007 Travel story: Marbella (SPAIN) 2018

January 3, 2020 0 By 007 Travelers

In order to read our Spain 007 travel story from day one, click here

2 August 2018

Today´s Bond location:

Marbella Club Hotel – Golf Resort and Spa

Breakfast at The Rock Hotel in Gibraltar really rocked and we still had some time to explore Europa Point this morning. Take a look at the pics on previous day’s travel story.

Later, a taxi took us through the Gibraltar airport to the border and we walked through the customs, again without any delays. picked up our car from the parking lot and drove to the place on La Linea’s side where the opening shot of “The Living Daylights” (1987) was filmed and we took a good look at the Rock mountain for the last time on this trip.

Traveling by car

From: Gibraltar (British Overseas Territory)
To: Marbella (Spain)
Road tolls: 8,40 EUR

We took the shortest and fastest route and there was only about a one hour drive ahead of us this day. Not too bad 🙂 A couple of road toll charges on the way and we were 8,40 euros poorer.

Marbella

Marbella is a city and municipality in southern Spain, belonging to the province of Málaga in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is part of the Costa del Sol and is the headquarters of the Association of Municipalities of the region; it is also the head of the judicial district that bears its name.

Marbella is situated on the Mediterranean Sea, between Málaga and the Strait of Gibraltar, in the foothills of the Sierra Blanca. The municipality covers an area of 117 square kilometres (45 sq mi) crossed by highways on the coast, which are its main entrances. Read more here (Wikipedia)

Marbella was a really sunny place and we parked our Nissan to an underground parking lot near our hotel (it cost 15 euros / night when you prepaid it).

Accommodation during 02-03 August 2018

Hotel: Aparthotel Puerto Azul *** (on the beach, 1,2 km from centre)
Address: Camilo José Cela, 3, 29602 Marbella, Spain
Booked: Via hotel’s website
Price: 185,19 euros / 1 night
Breakfast: Included (25,70 €/ 2 adults and one child)
Wi-Fi: Free
Parking: Public parking is possible at a location nearby (reservation is not possible) and charges may be applicable.
Check-in: From 15.00
Check-out: Until 12.00
Room type: Apartment with side sea view

We had a nice pool in our Aparthotel Puerto Azul and we were sunbathing for a while and relaxed by the pool.

We walked along the promenade Paseo Maritimo and enjoyed the day looking at the calm sea. There were some beautiful sand sculptures made on the beach.

Then it was time to visit this day’s Bond location: Marbella Club Hotel – Golf Resort and Spa. This was the place where 007 visited in Raymond Benson‘s novel “DoubleShot” (2000). The hotel is luxury at its best. A lovely spacious area with swimming pools and it is of course located right by the sea.

We sat in the lobby for a while and then walked past the wonderful pool area to the seashore. There is a lovely romantic looking pier called Embarcadero and we walked to the end of it. Suddenly the fog came out of nowhere and the sun went behind it for a while. There might be sudden changes in the weather in the area.

Take a look at our pictures and more detailed article of Marbella Club Hotel here

“They drove past the restaurant owned by the famous Italian singer Tony Dalli, and Marbella’s hot discotheque, Olivia Valere, and soon pulled in to the entrance of the Marbella Club Hotel on Bulevar Principe Alfonso von Hohenlohe. One of the finest resort hotels on the beach, the Marbella Club offered everything from bungalows to simple rooms…”

…”Bond decided not to argue. They checked in to the hotel, where the girls had reserved an exclusive bungalow with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a shared living room, and an enclosed patio. They walked through the grounds, which were surrounded by lush foliage and palm trees. When they entered the bungalow, Heidi was ecstatic…”

…”So Bond and Heidi left her, strolled across the hotel grounds, through the beach club and shops, and onto the warm, soft sand. The Mediterranean was calm, creating a flat, blue horizon of serenity. The beach was populated with hotel guests lounging on recliners while staff fetched towels or drinks from the bar.”

Raymond Benson: “DoubleShot” (2000)

In the evening we visited the famous Marbella harbour Puerto Banus where all rich and famous people meet. It was weekend and it seemed that all the restaurants were almost full of people who were partying and having fun. There were also hundreds of wonderful boats and yachts in the harbour.