The United States rediscovers Marbella

They are looking for five-star hotels for their vacations, but also luxury villas to stay in. Their purchasing power is high and the city has already rolled out the red carpet to welcome them. Americans are the fastest growing tourist market in Marbella, but their interest in acquiring real estate has also multiplied. Events such as the Solheim Cup golf tournament, held on the Costa del Sol in 2023, or the launch of a daily flight between Málaga and New York during five months of the year, have facilitated this growth. “It was a pending issue,” says Laura de Arce, general director of tourism at Marbella City Hall. “The evolution of the U.S. market has been really remarkable,” confirms Juan Cabanillas, general manager of the prestigious Marbella Club Hotel. The city “is considered the California of Europe,” adds Ignacio Pérez Díaz, executive president of La Zagaleta, the most luxurious urban development in Europe that attracts entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley.

American tourism was common in Marbella in the 1980s. However, tailed off at the beginning of the 1990s for a rather unusual reason: the Gulf War. The conflict was over 3,000 miles from Mlaga, but in the view of Americans, the Costa del Sol was dangerous “because a bomb could fall in the area,” as De Arce, still incredulous, recounts. She was working at the Don Carlos hotel at the time and remembers that a group of young women from the United States who stayed there made headlines for their audacity in travelling to the Costa del Sol. “Since then, we have had a thorn in our side. And, after the pandemic, we decided that it was time to recover this market.”

The 2023 Solheim Cup, a women’s golf competition that like the Ryder Cup pits Europe against the United States, was an opportunity to achieve this. The tournament was held in Casares, just 25 miles from Marbella, and the municipality began with campaigns linked to the sport. In 2022, the number of North American tourists grew by 10% compared to the previous year. Marbella then boosted its promotion through the Spanish Luxury Association with trips to Miami and New York, as well as at various events with Turespaña, Turismo Andaluz and the Costa del Sol Tourism Board.

Last June, the results validated the work. The Hotel Occupancy Survey data published by the Andalusian regional government showed, for the first time, that Americans were in third place in terms of number of visitors with 3,495, only behind the Spanish and the British. These are still modest figures, but they show a trend that the city is encouraging because they are visitors with very high purchasing power. “It has been a collective effort,” says De Arce, who also highlights the promotional role played by luxury hotels.

The historic Marbella Club has been working with this market for over 15 years, and maintains good relations thanks to the various visits Prince Alfonso de Hohenlohe, the club’s founder, made to California. The number of Americans staying there has grown exponentially. So much so that in 2024, its 70th anniversary, it has become the main market — above the United Kingdom — with 20% more overnight stays and a 35% increase in spending compared to 2023. U.S. guests are now opting for higher categories, such as the establishment’s 17 villas, with prices ranging between $11,130 and $16,695 per night — as well as rooms with rates from $1,670 to $3,895.

Golf courses, luxury shops, events such as the Starlite Festival and the gastronomic offering “make Marbella the city chosen by Americans,” says Christopher Clover, owner and CEO of Panorama, the oldest real estate agency in the municipality. “More people are coming and we are noticing it,” says Marcos Granda, owner of two Michelin-starred restaurants: Nintai and Skina, which has two stars and menus ranging from $330 to $590 per person.

The California of Europe

Clover says that the frequent presence of stars such as Eva Longoria, Antonio Banderas or Robert De Niro — who owns the Nobu Hotel — also has an influence. And that while many Americans come for a few days of vacation, others are opting for longer stays, or even staying permanently. Jimmy Widen, founder of the luxury real estate agency 3SA State, confirms this. He says that in 2022 he barely had any clients from the U.S. but in 2024 demand has increased by 1,000%.

“This year we have 24 American families renting with us,” he explains. The ability to work remotely is one of the big factors, as is the inauguration of a direct United Airlines flight between Málaga and New York daily from May to September. “Then it becomes a game of recommendations; when satisfied Americans start talking to their friends, they come too,” adds Widen, who predicts that, during 2025, Americans, together with Canadians, will the main group of foreign buyers in Spain. At the moment, they only represent 1.58%, according to data from the College of Registrars.

Most people are looking for luxury villas. “There are those who want to spend half a million to have a nice apartment, live there for a while, and rent it out for the rest of the year. Others are looking for something worth two million because they are going to stay for a few months. And then there are those who want to buy properties worth 14 or 15 million,” says Benjamin Beza, commercial director of The Agency, one of the largest companies in the real estate sector, which was launched in Los Angeles and whose offices in Marbella opened their doors at the end of 2023, its third European office after Amsterdam and Mallorca.

“Marbella is one of the jewels of Europe and you have to be here,” stresses Beza, who points out that the presence of giants such as Google or Caterpillar in Málaga has also generated buzz in the U.S. “In addition, Americans are becoming aware of the lifestyle here,” he adds. He highlights factors such as gastronomy, climate, culture, and hospitality, but also public health or security — with drug trafficking violence as an exception — which is already attracting a new generation of buyers aged between 25 and 44.

They also come for the prices: a mansion that would cost $40 or $50 million in Miami or Los Angeles costs $15 or $20 million in La Zagaleta, one of the most luxurious residential areas in Europe. There, too, they have noticed a change in profile after the pandemic: from senior businessmen from northern Europe to “successful executives and entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley,” according to Pérez Díaz.

These are generally aged between 35 and 40, come mainly from the east coast of the U.S., travel with their families and are “big businessmen and managers” who also benefit from roads, trains, and the Costa del Sol airport — which they can reach in 15 minutes by helicopter — to quickly reach all of Europe from Málaga. It is “the perfect setting,” concludes Pérez Díaz.

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