Plans to restore Costa del Sol castle with 1.4million euros of EU funding to open it up to visitors

Spain’s ministry for industry and tourism has agreed to allocate 1.4 million euros to Vélez-Málaga town hall on the eastern stretch of the Costa del Sol to finance the restoration of the remains of the old castle on the recently remodelled Plaza Axarquía in Torre del Mar.

The ministry has published the provisional plans in its Programme for the Improvement of Competitiveness and Revitalisation of Historical Heritage in which 92 projects presented by local and regional governments will receive funding worth 208.5 million euros of European Next Generation funds.

The aim of this fund is to promote cultural tourism through maintenance and rehabilitation work of historical heritage “that clearly incorporate the improvement of the tourist use of these assets” explained the central government’s representative in Malaga province, Javier Salas, in a statement issued on Friday 12 July.

Related articles

Tourism

Torre del Mar: a holiday destination on the Costa del Sol with a hidden past

THE STORY BEHIND A PLACE NAME

Torre del Mar: A strategic military tower of the sea

The work to be carried out on these projects include the conservation, maintenance, enhancement and rehabilitation of assets declared as Assets of Cultural Interest (BIC) for tourist use. They also include other measures such as improving accessibility, improving energy and water efficiency and reducing and offsetting the carbon footprint, among others.

The remains of Torre del Mar’s castle were declared a Site of Cultural Interest (BIC) in 1985. Not much remains of the original fortress which is the origin of the coastal town, mentioned in 10th century Hispano-Arabic works as part of the defence system of the Al-Andalus coast.

Zoom

In 1517 Charles I ceded it in perpetuity to Vélez-Málaga in exchange for its rebuilding and maintenance, which was confirmed in 1665 in exchange for a contribution of 8,000 ducats.

In 2021 Vélez-Málaga town hall presented a project to create an interpretation centre around the castle and identified an unused building in Carrera de las Angustias to house the facility.