Cristina Hodgson
MALAGA will have the first permanent drive-in cinema in Andalucia, open all year round, and the second largest in Europe.
Investor Tamara Istambul and Cristina Porta, promoter of Autocine Madrid Race, have been given the green light by Malaga City Council to begin the construction of the drive-in cinema.
Work on the site is due to start in the next few weeks, with the inauguration expected this summer.
The drive-in will be located on 16,000 square metres of land on the Guadalhorce industrial estate, just 15 minutes from Malaga’s city centre, with a planned capacity for 250 vehicles and more than 250 deck chairs in front of the big screen.
In addition, the facility will include a children’s play area and a separate section for motorbikes, offering a new and a safe leisure option in Malaga,
The initiative follows the successful Madrid model, Madrid Autocine RACE, the largest by dimensions in Europe, which opened in 2017, and was founded by three friends who were looking for a unique business opportunity in Madrid.
The project is expected to create more than 100 jobs, with 3000 square metres reserved for food trucks and American-style Diners, in an attempt to recreate “the magic and attractiveness of the typical venues of the 1950s in the US.”
Drive-in movie theaters originally originated in eastern US in the 1930’s, being at their most popular in the mid fifties, with over 5000 of them spread all across the US.
They lost popularity over the following decades, but then COVID-19 came along, and while traditional cinemas in many places have had to close, most drive-ins have been able to remain open.
Permitting the classic American outdoor movie theater to make a comeback.
