Family Hotels in Andalusia: 9 We’ve Stayed In, From Málaga to Mojácar
By Javier Sobrino
Travel expert and founder
Andalusia is the better-value half of family Spain, and the prettier one. The Iberostar Waves Málaga at 8.7 is the best hotel we have stayed in down here, with the Playacálida just behind at 8.6 — and in Benalmádena there is a water park and beach club nothing else in the south comes close to.
It is also where we have eaten best. The Zimbali Playa in Vera scored a 9 for its food, which is the highest we have given a buffet anywhere in Spain.
The trade-off is geography. On the Costa Blanca the hotels are stacked along one strip; here they are scattered between Málaga, the Granada coast and Almería, which are hours apart. Pick one base and stay in it, and in most cases hire a car.
The nine hotels, scored
Torremolinos, Málaga
The highest we have scored in Spain. It works best for children up to seven or eight, the food genuinely surprised us, and the all-inclusive does not leave you feeling overcharged.
Almuñécar, Granada
The best-looking hotel on this list, with an infinity pool on a clifftop and a 32 m² room that genuinely sleeps five. The beach below it is the catch.
Zimbali Playa Spa Hotel
Vera, Almería
The best food of any hotel we have stayed in in Andalusia — a 9, with entrecôte cooked in front of you and seafood zarzuela on a four-star buffet. Low buildings, gardens, a proper spa and the beach through a gate. It is not the cheapest option in Vera and you can see where the money goes.
Servigroup Marina Playa
Mojácar, Almería
The best-reviewed hotel in Mojácar, and for once the reviews match what we found. The cleanest hotel we have stayed in anywhere in Spain at a 9.5, a 9 for the staff and food above the local average. Its ceiling is age: past six or seven there is not enough here for them.
Holiday World Polynesia
Benalmádena, Málaga
The biggest hotel water park and beach club in Andalusia, and 60 m² rooms that a family of four never fills. Children’s facilities scored 9.5; the pillows, the gym and the spa are where it gives ground. Ownership moves to Meliá during 2026, so expect some of this to change.
Mojácar, Almería
The best hotel water park in Mojácar, with the beach directly across the road. If you are travelling with children, that combination is what sets it apart.
Mojácar, Almería
Enormous apartments, which makes it the pick for large families or for parents who want a bedroom of their own. The children’s facilities scored a 9.5 and the beach an 8.5, its two strongest marks.
Mojácar, Almería
Pool and beach directly opposite, and it works well with young children. The rooms and the food are what stop it scoring higher.
The Place Alegría Palacio Mojácar
Mojácar, Almería
The adults-only option in Mojácar, and the one to look at if you are travelling without children.
Where to base yourself
Three areas, three quite different holidays:
- The Costa del Sol (Torremolinos, Benalmádena). Twenty to thirty minutes from Málaga airport, the busiest and the easiest to reach. Both the Iberostar Waves Málaga, our best score in Andalusia, and the Holiday World Polynesia, the biggest water park of any hotel down here, are on this stretch.
- The Granada coast (Almuñécar, La Herradura). About an hour and ten from Málaga. Dramatic, cliffy and much quieter. The Playacálida is here, with the caveat that the hotel sits above the beach rather than on it.
- Mojácar, Vera and Almería. The furthest from a UK-served airport and the most low-key. Six of our nine are here, including the best hotel water park in the area and the best hotel food we have found in Spain.
If Andalusia is not it
Family Hotels on the Costa Blanca →
More water slides, shorter transfers, no hire car needed.
Questions we get asked
Which airport is best for Andalusia?
Málaga (AGP) for almost everything: 20 minutes to Torremolinos and a little over an hour to the Granada coast. Almería (LEI) is closest to Mojácar but has far fewer UK flights, so most people fly to Málaga and drive the two hours across.
Do I need a hire car in Andalusia?
In most cases yes. The hotels are spread across three provinces and several of them, the Playacálida included, sit above the beach rather than on it. Torremolinos is the exception, where you can manage without.
Which is the best family hotel in Andalusia?
By our scores, the Iberostar Waves Málaga at 8.7 — it works best for children up to seven or eight. The Playacálida at 8.6 is the better-looking hotel and the better one for a family of five sharing a room, as long as the beach is not the main event of your holiday. If the water park is the whole point of the holiday, it is the Holiday World Polynesia instead.
Is Andalusia cheaper than the Costa Blanca?
Generally yes outside the peak weeks, and you get more space and better scenery for the money. The exception is the premium end: a four-star superior like the Playacálida is priced accordingly in July and August.
Every hotel on this page is one we have slept in. We pay for our own stays; where a stay predates that policy and was an invitation, we say so on the review itself. If you book through our links we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.