International schools near Estepona

Estepona has British, American and Swedish schools inside the town's borders, and many more within 25 minutes towards San Pedro, Marbella and Sotogrande. Below is every school a family in the town, the hills or Selwo would realistically consider, with fees as each school publishes them and drive times from where families rent. We checked each school's own website on 9 October 2026.

Choosing a school

Curriculum. British schools lead to IGCSEs and A Levels, some to the IB Diploma. Atlas follows the American system, with the IB Diploma as an option. Spanish bilingual schools teach the Spanish curriculum to the Bachillerato. Nordic, German and French schools follow their home country's programme. Think about where your child may go to university and how long you plan to stay.

Age. Several schools stop at 11 or 12: The International School Estepona, Calpe, the French school and the Swedish schools in Estepona and Marbella. Check where your child would go next.

Fees. Most schools add a one-off registration or admission fee, often €1,000 to €3,000, and some ask for a refundable deposit. Lunch, bus, uniform and exams are often extra, and fees usually rise each year.

The school run. The A-7 slip roads and the Cancelada roundabout queue at peak times. Drive the route at 8:30 in the morning before you sign a lease.

Quality. We do not rank schools. Visit, ask about class sizes, exam results and accreditation, and talk to parents.

All schools at a glance

Fees are yearly tuition as each school publishes it, before one-off fees and extras. Times are minutes by car from Estepona town centre, Selwo and Mirador de Estepona Hills, calculated with OSRM (OpenStreetMap routing) on 9 October 2026, without traffic. Some routes from the town use the AP-7 toll road.

British schools

The International School Estepona

British National Curriculum for ages 2 to 12 (nursery to Year 6), with a Montessori approach in the early years. Lessons are in English, and Spanish is taught throughout. It is on Calle Azahar in El Paraíso. The fee list dated January 2026 shows €1,690 a term for ages 2 to 3, €2,695 for 4 to 6 and €3,150 for 7 to 12, three terms a year, plus €1,050 registration. Website: marbellaschool.com.

Mayfair School

A British school in Atalaya Park, on Avenida de las Golondrinas, founded in 1997, for ages 3 to 18. It follows the Cambridge pathway to IGCSEs and A Levels, taught in English. Older applicants may sit a placement assessment. Fees are not published. Some directories still list old web addresses. Website: mayfairschool.es.

Queens British Grammar School

A small British school on Avenida Costa Galera, west of the town centre, for ages 3 to 18, from Foundation Stage to IGCSEs and A Levels. Fees for 2026/27 run from €7,686 a year (ages 3 to 5) to €18,606 (Years 12 and 13), with 5% off for paying the year up front, plus a €1,500 joining fee. A bus between Marbella and Estepona costs €975 a term. Website: qbgs.education.

Calpe School

A British primary school in Guadalmina, San Pedro, for ages 2 to 11. Teaching is in English, and Spanish is on the timetable. Fees are not published. Website: calpeschool.com.

Laude San Pedro International College

In Nueva Alcántara, San Pedro. Children follow the British curriculum from 2.5 to 11. From 11, families choose the British route (IGCSE, then A Levels) or the Spanish route (ESO, then Bachillerato) on the same campus. School buses cover Estepona and Marbella. Fees on request. Website: laudesanpedro.com.

Aloha College

A not-for-profit British school in Nueva Andalucía for ages 3 to 18, with IGCSEs, then the IB Diploma or A Levels. Tuition for 2026/27 runs from €8,165 a year (full-time nursery) to €19,800 (Year 13). New families pay a €200 application fee, a €195 administration fee and a €3,000 inscription fee for the first child. Website: aloha-college.com.

Swans International School

A British school in Marbella with a primary site at El Capricho and a secondary site on Calle Lago de los Cisnes. Ages 3 to 18: GCSEs, then the IB Diploma in the sixth form. Fees are not published. Website: swansschool.com.

