The first mention of the town isin 1498, the year of the Christian Reconquest of Málaga, during the dividing and alloting of the area known as the land parcelling. A part of the area is described as, marvelous, and known by the locals as"Molinos de la Torre", ( mills of the Tower), the mills being powered by water from local springs ,The Catholic Kings and their troops made camp in the area during the siege of Málaga, at that time the area belonged to the municipality of Alhaurín de la Torre. It was not untill 1502 that "Molinos de la Torre" came under the rule of Málaga and was given the name of "Torres de Pimentel" (the towers of Pimentel),The name Pimentel came from Rodrigo Pimentel, Count of Benavente when most of the lands were given to him in thanks for his cooperation with horses and food, during the siege of Málaga.In 1849 "el Madoz" published: <<Torremolinos is a place with a town hall, belonging to the province, judicial district and dioceses of Málaga, two leagues from the capital; Territorial Audience and General Captainship of Granada. Due to the location of the town ,at the foothills of the Mijas mountains and at rifle shot distance from the sea, it has a healthy climate, only whith seasonal common illnesses. It has 234 houses, one square room used as jail, and an elementary school with 44 pupils, with an annual allotment of 1.100 "reales"plus 300 more for material and a private school sustained by the 14 girls attending it; a parochial church (San Miguel), a cementery with 6 burial chambers belonging to the "Hermandad de las Animas" (Brotherhood of Souls) and 8 belonging to local people and last an abundant spring, whose waters are used fur human consumption, movement of mills and for irrigation.
From a peaceful agricultural, fishing and flour producing village of 3.000 in 1920, Torremolinos has grown into the world-know town, that in high season houses more than 250.000 tourists, placing it infront of more than 35 Spanish province capitals in the number of inhabitants.
Torremolinos remained independent until 1924, when it became part of Málaga, until a peoples movement, regained its independence, and constituted the municipality of Torremolinos on September 27, 1988.
At the end of the 1950's the "tourist boom" began, and the small town composed of the area around san Miguel street and the "El Calvario" , "El Bajondillo" and "La Carihuela" neighbourhoods, began to take off and became the number one touristic municipality of Andalusia and one of the most important at national and international level.