Lighting up the Costa

Christmas lights went on in Marbella and San Pedro Alcántara last Friday night in a festive atmosphere that included colourful street parades.

The giant bauble in the Marqués del Duero (San Pedro) comes to life every day at 6.30pm and 8.30pm for a music and light show, alongside vertical features that create an illuminated "forest". On Wednesday it snowed, with the help of cannons, in Marbella's old town to welcome Santa Claus.