Taxi Málaga Airport → Cómpeta
Cómpeta sits above 600 metres in the Sierras de Tejeda and Almijara, a white wine-making village that is only 58 km from the airport but takes about an hour, because the last stretch is the MA-3118 mountain road from the Algarrobo exit, bend after bend up through Sayalonga. The reward is a village of terraced streets, a square under the tall church tower and a big community of foreign residents in the surrounding hills.
Prices by vehicle
| Vehicle | Total price (VAT included) |
|---|---|
| Sedan 1-4 passengers, 3 suitcases. | €95 |
| Estate 1-4 passengers, 5 suitcases, skis or golf bags. | €114 |
| Minivan 5-8 passengers, 8 suitcases. | €143 |
Single journey, VAT included, on toll-free roads; the AP-46 tunnel at Las Pedrizas is optional and settled separately if you want it. A return is exactly twice this figure. Starting at the train station or the cruise port changes nothing in the price.
Drop-off
The centre of Cómpeta is a knot of steep, narrow streets where a car cannot turn, so the driver stops at the edge of the old village, near the square or by the car park at the entrance, and carries the bags with you. Houses on the outskirts and along the road to Canillas are reached at the door. Many rentals are on concrete or dirt tracks in the campo: send us the exact location and the driver checks the access.
Inside the Terminal 3 arrivals hall at Málaga Airport, where the driver stands with a board showing your name.
What awaits you
- Plaza Almijara and the church of La Asunción
- Moscatel wine and the Noche del Vino in August
- Trails into the Tejeda and Almijara natural park
Off at Algarrobo, then the mountain road
The first 40 km are the same motorway as every other Axarquía transfer: ring road round Málaga, the tunnels at Rincón, past Vélez-Málaga and onto the viaducts. Then, at the Algarrobo exit, the trip changes completely. The MA-3118 leaves the coast and climbs into the hills through Sayalonga, a village known for its round cemetery, and on up through terraces of vines and olives with the sea dropping away behind. It is a proper mountain road: narrow, constantly bending, with the occasional lorry or tractor to follow, and it is the reason a journey of only 58 km takes about an hour. Cómpeta comes into view near the top, white against the grey rock of the Almijara.
If anyone in the party suffers from car sickness, the front seat and a window open on the last stretch make a real difference. Our drivers take the bends at a steady pace rather than a fast one, and there are lay-bys with views over the coast where a short pause costs nothing if someone needs air.
A village on a slope
Cómpeta is built on a hillside at over 600 metres, so almost nothing in it is flat. The Plaza Almijara is the centre, with the tall tower of the church of La Asunción, the bars and the tourist office, and from it streets climb and drop in every direction, many too narrow for a car and some turning into steps. The village lives from moscatel wine and raisins dried on the hillsides, and the Noche del Vino on 15 August, when the whole plaza becomes a fiesta of wine, music and flamenco, is the big date of the year. Canillas de Albaida is three kilometres further along the road, a smaller version of the same thing; Sayalonga and Árchez are the villages you pass on the way up.
There is a large community of foreign residents in the hills around the village, so English is spoken in most bars and the shops are used to visitors. Even so, it keeps the habits of a farming village: shops shut for the afternoon, the plaza fills after nine in the evening and the church bells mark the hours.
Walkers and the campo
Cómpeta is the main starting point for the Sierras de Tejeda, Almijara y Alhama natural park on this side. The track towards Puerto Blanquillo begins above the village and leads to the route up El Lucero, the peak with the ruined guard post on top, and to the pine forests and streams of the park. Many of our passengers here are walkers with boots and poles rather than beach bags, and many are heading to rental houses in the campo below the village, on concrete tracks that wind between vines and avocado trees. Most tracks are fine for a normal car; a few are steep or rough enough that the driver will stop at the nearest firm surface and help carry the bags the rest of the way.
Areas we cover in Cómpeta
Local tips for your arrival
- Send a map pin for houses in the campo: street names mean little on the tracks and the pin is what the driver navigates by.
- Take travel sickness tablets before the Algarrobo exit if you know you are prone; the bends last twenty minutes.
- For the Noche del Vino on 15 August the centre is closed to traffic from the afternoon; arrange the drop-off at the car park by the entrance.
- Walking boots and poles go in the boot with the cases; if you also have a large rucksack each, the estate is the better choice for four.
Back to Málaga from Cómpeta
Coming down is as slow as going up, so allow the full hour from Cómpeta to the airport when you plan the return: leave three hours before a Schengen departure and three and a half in summer or for the UK and other non-Schengen flights. The driver picks you up where the car stopped on arrival, at the edge of the old village or at your house in the campo; if you are somewhere on a track, we confirm the exact point the day before. The road down through Sayalonga at dawn, with the sun coming up over the sea, is a fine way to end a holiday. For María Zambrano or the cruise port the journey is only marginally shorter, so use the same margins.
From the train station or the cruise port
The fixed price to Cómpeta is the same from Málaga-María Zambrano train station and from the cruise port. Choose your origin in the form; the driver meets you at the platform exit or outside the cruise terminal.
Other destinations in this area
Frequently asked questions
How much is a taxi from Málaga Airport to Cómpeta?
The fixed fare to Cómpeta is €95 for a sedan carrying up to four people, €114 for the estate with the large boot and €143 for the minivan for five to eight. Bags, waiting time and VAT are included and the motorway carries no toll.
How long is the drive from Málaga Airport to Cómpeta?
Around 62 minutes for the 58 km, on dual carriageway for almost all of it. Summer Sundays, snow on the mountain roads and city festivals can stretch that; the driver allows for them when he sets your pickup.
Why does Cómpeta take longer than Nerja if it is closer to the airport?
Because of the road. Nerja is motorway from start to finish; for Cómpeta you leave the A-7 at Algarrobo and climb the MA-3118, a narrow mountain road with continuous bends through Sayalonga where 50 km/h is a good average. That final stretch of under 20 km takes as long as the 40 km of motorway before it, hence the hour or so.
Do we need to book Cómpeta 48 hours ahead like the long routes?
No. The 48-hour notice applies to journeys over 150 km such as Seville, Córdoba or Almería; Cómpeta is 58 km and a normal booking, confirmed by email usually within the hour. Booking a day or two ahead is still wise in August and at Easter, simply because the vehicles fill up.
Does it snow in Cómpeta in winter and can the road close?
Snow in the village itself is rare; it falls on the peaks of the Almijara above, which look spectacular from the plaza in January. The MA-3118 stays open through the winter. Heavy rain is the more likely nuisance, when some of the dirt tracks in the campo become soft for a day or two; if you are renting on a track, ask your host how it behaves after rain.
We are a walking group of six. Is the minivan all right on the mountain road?
Yes. The minivan, at €143 for up to eight passengers, handles the MA-3118 without any problem; the road is narrow but paved and used by buses and delivery lorries every day. The driver stops at the car park by the village entrance or at your rental house, and rucksacks, boots and poles fit easily in the luggage space at the back.
Where exactly will I find the driver at Málaga Airport?
Inside the arrivals hall of Terminal 3, standing with a board that shows your name. Every arriving flight, Terminal 2 ones included, walks out through that same hall, so there is only one place to look.
See your fixed fare
You pay the driver when you arrive. No card is asked for now.