Property for sale in Puerto Banús

Living in Puerto Banús

The marina was built by the developer José Banús and officially opened on 18 May 1970. Its architect, Noldi Schreck, designed it to look like a traditional Andalusian village rather than the high-rise scheme first proposed, and that is still how it reads from the water. It has berths for around 900 boats and draws about five million visitors a year.

The front row of buildings, facing the yachts, is mostly restaurants and brand boutiques. The second row, along Calle Ribera, is music bars and nightclubs, so the marina itself is lively late into the night, particularly in summer. Driving into the marina complex needs a paid pass. Life feels different a few streets back, where the residential complexes face the beach or sit behind the coast road.

Communities and homes

There are apartments within the marina complex itself, though many of the units are now used for business rather than as homes. Behind it, around Avenida José Banús and Plaza Antonio Banderas, are the residential blocks of Playas del Duque, Gray d'Albion and Edificio Tembo, and to the west Conjunto Benabola, three rows of hotels, apartments and shops with public parking underneath.

West of the marina, on the beach side of the coast road, are several complexes built from the late 1990s, including Ventura del Mar, a seafront development of 86 apartments. Playas del Duque, a large group of Mediterranean-style blocks, has direct access to the seafront promenade. East of the marina, between Avenida de las Naciones Unidas and the Río Verde, are around half a dozen residential complexes including La Alcazaba, Los Granados and Playa Rocío. Beyond the Río Verde you are on the Golden Mile.

Schools

There are no international schools in the marina itself, but three are within about 10 minutes' drive. Aloha College, in El Ángel in Nueva Andalucía, is about 6 minutes away: a non-profit school for ages 3 to 18 teaching the UK national curriculum and IGCSEs, with the IB Diploma or international A levels in the sixth form.

Laude San Pedro International College, in San Pedro Alcántara, is about 7 minutes' drive and follows the British system from EYFS to Year 13, with the Spanish ESO and Bachillerato available from age 12. Swans International School's primary campus at El Capricho in Marbella is about 9 minutes away. Swans teaches GCSEs and the IB in its sixth form. Spanish state school places are allocated by the Junta de Andalucía using points that include how close you live to the school.

Golf, beaches and the outdoors

There is a beach on each side of the marina, with boats for hire, and the seafront promenade runs along the front. For owners who sail, a berth in the marina is the obvious draw.

The three courses of the Golf Valley are a few minutes inland: Real Club de Golf Las Brisas and Los Naranjos, both by Robert Trent Jones, and Aloha Golf Club, Javier Arana's last design, which hosted the European Tour's Open de Andalucía in 2007, 2008 and 2012. Las Brisas is a members' club that limits visitor numbers, so check access before you rely on it.

Eating out, shopping and everyday life

El Corte Inglés on Calle Ramón Areces, at the northern corner of Plaza Antonio Banderas, is a five-floor department store with paid underground parking. Between it and the marina is the two-storey Marina Marbella centre, and the older Cristamar centre on Avenida de las Naciones Unidas has a pharmacy and a gym. The luxury boutiques are mostly along the marina front.

The marina's front row is the main restaurant strip. Across the main road, the Centro Plaza in Nueva Andalucía has more cafés and restaurants, and on Saturdays from 9am to 2pm a market of more than 120 stalls sets up on Avenida Manolete beside Marbella Arena. La Cañada shopping centre in Marbella is about 12 minutes' drive.

The marina has some public art worth knowing: a Salvador Dalí rhinoceros sculpture placed in 2004, and Zurab Tsereteli's La Victoria statue, unveiled in 1994.

Healthcare

HC Marbella International Hospital, a private hospital, is on Calle Ventura del Mar, a short drive west of the marina. Hospital Quirónsalud Marbella on Avenida Severo Ochoa, about 11 minutes away, runs a 24-hour emergency service for adults, children and obstetrics.

The public hospital is the Hospital Universitario Costa del Sol on the A-7 east of Marbella, about 15 minutes' drive. For public primary care, the nearest health centres are the Consultorio La Campana in Nueva Andalucía and the Centro de Salud in San Pedro Alcántara.

Getting around

Málaga airport is about 60 km away, about 45 to 50 minutes by car without traffic using the A-7 and the AP-7 toll motorway. Gibraltar airport is about 57 minutes, plus the border crossing at La Línea. Marbella old town is about 13 minutes' drive.

There is no train to Marbella. The Cercanías line from Málaga airport ends at Fuengirola. In the marina area much of daily life is walkable, which is the main reason people buy here, though a car is still useful for schools and the supermarket run.

Worth knowing before you buy

Noise is the first thing to check. Calle Ribera and the streets around it are nightlife streets, and the coast road carries heavy traffic, so visit a shortlisted apartment late on a summer weekend evening as well as in daylight. Parking and vehicle access also vary a great deal between buildings.

Many buyers here want to let when they are away. Holiday lets in Andalucía must be registered in the Registro de Turismo de Andalucía and need a national short-let registration number. Since 3 April 2025, a new holiday let in a community of owners needs approval from three fifths of the owners, and the community can limit or ban the activity by the same majority. Marbella has also banned converting ground-floor and commercial premises into tourist flats, which matters in the marina where many units are commercial. Ask your lawyer to confirm the property's registered use and the community's current rules, and ask the administrator for community fees and recent minutes.