A Beautiful Malaga to Ronda Day Trip: How To See Andalusia’s Most Spectacular Mountain Town

Walking through Malaga as the sun rose, it was an early-ish start to the day with only a few people treading the pavements before the October heat set in.

With only 3 days in Malaga, you might wonder why we’d leave this southern Spanish city for a whole day. It’s not because there’s not much to do in Malaga, in fact, it’s quite the opposite. There’s plenty to keep visitors here occupied that you don’t need to venture away from Malaga. But the pull of Ronda was too strong. I’d seen the photos of the Puente Nuevo, the bridge spanning the El Tajo Gorge which divides Ronda. Every single viewpoint looked incredible and I wanted to see this town for myself.

So, as the sky turned pink and the first light hit the top of Malaga’s highest buildings, we boarded a coach for our Malaga to Ronda day trip.

We’d decided on a group trip which included travel to Ronda, as well as a guided tour around the town and its bullring. There was plenty of free time included and on our journey to Ronda, there was also a pitstop in Setenil de las Bodegas, a small town carved into cliff sides and white washed buildings that reflected the early morning light.

This is the tour we booked – Ronda and Setenil de las Bodegas Day Trip With Guided Tour and Free Time – I’d really recommend this as the bonus stop in Setenil de las Bodegas was really something special and a real unexpected highlight on our city break in Malaga. Our guided tour through Ronda was also a lot more interesting than just visiting ourselves and we had plenty of free time to enjoy Ronda after the tour had finished.

Book Here: Ronda and Setenil de las Bodegas Day Trip With Guided Tour and Free Time

Setenil de las Bodegas: Your First Stop On Your Malaga to Ronda Day Trip

If you book the tour above, your first stop is likely to be Setenil de las Bodegas. Stepping into this village in the Sierra de Cadiz, which used to be famous for its many wineries, is a really unique experience.

One of Spain’s most well-known ‘pueblos blancas’ or ‘white towns’, Setenil de las Bodegas’ narrow streets are lined with white buildings and cave houses that are carved into the canyon. It’s likely you’ll have around 90 minutes here. That’s enough time to wander the main streets of Calle Cuevas del Sol, Calle Cuevas del Sombre and Calle Herreria – there are lots of little shops and bakeries if you fancy getting a morning snack.

There’s also time to wander up to Mirador del Carmen – one of the many view points in Setenil de las Bodegas. Mirador del Carmen is easily reached from Calle Cuevas del Sol and although the steps up are steep, there’s not that many to climb for a high-reward view at the top.

Exploring Ronda, Andalusia’s Mountain Top Town

After Setenil de las Bodegas, it’s a short drive through Spain’s olive tree fields to Ronda. Stepping off the coach at Ronda’s bus station wasn’t quite as magical as the pictures I’d seen of the town. However, the tour soon turned into the beautiful vision I had.

Our first stop was the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Merced, or the Church of Our Lady of Mercy Ronda with a chance to step inside this historical church. I’m not religious but always find visiting churches and cathedrals interesting – not just to understand more about the place I’m visiting but the buildings are usually gorgeous, inside and out.

From there, it was a short walk through Alameda del Tajo to Balcon del Cono, a wonderful view point which looks across Ronda’s countryside and mountains. Definitely have your camera ready for this part as it is spectacular. 

Next up is a tour around Ronda’s Bullring, or the Bullring of the Royal Cavalry of Ronda (Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza de Caballería de Ronda). On your tour, you’ll likely already have learned a little of Ronda’s history with bullfighting, as well as the place it plays in Andalusian culture today. However, going to the bullring means you can dive a bit deeper into this history, even if it’s not something you personally support. 

There’s Museo Torino where you can learn more about bullfighting and see some of the decorative outfits worn by matadors throughout the centuries and the actual bullring itself is an impressive structure built in 1784. Although it’s not the biggest by capacity, it does have the largest circle of sand at a diameter of 66m and is quite the sight when you step on the sand.

Your tour will then take you through to the centre of Ronda where the busy main street leads you to the Puente Nuevo and the dramatic views over the El Tajo Canyon. From here, we were free to explore and get lunch. But first, we couldn’t resist walking to one of the main view points for the Puente Nuevo. We didn’t pick any view point in particular, so the one we experienced might not be the best, however, the middle phot below is from Mirador del Viento. This is a free viewpoint – there is a place before Mirador del Viento called Desfiladero del Tajo which is a paid viewpoint however I believe you do get to see the bridge and waterfall from here. This is not something you see from Mirador del Viento.

If you want to see the bridge and waterfall for free, carry on downhill from Mirador del Viento. It does mean you have a longer walk uphill back to the centre of Ronda, but you get a free view of the bridge and waterfall!

It’s likely you’ll have worked up an appetite by now so why not grab some late lunch? There are plenty of places to eat in Ronda. We went for a quick sandwich and refreshing drink at Cafe Tejeringo’s where 5 sandwiches and 5 drinks cost no more than €30. An absolute steal if you ask me! If you fancy tapas, try out Tragata – they also have a branch in Malaga that we tried and loved. Alternatively, bring a sandwich of your own so you have more time to explore!

I really valued our free time in Ronda – it meant we could explore according to our own interests and take things a bit more leisurely! I would recommend doing a small bit of planning though – even deciding where you might want to eat or what viewpoint you want to see will make sure you’re not wasting any valuable time.

Book Here: Ronda and Setenil de las Bodegas Day Trip With Guided Tour and Free Time

Returning From Our Malaga To Ronda Day Trip

Our time had then sadly come to an end in Ronda and we made a quick walk back to the bus station to hop on the coach. Our guide was very clear that if anyone was late, we would get left behind and although that didn’t happen to us, there were a couple of empty seats on our way back to Malaga! Luckily though, that wasn’t us and we made it back to Malaga in time to enjoy an ice cream before the sun was set.

You might see that this Malaga to Ronda day trip does allow you to see some of the main sights but isn’t enough to really explore Ronda, and Setenil de las Bodegas in huge detail. However, it does give you a big taste for what each of these Spanish towns have to offer, so much that you might just want to come back for more on your next visit to Malaga!