American and IB schools

Atlas American School of Málaga

On Calle Monda in Selwo Hills, next door to Vanian Gardens. American curriculum from K1 (age 3) to Grade 12, with the American High School Diploma or the IB Diploma in the last two years. Teaching is in English, and children joining from Grade 1 need some English. Tuition for 2026/27: €8,550 preschool, €11,300 Grades 1 to 6, €12,700 Grades 7 and 8, €14,850 high school and €16,350 the IB years. New families pay a €2,000 admission fee, plus €500 registration and a €1,000 refundable deposit per child. Website: atlas-asm.es.

Sotogrande International School

West of Estepona in Sotogrande (Cádiz), with the full IB programme: Primary Years, Middle Years and the Diploma. Children from 4 months to 18, taught in English, with boarding for older pupils. Tuition for 2026/27 from age 3 runs from €9,840 to €28,255, lunch included. One-off fees: €350 or €550 registration, a €3,000 or €4,000 family membership fee and a refundable deposit of €2,000 or €2,500. Website: sis.ac.

Nordic schools

Swedish International School

In Costalita, Cancelada, between Estepona and Marbella. Swedish curriculum for preschool (3 to 5), the reception year and Years 1 to 6, with Spanish and English every day. Older pupils study by distance learning. Fees for 2026/27, published on 28 September 2026: €7,400 a year for preschool and €8,600 for reception to Year 6 if paid by the year, lunch included, plus €1,000 registration. Short stays are possible. It is a private school supervised by the Junta de Andalucía, and its Skolverket approval covers supplementary Swedish only. Website: sweintschool.com.

Svenska Skolan Marbella

In La Alzambra, Nueva Andalucía, near Puerto Banús. A Swedish school supervised by Skolverket, for preschool (3 to 5) and reception to Year 6. Years 7 to 9 and upper secondary are studied by distance learning at the school. Fees per term, lunch included: €4,450 for preschool and €5,350 for reception to Year 6 (€4,250 for pupils with Swedish state funding). The Swedish school year has two terms. The fee page does not state the year. Enrolment fee €1,000. Website: svenskaskolanmarbella.com.

Svenska Skolan Costa del Sol, Fuengirola

A Swedish school in Fuengirola, from preschool to upper secondary (gymnasium). Yearly fees for 2026/27, with lunch and books: €8,000 preschool, €8,050 reception to Year 6, €8,500 Years 7 to 9 and €10,000 upper secondary. Application fee €1,000 per family. Website: skolan.es.

Finnish School, Fuengirola

Aurinkorannikon suomalainen koulu follows the Finnish curriculum from pre-school (age 6) to upper secondary (lukio), in Los Pacos, Fuengirola. Fees for 2026/27 for pupils who bring Finnish state funding (Finnish citizens with a home municipality in Finland): €2,050 pre-school, €2,300 Grades 1 to 9 and €2,700 lukio, plus a €600 reservation fee. Other pupils pay more. Website: suomalainenkoulu.net.

Den Norske Skolen Málaga

A Norwegian school for Grades 1 to 10 in Arroyo de la Miel, Benalmádena. Applicants need a Norwegian passport. Apply by 1 February for September: there is one intake a year and no short stays. Fees for 2026/27: €2,860 a year for Grades 1 to 7 and €3,080 for Grades 8 to 10, plus canteen and registration. Website: dnsmalaga.com.

We found no Danish school on the Costa del Sol. Ask the Swedish and Norwegian schools whether they take Danish-speaking pupils.

German, Dutch and French schools

Deutsche Schule Málaga

An official German school abroad in Elviria (Ojén), east of Marbella. German and Spanish, from kindergarten (age 3, no German needed) to Grade 12 and the Deutsches Internationales Abitur. Yearly fees for 2026/27: €7,385 kindergarten and €7,045 Grade 1 (both with lunch), €5,660 Grades 2 to 6, €5,975 Grades 7 to 9 and €6,695 Grades 10 to 12. One-off €1,400 admission fee and €1,500 family deposit. A school bus runs from Estepona for €2,150 a year. Website: dsmalaga.com.

