All the beaches in Málaga, suitable for swimming after the closure of Guadalmar beach for several months

Matías Stuber

The City Council of Málaga has officially started the high beach season with the full deployment of its security, maintenance, and accessibility services. This year's campaign begins with a municipal investment exceeding 2.8 million euros and with the renewal of the main quality distinctions in its 13.5 kilometers of urban beaches. All are suitable for swimming, including Guadalmar beach, which had been closed for a while due to sewage spills.

The councilor in charge of Operational Services, Beaches, and Festivities, Teresa Porras, accompanied by the councilor of the Centro district, Francisco Cantos, and the director of the Costa del Sol Coastal Sciences chair, Francisco Franco, has presented this initiative which aims to consolidate the capital of the Costa del Sol as a benchmark in sustainable and accessible tourism, in an event that also featured representatives from the Beach Business Owners Association (Aeplayas) and other professional groups.

In terms of environmental excellence, the beaches of Pedregalejo, Caleta, El Palo, El Dedo, Malagueta, Misericordia, and San Andrés once again display the blue flags awarded by the Environmental Education and Consumer Association (ADEAC) after passing rigorous audits of water quality, safety, and environmental management. Along with this award, the seven swimming areas maintain the 'Q' certifications for Tourist Quality, Universal Accessibility, and the 'S' for Tourist Sustainability from the Institute for Tourist Quality in Spain (ICTE), while the areas of La Misericordia, San Andrés, El Dedo, Malagueta, and Pedregalejo also repeat with the Ecoplayas distinction.

To support these ratings, the capital's coastline, which has 3,416 meters of concrete walkways, 140 showers, and 45 footbaths, introduces significant improvements in its security infrastructure. The main novelty is the launch of two new lifeguard towers to expand the visual coverage of lifeguards, which will be complemented during the summer by the launch of a renewed public address system that has involved an investment of more than 180,000 euros.

The lifeguard operation, active until now only on weekends, starts today to provide daily and uninterrupted service from 10:00 to 20:00 hours until next September 15. The human team is made up of a coordinator, four boat captains, eight nurses, two drivers, two emergency technicians, and 27 lifeguards, technically supported by eight health assistance stations, 27 rescue towers, one regular boat, five jet skis, and two ambulances.

Also, to ensure the cleanliness of the waters, since June 1, three 'debris removal' boats have been operating dedicated to the collection of floating solids, which will maintain their activity until September 30 from 10:00 to 18:00 hours. All this deployment is complemented by the work of thirty operators who have been working since March on preventive repair of the facilities to anticipate daily wear and tear and damage from storms.

In terms of innovation and sustainability, Málaga will gradually start in July a pilot project with new footbaths powered by seawater at Malagueta beach, a pioneering measure aimed at saving drinking water.

Comfort

On the other hand, the City Council once again guarantees universal accessibility throughout the coastline through the 'Enjoy the Beach' program, reinforced this year with an investment of 16,390 euros in support material such as adapted loungers and amphibious chairs, in addition to the replacement of 250 meters of concrete walkways in Misericordia and La Araña to comply with regulations requiring 1.80 meters in width.

This plan maintains three assisted bathing points with technical personnel in Misericordia, Malagueta, and El Dedo, which during the second half of June will operate in morning and afternoon shifts by appointment managed on the official website, and five autonomous bathing points in Guadalmar, San Andrés, La Caleta, Pedregalejo, and El Palo. These last ones have specialized equipment, adapted changing rooms, and the pioneering audiobeach system for blind people.

Finally, the hygienic infrastructure of the coast consists of 47 public toilets distributed in 27 modules, more than half of which are adapted for people with reduced mobility. Among them, three exclusive toilets for ostomy patients located in Malagueta, Misericordia, and Pedregalejo stand out, equipped with specific facilities such as waste-emptying toilets and pouch rinsers, accessed by a telephone code from 8:00 to 20:00 hours.

• More topics
• Beaches
• Guadalmar
• Costa del Sol
• Málaga City Council