The hotel was in the ideal location to attend a show nearby. Stayed overnight but hardly slept. Although the windows were double glazed and reduced the noise from the heavy traffic nearby and party goers convening on the road downstairs, the airconditioning system had been disconnected so it was either sleeping with the windows closed and getting no fresh/cool air in the room, or leave the windows open and try and sleep with all the noise, which was nearly impossible. But other than that, the service was very good and the meal served in the restaurant in the evening was quite good.

Standard Ibis hotel good for sleeping, showering and leaving one's luggage and sightseeing. The L-shaped building (a ground floor and three upper floors all with accommodation) is located near where Avenida de Velazquez (N-340) passes over the Autovia de Mediterraneo (A-7, E-15). The front of the hotel faces the Autovia. If you drive in from the airport along Avenida de Velazquez, you can see it to your left as you drive across the overpass.

The woman at check-in and all the other staff we encountered were pleasant and cooperative. She gave us the type of room that we prefer. Quieter rooms are on the top floor facing away from the Autovia (overlooking a vacant lot and medium-rise apartment buildings in the distance) and towards the end of the corridor away from the lifts-elevators.

The room had the usual, light-wood-veneer, built-in furniture, a platform bed, parquet floors and open closet and shelf space. The bathroom had a shower, but not a bath or bidet.

The air conditioning was set for winter, that is, heating only from November to April, inclusive. (The hotel system is changed to cooling over summer, May to October, inclusive.) Thus, during our stay we could have heating only — which was unneeded at the time — either on or off. There was no option for simple ventilation, that is, room air circulation without either heating or cooling. The thermostat dial, marked in degrees centigrade, had no discernable effect regardless of the temperature we selected. This meant that, if the room became too hot, the only feasible option was to open the window. Quieter, but sunnier, rooms were at the back facing away from the Autovia.

Soundproofing was good from outside: the window was double-glazed. Internal soundproofing was a bit disappointing as we could hear banging doors, voices and movement from the corridor, and noises from a person in the adjoining room.

If you are driving to the hotel from the airport, upon leaving the airport parking station follow signs for N-340 and Av. de Velazquez. Follow Avenida de Velazquez till you have crossed the overpass over the Autovia. You will have to make a U-turn to get to the other side of Avenida de Velazquez (it is a dual carriageway with a median strip separating multiple lanes of traffic). This takes a manipulation if you do not already know of it.

Keep in the right lane and at the first set of traffic lights (at Calle de Leo Delibes), turn right but then carefully curve in to your left where there is space for a few cars and a second set of traffic lights. When the lights turn green, you can proceed across Avenida de Velazquez into Calle de Leo Delibes. Proceed until you see an Aldi supermarket sign and turn left at the roundabout into Avenida Isaac Peral. Then turn right at the first street Calle Jesus Arrambari, passing the Aldi to your right as you proceed. This street will take you to one-way Calle Horacio Quironga where you will have to turn left to the hotel. The hotel parking entrance is just before the hotel building itself.

You can also reach the hotel from Avenida de Velazquez by turning right on Calle Eduardo Toldra and following signs to get to the hotel via a web of one-way and no-entry signs to Calle Horacio Quironga which parallels the Autovia to your right.

The hotel has free, off-street, open parking (18 spaces, including one for the handicapped) and covered parking below ground at E6 per day. The hotel is in a sterile comercial area where you can also park free along the street in front of the hotel or on the side street behind and then conveniently walk to the hotel. During our stay, we had no problem using both free parking on the hotel lot and on the street, according to availability.

To get to Malaga's historic center without a car, you can take a bus running along Avenida de Velazquez. Free parking in the city is difficult to find, to put it mildly. It is possible with luck, patience and the endurance to cruise around one-way and no-entry streets lined with parked cars. After a fair effort, we found a space at the edge of the center of town but had a 15-20 minute walk into the historic part.

On our first morning we had the E6.50 buffet breakfast (6:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.). It involved uncooked items: juices, coffee, tea, milk, cereals, pastries, sliced meats, cheese, bread, yogurts, butter, jam, honey and other items. Ask the assistant to make you a fresh cup of coffee from the machine, as that already sitting in the pot on the hotplate might be a bit stale as the morning progresses.

We thought that the menu for other meals at the hotel was a bit overpriced for what the restaurant served. In the center of Malaga you could easily find E9 complete meals with a choice of courses.

There is an Aldi supermarket at Avenida Isaac Peral (just behind the hotel) and Calle Jesus Arrambari. It is a 2-3 minute walk, and across the roundabout from the Epoca bar and restaurant. The supermarket has a limited, but adequate, choice and you will need your own shopping bags in which to carry back what you buy. The Aldi is open from Monday to Saturday 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., closed Sundays.

Alternatively, depending on the route you take you can walk (10-20 minutes) or drive (5-10 minutes) to the Los Patios shopping center (which has a Carrefour and a McDonalds) across Avenida de Velazquez from the hotel.

Behind the hotel there is an underpass (with a footpath-sidewalk) which will take you to the parking lot for Los Patios. Ask at reception for directions or use a navigation system, if you have one, as the entrance to the underpass is not obvious and requires the manipulation of one-way streets. Alternatively, you can go up to Calle de Leo Delibes and cross over Avenida de Velazquez at the traffic lights.

The is a Lidl supermarket at the edge of the extensive Los Patios parking lot. The Carrefour has a wide selection of almost everything and is open Monday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., closed Sundays. The McDonalds has free WiFi and is open Monday to Thursday and on Sunday from 12 p.m. to 11 p.m. and on Fridays and Saturdays 12 p.m. to 12 a.m.

Just up from the hotel, there is a pleasant park at the intersection of Calle de Leo Delibes and Avenida Isaac Peral if you want somewhere to stroll or jog.