A couple of weeks ago I booked a two-bedroom holiday apartment with Urban Living in Málaga for a three-day getaway with friends. I shared the apartment in calle Liborio with one friend (our other two friends were staying at another Urban Living apartment in calle Fajardo). The apartment was located on the third floor with balconies in every room, which gave a lot of light. The beds (one double, two single) were very comfortable and both bedrooms had lots of closet space. The open kitchen was well-equipped and the living room next to it was bright and attractive. The only complaint about the apartment itself was that the bathroom was missing a light over the mirror (there were just wires sticking out of the fixture) and it really needed some shelves – both in the room and in the shower – to put toiletries. In the end we had to leave our things on the floor.
Calle Liborio runs between Larios and Nueva streets, an ideal central location, though it can’t be directly reached by taxi and is a few minutes walk from the main road. The Atarazanas market is nearby, as well as a supermarket, so it’s easy to pick up food and supplies. The Urban Living office is located on the fourth floor of the building, which was convenient for leaving our bags after checking out (my train wasn’t until 7 pm), but checking in was a bit of a fluke. I’d made arrangements for someone to meet me there at 2 pm because I was on crutches at the time, and they forgot – it was just by chance that someone else was in the office when I arrived.
But my main complaint – and it is a big one – is that I had specified before booking that I needed to have an excellent WiFi connection because I had to work that weekend, and I was assured of this. But the connection was very poor. I mentioned this immediately after arriving on Thursday and was told that something would be done to “boost” the connection. By late afternoon Friday nothing had been done and when I called the office nobody was there. Finally someone brought over a router (while we were out) which didn’t work at all, so we went from having a poor connection to none at all. And nobody returned my calls for the rest of the weekend. VERY disappointing. The connection should have been tested before we arrived, as it had been a specific request and had been guaranteed.
Overall it was a pleasant stay, in a nice bright apartment right in the centre of town. But I’d hesitate to book with Urban Living again because of the management issues.
Urban Living Málaga
Calle Liborio García, 1
Málaga
952 60 22 47
I have to admit that at first I had doubts 
The open kitchen was superbly equipped with high-quality appliances (Bosch, Whirlpool). There’s an electric kettle and coffee maker (and a good supply of filters in the cupboard), an espresso maker, toaster and stick blender. And the two-burner ceramic stove-top, microwave oven and full-sized fridge are more than adequate for holiday cooking needs. Oh, just across the street there is a supermarket and a greengrocer next to it. Also a pharmacy. Double-glazed windows and balcony doors keep out the noise, though I know from previous visits that this area isn’t particularly noisy, even at peak season. There are two terraces, one off the larger bedroom, the other off the livingroom with comfy terrace furniture. And there is light. This is the thing I probably loved the best (other than it was so clean – did I mention how CLEAN it was?). Nice partial views of the mountains and the sea and lots and lots of light. The Malgueta beach (see that photo above?) is a two-minute walk from the front door of the building. There are also lots of great tapas bars and restaurants in the neighbourhood, plus the newly revamped harbourfront, MuelleUno, is just another two minute walk in the other direction. And it’s about a ten-minute walk to the old centre. At first I had hoped to stay in the centre, where Justine had booked her place, but in the end it was great being back in my ‘hood next to the sea.