The municipal area of Fuengirola is one of the smallest in the province of Malaga, consisting merely of the coastal strip occupied by the town and the Santa Fe de Los Boliches district, which make up seven kilometers of excellent beaches.
Although it may have a Phoenician origin, the town's history begins in the Arabic times with the construction of Sohail Castle for defense purposes, part of whose walls still remain until today. The twon center still retains a certain traditional air, albeit it is today characterized by the hotels, apartments, restaurants, etc needed to its main source of income which is the sun and sand tourism.
Fuengirola was inhabited by the Bástulos, the Phoenicians, and then later the Carthaginians. The Romans called it Suel, and the Arabs Sohail, the name of a star in which according to Ibn-Jallicam, could only be seen in the peninsula from this spot.
In the year 912, Abderraman III ordered the building of a fortress on the small hill that stands between the coastline and the mouth of the River Sohail; the remains of this said castle, though in a state of extremme disrepair, still form an important feature in the lanscape of the coast of Fuengirola. It was then used for military purposes and to monitor the coast until the 19th century, playing a major part in the War of Independence.

свернуть