The Golden Mile
Marbella’s famous Golden Mile is the area between Puerto Banus and Marbella town, a distance of 6.4 kilometers, which is home to some of Marbella’s most extravagant properties, including the palace of the late King Fahd of Saudi Arabia. The Golden Mile is also home to several of Marbella’s finest hotels, like the Marbella Club, Melia Don Pepe and the Puente Romano Hotel.The areas on both sides of The Golden Mile are amongst the most attractive in Marbella, where you can find exclusive and established urbanizations such as Sierra Blanca, Puente Romano, Cascada de Camoján, Nagüeles, Lomas de Marbella Club Marbella and Marbella Hill Club.
The Golden Mile is Marbella’s most exclusive area and as such, is home to the finest mansions and best hotels on the Costa del Sol, Spain. It takes its name from the many stunning properties that line its mile length.
GOLDEN MILE DISTRICTS
MARBELLA – GOLDEN MILE BEACHSIDE DISTRICTS
Golden Mile Beachside
This beach-side district refers to all the land between the Golden Mile as defined above and the seashore.
Río Verde
This district comprises mainly established villas and includes the site of the Rio Verde Roman villa. There are plenty of bougainvillea climbing over Río Verde’s high boundary walls, and large white villas on the front line. It is bounded by the river of the same name.
El Ancón
El Ancón is the beachside district between Río Verde and Puente Romano. The area bears the name of the beach and the old watchtower, Torre Ancón, hidden in the woods near Victor beach bar. This is an extremely exclusive district. The seafront promenade runs the full length of the district.
Puente Romano
The Puente Romano district comprises four residential complexes built between 1967 and 2003, located on the southern side of the Golden Mile and running down to the seafront promenade.
Los Veridales
Los Veridales is an established urbanisation on the seafront east of Puente Romano. It consists of five blocks of apartments and several villas.
Las Torres
Comunidad Las Torres del Marbella Club – is reached via a narrow lane running down to the beach with no parking and giving access to 10 exclusive villas.
Marbella Club Hotel With its imposing arch, Marbella Club was the first hotel to be opened in the (then) tiny fishing hamlet of Marbella, back in 1954, by German Prince Alfonso von Hohenlohe-Langenburg, who invested in land in the Marbella area.
Santa Margarita
This was the name given to the farming estate that was originally purchased to create the Marbella Club. The gardens with their pool and Romanesque artefacts have won several awards.
Las Cañas
Urb. Las Cañas Beach is a narrow strip of land running down to the beach and comprising two rows of townhouses with interior gardens and swimming pools.
MARBELLA – GOLDEN MILE MOUNTAINSIDE DISTRICTS
Golden Mile Mountainside
This district refers to the area adjacent and above the Golden Mile and below the A-7 coastal motorway.
Plaza Bocanegra
The copper-clad tower in the centre is often mistakenly called the Bronze Tower. Its true name is El Pirulí and it was designed by architect Barrios Cepedano, commissioned in the mid-1990s by mayor Jesús Gil.
El Capricho
Fronting onto the Golden mile is the El Capricho shopping centre, which was built in the 1980s. The residential estate is behind here and consists of relatively small villa plots.
La Viginia
At the top of Avenida Don Jaime de Mora, before reaching the motorway, slightly hidden away can be found the one of Marbella’s earliest and at one time most famous residential estate called La Virginia.
La Caridad
La Caridad is a quiet residential district that fronts onto the Golden mile. The Avenida de Conde Rudi is a residential street that is the artery of this district.
La Carolina
The La Carolina development dates back to the 1960s, and is familiar to most as the shopping rows that sit on the northern side of the Golden Mile.
La Coneja
La Coneja is a quiet small well established community with delightful rustic properties slightly west of La Carolina.
El Rocio
In El Rocio are upmarket developments, Señorio de Marbella, Jardines de Doña Maria, Monte Marbella Club, Altos de Puente Romano, Urb. El Vicario, Urb. Arco Iris and Sanyres Puente Romano.
Cortijo de Nagüeles
An area of gated communities, stunning villas with imposing driveways, this development was founded in the 1970s by the famous Seville businessman and bullfighter, Manuel González Cabello. There is still development under way in this large often overlooked district including apartments and townhouses.
Las Lomas del Marbella Club
This estate is located opposite the Puente Romano Hotel, on the northern side of the Golden Mile near the Marbella mosque. Construction began in 1973 and includes identical complexes inside including Lomas del Marbella Club Pueblo.
El Ancón Sierra & Ancón Alto
El Ancón Sierra and El Ancón Alto were developed in the mid ’80s by John David Green, the artist and property developer from London, and brother of art gallery owner Richard Green.
Monte Paraiso
Monte Paraiso is a fully-gated estate on the Golden Mile opposite the Puente Romano Hotel and above the mosque. Constructed in 1997 there are 93 apartments spread out in 16 low-rise residential blocks.
La Trinidad
La Trinidad is a fully-gated complex constructed in 2004. It consists of eight blocks in a semi-circle set totalling 116 apartments in landscaped gardens and a pine tree forest.
MARBELLA – GOLDEN MILE SIERRA DISTRICTS
Golden Mile Sierra
This district refers to the area in line with the Golden Mile and above the A-7 coast mortorway. It includes Nagüeles, Marbella Sierra Blanca and Marbella Hill Club
The Golden Mile Sierra (Blanca) district refers to the area above the Marbella ‘Golden Mile’ and on the lower slopes of the Sierra Blanca mountain range above the A-7 and AP-7 highway. It is bordered on the west by the Rio Real and to the east by the Arroyo Guadalpin valley and Monte Pariaso Golf course.
This district is not adjacent to the Golden Mile so it is probabably mis-named by the real estate industry, however the ‘golden Mile’ in the name does locate the district for its longitudinal position along the coast.
Sierra Blanca is also the name of a specific large luxury urbanization in the upper reaches of the district, 300 metres above sea level and benefiting from superb views overlooking Marbella the Mediterranean coast and over to Africa.
Sierra Blanca takes its name from the Sierra Blanca mountain range (named after the lack of vegetation on its slopes which leaves the pale grey limestone rock exposed) of which La Concha (meaning seashell that it resembles when views from the west), is the 1.270m peak that towers above Marbella and is the second highest peak in the Sierra Blanca range. The highest peak of Sierra Blanca is the 1,275 m high Pico del Lastonar and other peaks are the Salto del Lobo (1,225 m), Cerro de la Zarina (1,141 m) and the Cruz de Juanar (1,178 m).
There several districts:
Nagüeles
This is the longest established district and is located adjoining and above the A-7 highway and below the Avenida Buchinger. Its full name is Rocio de Nagüales and lies to the east of Arroyo de las Piedras.
Marbella Sierra Blanca
This district along with the Cascada de Camojan and Balcon de Sierra Blanca occupies the higher slopes, Altos Reales Las Brisas and Monte Paraiso are urban areas on the lower slopes, all are above the Avenida Buchinger.
Altas Reales Las Brisas
Cascada de Camojan
Balcon de Sierra Blanca
Monte Paraiso
There is a natural break formed by Arroyo de las Piedras and the forested Nagüeles park and to the west are a number of smaller districts.
Marbella Hill Club includes 50 single family plots, apartments including the terrace apartment complex of Jardines Colgantes (Hanging Gardens) and townhouses.
Capellana
Lomas de Virrel
San Antonio
The prestige and high price tags on the property in this area of Marbella ensure that The Golden Mile maintains an air of distinction and exclusivity found in few other parts of the Costa del Sol.