Airlines are Betting that Malaga Will be Top Winter Destination

Airlines are Betting that Malaga Will be Top Winter Destination

This winter will see Major European airlines offering over 700,000 more seats on their flights to Malaga.

Malaga can now handle over 20 million passengers a year thanks

to thee extension that has recently been completed.

The president of the tourism authority of the region – Tourismo Costa del Sol – Elias Bendodo says that between October 2016 and March 2017 European airlines will be offering at least 700,000 more seats than they did compared to the same time period in 2014/2015.

This accounts for a huge 23% increase and Bendodo gave perspective to the figures by explaining that they mean Malaga airport will welcome around 4 million visitors in the winter. The precise number is 3,890,000. By comparison last year saw 3,170,000 passengers land at Malaga airport.

Bendodo also said that while airports from across Europe were increasing how many seats they offered to Malaga it was the Brits who offered the highest increase. There will be a total of 325,000 seats made available on British flights to Malaga over the winter.

Three Signs You’re Ready to Move to Spain?

Three Signs You’re Ready to Move to Spain?

Are you wondering if it’s time you checked out of the UK?

Moving to Spain would be the best decision you

could ever make

As with most of the key decisions in life you will be given fair warning that things need to change. You need to find a new job when your old one becomes untenable. You know you need to get a new car when your old one is falling to bits. You know when you’re ready to start having children when you get baby fever and can’t help but fall in love with every baby that passes by.

So what are the signs It’s time to move to Spain? They can be quite easy to spot at times. Then there are times when you don’t even notice that you’re being steered towards the airport by life. Here are three signs you’re ready to move to Spain.

1.      You Don’t Understand Why Britain has Become so Anti-EU

Many people in England see the UK as cock of the walk and believes that foreigners need to understand their place. They can be quite vocal and you’ll be surprised where they turn up. The main reasons for this attitude are jealousy and a general lack of direction. There was a time when the UK really did have a lot of say in the world, but those days have gone now. These people are not interested in working in a collective of countries that are trying to make a better society for all involved so they begin to lash out.

If you don’t understand why these people insist on posturing, and if you love the EU and Europe as a whole, then you might want to experience life in another country. You certainly have the right to do so as an EU citizen. If that’s the case then you should probably get out now before it’s too late.

2.      You Wonder Why People Don’t Dine Outside

If you’re a Brit travelling across Europe you quickly realise that the UK really is an island unto itself. The British have their own quirks and behaviours that you’ll be hard-pressed to find in the rest of Europe. Some of these are just cherished eccentricities, but when the time comes that you get fed up with pub food served to you on a numbered table, perhaps you’ve had your last supper. At least in the UK.

Dining outside is the way of life in Spain, as it is for most European countries (including the cold ones such as Sweden). Spanish waiters take pride in their work and are very professional about it. They aren’t some snotty, bored, probably half-hungover student trying to drag themselves through a shift. Nearly all of the socialising you do in Spain happens outdoors, in the squares and the plazas, with your neighbours, friends and family. Food may be served, but it is only one small part of the entire experience.

If this is something that has occurred to you too then you should really consider moving to Spain.

3.      You’re Getting Tired of Hearing About Unexpected Items in the Bagging Area

Every fed-up Brit was probably driven there by a machine telling them about unexpected items in the bagging area; whether it came from a self-service checkout in Tescos or Sainsbury’s. It doesn’t matter where it comes from; what matters is that it’s annoying. It’s hardly the only annoying thing either; self-checkouts are annoying in themselves; the omnipresence of Tesco stores is annoying; the lack of choice on the high street is annoying; so is the endless rain and talent shows.

While we could go on we probably won’t have to if you already think like we do. There’s a list in your head of all the annoying things. If you feel that modern British life boring, frustrating, rubbish and annoying then you know it really is time to go.

There really is nothing stopping you either. Spain will open it’s arms to you. There’s the beautiful weather, the busy streets, the stunning beaches, and, of course, the bad TV. Hey, we never said Spain was perfect, but with internet streaming you can watch any channel in the world for very little money with the new IPTV boxes available.  

TripAdvisor Names Spanish Restaurant Best in The World

TripAdvisor Names Spanish Restaurant Best in The World

The Lasarte restaurant near San Sebastian in Spain was recently named the World’s Best restaurant as part of the TripAdvisor Traveller’s Choice awards for the second year in a row.

Many people trust TripAdvisor to provide them with honest reviews of restaurants, resorts, and hotels. It’s become so well trusted that many consider it the authority on where to find the best and worst places to visit.

Its confirmed Spain has the best restaurant and on

of the healthiest lifestyles in the world

With this in mind it’s only expected that the three-Michelin star Lasarte restaurant welcomed the news that they had been ranked the best establishment in the world in the 2016 Annual Traveller’s Choice Awards with a little fanfare.

While it is true that Michelin Stars are still considered the main hallmark of quality it’s hard to beat being ranked the first in a global peer-reviewed survey. It’s not surprising that the top chef and owner of the restaurant Martín Berasategui was very happy about the news.

