Marbella to open Paleochristian basilica and Roman baths to the public
The two sites in San Pedro Alcántara, the management contract for which includes additional information and maintenance services, will be open to visitors from Thursday to Sunday
The Paleochristian basilica of Vega del Mar and the Las Bóvedas Roman baths will be permanently open to the public. Marbella town hall has put out to tender the contract for the management of these two archaeological sites, protected as sites of cultural interest (BIC).
According to the tender specifications, the sites will have to remain open to the public from Thursday to Sunday, as well as on public holidays (except for 19 October, 11 June, 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January). The baths, located in the Guadalmina residential area, will be open between 9am and 11am, while the basilica, located in the Linda Vista Playa area, will be open from 11.15am to 2pm.
In addition, the four-year contract with a budget of almost 165,000 euros includes visitor information services, as well as cleaning and maintenance of the two sites.
The Vega del Mar basilica is one of the few archaeological examples of early Christianity in Andalucía. Dating back 1,500 years, it has three naves, an apse and a counter-apse, a sacristy and a baptistery. The adjacent necropolis contains nearly 200 tombs belonging to different periods and rituals.
The Roman baths of Las Bóvedas, located some 500 metres west of the basilica, were built around the 2nd and 3rd centuries. They have retained a large part of their structure, which is something very rare for this type of discovery.
