One could say, apart from exceptions, that the physiognomy of what was once a fishing village, changed from the decade of the 60’s with the massive development of tourism on the Costa del Sol, where Fuengirola occupies a privileged place. So the new and modern constructions have formed a new urban landscape which has nothing to do with its historic past.
The most representative monuments are its parish church and the Sohail castle. The religious building, situated in the Constitution square and under the protection of the Virgin of the Rosary, presents a baroque front formed by two pilasters and a split pediment with a niche in the upper part.
Regarding the castle, apart from its rich historical past, as an architectural construction which has been entirely restored, it has a square base, solid turrets on the flanks, and a larger tower standing out in the centre to the Puerta del Homenaje.
It has been possible to know Fuengirola’s past by the archaeological sites of Torreblanca del Sol (Roman baths and visigode necropolis).
The fast touristic development has originated the concentration of interesting places all along the promenade, one of the longest in Spain and on which there is the marina, nautical club, the fishing port, and the Oceanographical Investigation Centre.
The promenade, especially the most western part, is the area to visit during the day, but especially at night for the amount of premises which exist: restaurants, bars, cafeterias, pubs, clothes shops, handicrafts, etc. As well as the Zoo, the only one on the Costa del Sol, the streets of the centre have been converted into open air museums with painted murals on facades by painters such as Barbadillo, Brickman, Escalona, Sanz, Le Parc, Peinado, Sempere, Asins and others.