This year marks the second year in a row that the restaurant won the award. It’s an undoubtable sign that the restaurant and their twist on traditional Spanish cuisine has become a major hit around the world.

Lasarte wasn’t the only Spanish restaurant in the top ten. They were joined by Azurmendi Gastronómico, which can be found a few kilometres away from Lasarte in Larrabetzu. France was the only country besides Spain to have two restaurants rank top ten in the world.

Northern Spain has become a bit of a hotbed for haute cuisine excellence and innovation. Restaurants such as the unfortunately-now-closed El Bulli Restaurant drew crowds including celebrities to the town of Roses in Catalan for years.

TripAdvisor uses the reviews from millions of users to put together their Travellers Choice Awards. They look at both the quantity and quality of reviews that destinations receive along a 12 month period.

As well as putting together a global top 10 TripAdvisor assembled a list of the ten best restaurants in Europe. This list included a third Spanish restaurant; El Cellar de Can Roca in Girona.

There was quite the surprise in the results, especially for people who have a poor opinion of British food; the global top 10 also included three restaurants from the UK; which was the most of any single country.

Spain has always been in the news with its wonderful Mediterranean lifestyle, great weather, low costing property and cost of living being so appealing.

Malaga Residents Found to be Among Most Satisfied in EU

Malaga Residents Found to be Among Most Satisfied in EU

A new study ranking EU cities in terms of wellness and satisfaction of their residents has found that Malaga residents are the fourth-most satisfied people in all of Europe.

Costa Del Sol Residents are some of the most

satisfied residents in the EU

The EU study looked at 40,000 EU residents across 79 cities and asked them their general opinions on everything from healthcare, the environment, to safety and leisure facilities. Each city was given a score out of 100, with Malaga getting an overall score of 96. This put the city in fourth place behind Aalborg in Denmark, which got 99, Hamburg in Germany with 98, and Copenhagen, Groningen, Oslo and Zurich, all of which tied with 97.

Malaga was still the top ranked city in Spain. It came out ahead of Oviedo, which scored 94, and the 90 ranking of Barcelona. Four Spanish cities were polled in all and fourth place went to Madrid, which scored 86.

Despite the high score there were some aspects of Malaga that scored poorly. Healthcare in particular scored badly, with one sector awarding a score of just 63 out of 100. Malaga also ranked poorly in Education. A whopping 94% of Malaga citizens said that finding a job was difficult.

Even though Malaga citizens were concerned about how clean the city was, they were still quite happy with the safety, leisure facilities, transport, and cost of living of the city.

The least-satisfied citizens in the EU can be found in Naples, Palermo, and Istanbul. These three are part of a small handful of cities that ranked below 80 points.

Revision to Inheritance Tax Law Could See 30,000 Brits Compensated

Revision to Inheritance Tax Law Could See 30,000 Brits Compensated

Thousands of Expats can claim Compensation so speak

with the experts at Costa Del Sol Property Group

Spanish authorities could soon compensate thousands of Brits who were taxed unfairly. The European Court of Justice ruled last year that Brits who inherited a Spanish holiday home between 2011 and 2014 were charged a high rate of Inheritance Tax (IHT). Thousands of Brits may now be eligible to claim back these excessive charges authorities forced them to pay.

It’s estimated that the charges that were ruled to be unfair and illegal were applied to 30,000 Brits. At the time of inheritance they were classed as non-residents in Spain. Even spouses of deceased property owners who spent over half of the calendar year residing in Spain were erroneously categorised like this.

EU rulings mean that Spain has been now been forced to change their IHT laws that would previously levy punitive charges (some of which could reach as high as a third of the value of the property) in the event that a home was inherited by a non-resident EU citizen.

The changes in the law mean that legal proceedings have started to reclaim back the money paid to the Spanish tax authorities. Even so experts believe that it won’t be so simple to claim back the money. Right now the compensation procedure has not officially begun, though the Spanish government has created a five-year window that claims could be made in.

Spanish legal experts say that it could take six to eight months for a claim to be filed and compensation to reach the claimant. Many Brits would consider this wait worth it; the previous IHT laws saw Spanish residents become exempt from as much as 99% of IHT, while people who were deemed to be non-residents had to foot the entire bill; which could work out as being up to a third of the value of the property.

Spanish authorities demanded that IHT be paid within six months of inheriting the property. The British were the hardest hit by these charges because they are the largest group of foreign property-owners in Spain. The changes to the law were introduced in September 2014. It took a while but it looks like Spanish authorities have begun to get the ball rolling. It looks like the average repayment will be around €25,000.

Spanish authorities have conceded that non-residents who inherited a Spanish property within the past four-and-a-half years are eligible to claim back their taxes, but Expat homeowners in Spain only have one chance to lodge their bids for compensation.

If you  think you have been over charged then speak with Costa Del Sol Property Group today and claim your money back.