There’s nothing like the sun to cheer me up, especially when faced with the prospect of a long, cold, dull winter when it is not easy for me to go outdoors on a whim. I recently went to Malaga where the microclimate was between 20 and 25 degrees Celsius with full sun most days. The place offers both sea and city and is close enough to Cordoba, Granada and Seville for day trips to be possible.
I stayed at the Ilunion Hotel, housed in a modern high-rise building that was close to everything I wanted: a ten-minute walk from the sea front, fifteen minutes from the town centre and ten minutes from train and bus station.
The hotel room was the best I have ever had for getting around in. The wet room was so good and thoughtfully arranged that I didn’t need to use my wheelchair to hoist myself off the toilet. There was plenty of room to circulate in my chair, for instance after showering. The shower itself was excellent, with a seat if needed. The tiles were the best non-slip ones I have had in a hotel. As I can slip on tarmac this was a true accolade. I still used my own non-slip mat when showering however but was basically independent.
The hotel had a covered pool heated to 28-30 degrees. There was also a hoist so it was perfect for me. The ambient air was the warmest I have ever experienced in an indoor pool. The cover is removed in the summer so it becomes an outdoor pool. A drawback of the design is that it is in the courtyard of the hotel and is surrounded by the high-rise structure. As a result, the pool and the small bit of outdoor space around it didn’t get the sun. It may be different in summer when it would be a blessing to be outdoors without the sun beating down on your head.
A shortcoming of the hotel was that there was no nice outdoor space to sit and relax in and as it was not actually on the sea front you could not just pop out to sit in the sun watching the sea for fifteen minutes or so.
Malaga is very walkable but I used the bus around the city when my friend got tired. Ramps on buses were very good. I used the sightseeing hop on hop off bus which was fully accessible too. I made excursions to Marbella and Granada. The coach for these had to be booked two days in advance, but the system worked extremely well. I went to Cordoba as well, but by train. The train is much faster than the coach and did not need to be reserved in advance. But beware there is only one wheelchair space so it could be booked up. The prices on the train vary depending on its speed. My train to Cordoba took an hour and cost 75 euros per person. Unlike here, there was no disabled concession. A slower train was less expensive. The coach would have been a lot cheaper but would have taken two and a half hours each way, too long for a day trip. In both Cordoba and Granada we took a site-seeing bus which was fully accessible and excellent. I had visited Al Hambra and the Mosque in Cordoba on previous visits so it was nice to get a perspective of the two towns and meander round the beautiful streets.
My holiday was a wonderful brief break from the rain and the cold. I’ll keep rolling on, for Movement is Life. Rosie
Next time, probably something about what I used to meander about, bringing you an update on my wheelchair situation
Rosie without a Ramp 