Bruna Karla Krüger in W Magazine: Her Favorite Places in Marbella

By Manuel Huerta August 20th, 2026 · 8m. reading time

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When W Magazine set out to write the definitive insider's guide to Marbella, they didn't call a tourism board. They called four people who actually live the city: a hospitality and tech founder, a communications specialist, a Michelin-starred chef  and Bruna Karla Krüger, Partner & Senior Property Advisor at Drumelia.

The piece framed Marbella as a city that has quietly outgrown its old reputation. The nightlife is still there, but the city's real identity now runs through long lunches, unhurried mornings, and a slower relationship with time that international residents have come to expect. Bruna's recommendations run through nearly every section of the guide, from where to eat in the Old Town to where to play golf, from the studio she trains at to the boat she takes out at sunset. It's the kind of list that only gets written after years of actually living somewhere and, in her case, after years of helping clients understand what they're buying into when they choose Marbella as home.

We asked her to expand on it, section by section, and to explain why each place made her list.

"Some of the most special places are hidden behind gardens or down quiet streets."
— Bruna Karla Krüger

Bruna's first recommendation isn't a hidden gem so much as a local habit. Casa Curro sits in the heart of the Old Town, made up of three restaurants standing next to each other, each with its own menu and its own kitchen. She sits at La Tienda, the middle of the three, where a single table can order from all three menus at once, tapas, fresh seafood, and sushi, without any drop in quality between them.

It's the kind of lunch that stretches past two hours without anyone checking a watch, jamón and grilled fish arriving alongside bottles of wine that keep the table talking. For Bruna, it's less about any one dish and more about what it represents: a part of Marbella that still runs on its own rhythm, largely untouched by the marina crowd a few streets away.

For the pre-dinner hour, Bruna points to Fisherman's Daughter, Natalie Shumskaya's champagne and seafood bar built as a contemporary homage to her father's passion for fishing. The room is designed around that story, oysters, caviar, and a serious list of champagnes and sparkling wines, served in a space that feels like modern coastal living rather than a themed restaurant chasing an aesthetic.

Bruna describes it as having a modern Mediterranean energy that feels distinctly Marbella: polished without being stiff, the kind of place that sets the tone for the rest of the evening rather than competing with it. It has become one of her regular stops before a longer night out, and one of the first places she suggests to clients who ask where locals actually go.

Bruna plays regularly, and she's direct about why: with more than 70 courses spread across the region, the Costa del Sol has earned its reputation as Europe's golf capital, and the courses themselves are as technically demanding as they are visually striking. It's a part of the lifestyle that draws a specific type of buyer to Marbella, the kind who wants a serious course within a short drive of home, not once a year on a golf holiday.

For a full round, she recommends Río Real, valued for its sea views and quieter, more contemplative atmosphere, or Los Naranjos, known for its international crowd and a clubhouse that stays lively long after the last group finishes. Beginners, she notes, can build up their game first at Greenlife Golf Driving Range, Marbella's largest, with PGA-level instruction available for every level.

For a different pace, Bruna trains at Ayana, a pilates studio she describes as feeling more like a wellness club than a traditional studio, thanks to its calming, design-led interiors and a genuine sense of community among the people who train there. The workouts, she's quick to add, are still seriously challenging, the calm setting doesn't mean an easy hour.

Ayana also runs outdoor classes by the sea, which makes the most of Marbella's year-round sunshine and gives the studio a rhythm that shifts with the seasons rather than staying fixed indoors. It's the kind of detail Bruna often brings up with clients relocating to the city: the wellness infrastructure here has matured well past hotel spas, into something residents build a weekly routine around.

Ask locals where they book treatments and Milfey Beauty comes up often, part aesthetic clinic, part spa, known among residents for the cult-favorite Margy's Facial alongside more advanced, technology-led skin treatments. It's built a loyal following less through marketing and more through word of mouth, the way most of the addresses on this list have.

Bruna singles out the attention to detail and the unhurried atmosphere as the real draw: nothing feels rushed, and every treatment is tailored to what the skin actually needs rather than run on a fixed protocol. It's a small example of a larger pattern she points to in Marbella, a city where quality increasingly shows up in the details, not the volume.

Bruna spends a lot of her time in La Zagaleta, not as a getaway, but because it's where much of her work happens. As a specialist in the area, she has a number of clients based there, and knows it as well as anyone: the trails through the hills above town, the views over the coastline, the particular quiet that comes from being immersed in nature rather than parked near a beach club or a marina. It's not a place most visitors ever see, La Zagaleta is a private, gated community, and access is largely limited to residents, their guests, and the people who work there.

It's also one of the reasons she considers La Zagaleta such a compelling place to actually live. The gated community remains one of the most sought-after addresses on the Costa del Sol, prized for its privacy, its own golf courses, and its proximity to the city without sitting inside its busiest streets. For Bruna, the appeal isn't abstract, it's built from spending real time there, both with clients and on her own.

Bruna's broader point in the piece is less about any single address and more about pace. Marbella's memorable moments, she says, tend to happen off-script,  behind a garden wall, down a street you weren't planning to turn onto. It's a city that punishes over-scheduling and rewards instinct, and that shift in mindset tends to be the first thing new residents have to unlearn from wherever they came from.

Who is Bruna Karla Krüger?

Bruna Karla Krüger is Partner & Senior Property Advisor at Drumelia Real Estate in Marbella. She was recently featured in W Magazine's "The Insider's Guide to Marbella, Spain" as one of four locals shaping the city's culinary, cultural, and lifestyle landscape.

What are Bruna's top recommendations in Marbella?

Her picks include Casa Curro for lunch in the Old Town, Fisherman's Daughter for pre-dinner drinks, Río Real and Los Naranjos for golf, Ayana for pilates, Milfey Beauty for treatments, sunset sailing on a restored classic yacht, and La Zagaleta and the hills above town for time outdoors.

Why does a real estate advisor's opinion on Marbella lifestyle matter?

Buying property in Marbella is as much a lifestyle decision as a financial one. Bruna's day-to-day work with buyers means her recommendations reflect what actually holds up as part of daily life in the city, from La Zagaleta to the Old Town, rather than what photographs well once.

Is La Zagaleta a good place to live in Marbella?

La Zagaleta is one of the most established gated communities on the Costa del Sol, known for privacy, its own golf courses, and proximity to Marbella's center without sitting inside its busiest areas. It remains a strong fit for buyers prioritizing space and discretion over walkability.

If you're considering a purchase in Marbella, whether in La Zagaleta, the Golden Mile, or somewhere in between, get in touch with Bruna directly for a conversation grounded in what living here actually involves.