Estepona visitors can now enjoy far lower parking costs right in the heart of this popular Costa del Sol town. Council-run underground facilities now compete head-on with private car parks and charge just €1 per day, €2 for overnight stays, or €3 for a full 24 hours. These rates contrast hugely with private options that often reach €17 daily and can include extra fees.

Hotel guests in the old town area previously faced high parking bills that added considerably to holiday expenses. Many properties, such as Hotel Pilar in Plaza de las Flores, provide only minor discount vouchers worth €2 off private rates. That still leaves substantial costs even after any reduction, especially where on-street spaces prove limited or unavailable. Now the centre operates a low-emissions zone.

New municipal facility opens with 131 spaces

The council has opened an underground car park beneath the town hall building on Avenida San Lorenzo. Capacity reaches 131 vehicles as part of the growing municipal network designed to ease pressure on central zones. Drivers can access the site easily and pay predictable flat fees without hidden surcharges.

This development forms part of broader improvements that benefit both residents and tourists planning longer stays. Calculations for total trip costs in Estepona become straightforward, helping families and couples budget accurately for time in the garden town.

Avenida San Lorenzo reopens after major upgrades

Roadworks on Avenida San Lorenzo between Calle África and Prolongación Cristo Rey have finally finished to everyone’s relief, allowing traffic to flow in both directions once more. Hidralia, the water services concession holder, carried out the project through improvement levies. Works covered around 2,800 square metres of carriageway and pavements.

Teams have replaced water and sewage pipes to meet modern demand for flow and pressure. Pavements on the eastern side received standardised widths, while all affected utilities underwent renewal. Fresh surfacing on the road and walkways matches the style of nearby streets for a consistent and “bonito” look.

Practical benefits for Costa del Sol trips

These changes deliver welcome relief for anyone driving to central Estepona, including year-round residents wanting to visit the shops. Affordable parking has removed a common and much-gripped-about barrier for short breaks or extended visits. Combined road and infrastructure upgrades have improved access greatly and delivered daily convenience without complicated charges.

The Estepona council continues expanding its low-cost parking network, making this Andalusian destination even more appealing for drivers. Guests can now focus on enjoying the town’s attractions rather than worrying about high vehicle storage expenses.

A great time to test the new low-cost parking will be this coming weekend when Estepona celebrates its rescheduled Foreign Residents’ Day on Saturday, April 25.

Marbella is ready and set to welcome 23 tennis players from across Spain this week as the city hosts the 18th edition of the National Wheelchair Tennis Open. The competition runs from Thursday 23 April through to Sunday 26 April at the Polideportivo Paco Cantos.

The tournament is organised by Club Deportivo Jacamar and forms part of the national wheelchair tennis circuit run by the Royal Spanish Tennis Federation (RFET). Now in its 18th consecutive year, it is one of the longest-running events of its kind in the country.

All competitors get maximum court time over the few days

The big news of this year’s edition is the return of the women’s draw. The Marbella city council announced that five women will compete in a round-robin format, meaning every player faces every other player, with matches beginning on the opening day, Thursday. The format ensures that all five competitors get maximum court time and that the final standings reflect consistency across the full draw rather than a single day’s result. The sport maintains the same rules as conventional tennis, with the only difference being that it allows a second bounce.  

The women’s competition was absent from last year’s tournament due to the complexity of assembling a competitive female field. Its return this year was confirmed in official communications from the Marbella Town Hall.  

Paco Cantos is the perfect home for the tournament with its range of accessible facilities

For the men’s draw, the remaining players will compete across all four days, with finals in both competitions scheduled for Sunday 26 April.

The Polideportivo Paco Cantos has served as the home of this tournament for multiple editions and provides the accessible facilities required to host a national-level wheelchair tennis event.  Located on Avenida Canovas del Castillo in Marbella. Its indoor hall can house a range of sports including tennis, futsal, basketball, volleyball and skating, and the site also features three outdoor tennis courts, three padel courts, a fronton court, a climbing wall, changing rooms, and a bar. The breadth of the facility makes it well suited to hosting a multi-day national tournament, with courts available for simultaneous matches and adequate space for players, officials and spectators. Entry for spectators wishing to follow the action at Paco Cantos across the four days is open to the public.  In addition, the matches on the center court will be broadcast live on Facebook. 

Drivers using the busy AP-7 toll motorway on the Costa del Sol need to stay alert to a fresh wave of text message fraud. Criminals are sending convincing-looking messages that pretend to come from the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT), Spain’s traffic authority, and demand immediate payment for an unpaid toll.

How the fraudulent message works

Recipients get a text message from an account appearing as DGTInfo. The text claims a toll on the AP-7 remains unpaid and lists the vehicle’s make, model, and registration plate for added credibility. It states a specific amount due and insists on settlement within 24 hours. Failure to pay, according to the message, will result in a €200 fine. A shortened link in the message leads to a fake payment site designed to capture personal and banking details.

Ausol, the company managing the AP-7 concessions between Malaga, Marbella, and Guadiaro, quickly identified the messages as fake. The company attempted to contact affected drivers directly to confirm that no official communication had been sent and called for everyone to ignore the texts completely. Access to the link must be avoided at all costs to prevent data theft.

Smishing tactics target Costa del Sol drivers

This incident represents a clear case of smishing, where fraudsters exploit SMS messaging to trick people into visiting malicious websites. Personal vehicle details make the messages look authentic and create a sense of urgency that pressures quick action without proper checks.

Drivers on this key Malaga route face particular risk because of high traffic volumes

National Police stress that genuine toll operators and traffic bodies never request urgent payments through text messages or direct links. Such demands always signal potential danger.

Official DGT policy on notifications

DGT communications follow strict channels only. Traffic fines and related matters reach drivers exclusively via postal mail or the official Dirección Electrónica Vial (DEV) electronic mailbox. No exceptions exist for text message or email notifications involving payments or penalties. An official text message may alert its recipient of a communication on the official site or the impending arrival of a registered postal communication, but never a demand to pay immediately via a link within the same message.

It is recommended to treat any text that mentions unpaid tolls, immediate fines, or external payment links as suspicious. Verification should only happen through official DGT channels or by contacting Ausol directly using known contact details from their verified website.

Protecting yourself from similar frauds

The tendency for most on receiving such a message is to panic and just pay up, a habit fraudsters exploit. Simple habits help drivers stay safe. Delete questionable messages without opening links. Check vehicle records through authorised apps or portals rather than responding to unsolicited texts. Report incidents to police or consumer protection services so patterns can be tracked.

How fraudsters came by the number plates of users of the AP-7 is not yet known, but it does suggest they have installed number plate-reading technology at some point along the toll road to trap drivers into thinking the smishing messages are convincingly real.

Road users on Spanish motorways encounter growing numbers of these attempts. Awareness remains the best defence against losing money or compromising sensitive information. Regular checks of official sources keep everyone informed about new risks in this area.