FUENGIROLA , fifteen minutes along the train line from Torremolinos, is very slightly less developed and infinitely more staid. It's not so conspicuously ugly, but it is distinctly middle-aged and family-oriented. The huge, long beach has been divided up into restaurant-beach strips, each renting out lounge chairs and pedal-boats. At the far end is a windsurfing school.

 

Rooms are difficult to find in August, but you could try Hostal Italia (tel 952 474 193; ¬36-48), off the east side of the focal Plaza de la Constitución, which has rooms with bath, balcony and room-safe, or the slightly cheaper Hostal Marbella , c/Marbella 34, off the west side of the same square (tel 952 475 802; ¬36-48). Fuengirola's nearest campsite (tel 952 474 108; open all year) lies 2km to the east of the centre and is reached by a turn-off near the junction of the N340 and the road to Mijas; bus "Línea Roja" from Avenida Ramón y Cajal on the main Marbella road will take you there. For excellent seafood , try the mid-priced Bar La Paz Garrido on Avenida de Mijas just north of the Plaza de la Constitución; alternatively, there are two seafront "as much as you can eat for ¬4.50" places, Versalles , Paseo Maritimo 3, and Las Palmeras nearby.