, and does not allow transfers. The rechargeable transport card costs €1.50 to issue at an authorised estanco (a tobacconist), kiosk or bookshop, takes a minimum top-up of €5, and cuts every fare by more than half.
For a group or a family the card has a second advantage: one card pays for up to 15 travellers if they tap in within 3 minutes of the first. A return trip to Antequera costs €12.50 in cash and €6.14 on the card, a saving of €6.36. On the Almogía and Antequera lines the card has to be set to the number of zone jumps when it is bought or topped up, and the Consorcio Málaga app works as a phone wallet only on Android and only on Avanza buses. The fares are fixed until 31 December.
Using the card on board, step by step
The Consorcio card works the same way on every interurban bus in the network, and on the C-1 and C-2 trains:
- Buy the card at an authorised estanco, kiosk or bookshop for €1.50 and load at least €5.
- Say where you are going: on the bus, tell the driver your destination before tapping, because the fare depends on where you get off.
- Tap the reader: hold the card to it; the machine prints a ticket with the fare and the time left for a transfer.
- Pay for a group by tapping the same card once per person within 3 minutes, up to 15 travellers.
- Keep the cash ticket if the reader fails: the driver charges the cash fare and the difference is refunded on your next top-up, within 3 months.
The best town for the day you want
For a beach day, Torre del Mar is the safest bet: the M-380 express takes 50 minutes on weekdays and the weekend buses run back until 9.49pm; the town belongs to the municipality described in Vélez-Málaga.
- White hill village: Mijas, direct on weekdays and via Fuengirola at weekends.
- Monuments: Antequera, remembering that the Dolmens close on Mondays, as set out in the Antequera Dolmens from Malaga.
- Hiking and gorges: Álora, the rail gateway to the Caminito del Rey; the M-340 from Álora to El Chorro runs Monday to Saturday, except holidays, and not on Sundays, and the full route is in the Caminito del Rey from Malaga.
- East coast with a cave: Nerja, by ALSA, last bus back at 9.55pm, with no buses to Malaga between 2.15pm and 3.40pm, as covered in things to do in Nerja.
To choose a town for what it offers rather than for how you reach it, see the best towns near Malaga, and for the condition that decides each trip in the province, day trips from Malaga.
Questions visitors ask about towns near Malaga without a car
Can you get from Malaga to Mijas by bus on a Sunday?
Yes, but not on the direct M-112, whose only weekend bus leaves Malaga at 3.25pm with no return that day. Take the C-1 train to Fuengirola and the M-122 bus, which climbs to Mijas Pueblo in 25 minutes from 8am on Sundays, with the last bus down at 10pm.
What time is the last train back from Álora to Malaga?
The last C-2 train leaves Álora at 10.45pm every day of the week and reaches Malaga at 11.25pm. The previous one leaves at 8.56pm at weekends and 9.55pm on weekdays, and the journey takes 39 to 41 minutes.
Do buses from Malaga to nearby towns take cash?
Yes. The Consorcio single ticket is paid in cash on board: €1.75 to Almogía, €2.50 to Mijas, Alhaurín el Grande, Torre del Mar or Colmenar, €3.75 to Coín and €6.25 to Antequera. A cash ticket does not allow transfers; the transport card does, and costs less per trip.
Is there a bus from Malaga to Comares?
Not in practice. Line M-360 is called Málaga-Olías-Comares, but its timetable stops at Olías, it runs only on Mondays and Fridays, leaves Malaga at 1.30pm and comes back from Olías at 8am. Comares needs a car.
Which Malaga station does the bus to Torre del Mar leave from?
From the Malaga bus station on Paseo de los Tilos, next to María Zambrano railway station, with a second stop at the Muelle Heredia terminal by the port. The M-380 express takes 50 minutes and runs on weekdays; at weekends the M-366 and M-367 cover the route.
Without a car, plan around Sunday: Álora, Mijas via Fuengirola and Torre del Mar hold out until night, while Almogía and Comares never do.