École Française Internationale de Marbella

A French primary school, approved (homologuée) by the French education ministry, from petite section to CM2 (about ages 3 to 11), on Calle Jacinto Benavente in Marbella. Teaching is in French, English and Spanish. Fees on request. For collège and lycée, the Lycée Français International de Málaga is about 70 minutes away, at €5,670 to €7,200 a year for 2026/27 (EU pupils paying up front). Website: efimarbella.com.

NTC Parasol (Dutch)

We found no full-time Dutch school near Estepona. NTC Parasol, listed by the Dutch education abroad foundation NOB, teaches Dutch language and culture on Saturdays from 10:00 to 12:30 in La Carihuela, Torremolinos, for ages 2.5 to 18, alongside a full-time school. Online and hybrid lessons start from 5.5. Fees on request. Details: NOB listing.

Spanish bilingual and private schools

Atalaya Colegio Internacional

A private school in Urbanización El Marqués, Atalaya, teaching the Spanish curriculum in English and Spanish from infant school (age 3) to Bachillerato, with the IB Diploma and the Dual Diploma as options. Six bus routes run from Sotogrande to Elviria, including one along the Estepona coast. Fees on request. In English it calls itself Atalaya International School. It is not the same as Mayfair in Atalaya Park. Website: colegioatalaya.es.

Colegio San José

A private bilingual school on Avenida Litoral, just west of the old town, teaching the Spanish curriculum from infant school to Bachillerato. The IB lists it, as Colegio Patrocinio San José, for the Diploma and Middle Years programmes. Its website did not load on 9 October 2026, so ask the school for fees. Website: colegiosanjose.net.

Spanish public schools

Public schools are free and teach in Spanish. Infant and primary schools (CEIP) take children from 3 to 12, and secondary schools (IES) from 12 to the end of Bachillerato. CEIP María Espinosa and IES Mar de Alborán are 3 to 4 minutes from Mirador de Estepona Hills. Cancelada has CEIP Ramón Lago, 8 minutes from Selwo.

Places go through the Junta de Andalucía's escolarización process. For 2026/27, applications ran from 1 to 31 March 2026. Where a school has more applicants than places, points decide, including siblings and how close your home or workplace is. The Junta checks your address against padrón data, so register first. Nursery places for ages 0 to 3 are requested in April.

If you arrive after March, apply anyway. A late application loses priority, but the provincial admissions committee can still give a place. From the third year of primary, children who arrive without Spanish can get extra Spanish classes in school hours through the Junta's ATAL programme.

Applying and timing

• When to apply. Private schools take applications all year, but September places go first. Start in the autumn or winter before you move. Deadlines we found: Den Norske Skolen 1 February, Deutsche Schule kindergarten end of February. Public schools: March.
• Waiting lists. If a year group is full, you may get a waiting-list place. Aloha asks a €1,250 holding fee, refundable until a place is offered. Most private schools take pupils mid-year when they have space.
• Assessments. Schools review reports and may test older children. Atlas asks for reports from the last two years and the current year, plus recommendation letters.
• Documents. Expect passports, school reports, a medical form and a European (SEPA) bank account for direct debits. Atlas asks for apostilled or certified records for Grades 7 to 11 taken abroad.
• Padrón. Needed for public school points and most other paperwork. A 12-month home lease lets you register. See The Honest Let.

Good to know: A September to June let ends in June, so you would move out over the summer. Look for a 12-month home lease near the school you choose.

Where to rent near each school

• Selwo, for Atlas, the Swedish International School and the New Golden Mile schools. Vanian Gardens is next door to Atlas, and Oasis 325 about 8 minutes away. From Selwo, Mayfair is 12 minutes, The International School Estepona 14, Atalaya, Calpe and Laude 15, and Aloha 20.
• The hills, for Colegio San José, Queens and the town's public schools. Mirador de Estepona Hills is 5 minutes from Colegio San José, 12 from Atlas and 13 from Queens.
• Two school runs. With one child at Atlas and another in San Pedro or Marbella, Selwo keeps both runs under 25 minutes.

See the homes we have now on long-term rentals in Estepona, and read Moving to Estepona for healthcare, paperwork and costs.