Great Prices and Supply Make Spain a Major Real Estate Investment Destination

Costa del Sol has such appeal and continues to be in demand 

Great Prices and Supply Make Spain a Major Real Estate Investment Destination

It’s all too easy to focus on the incredible lifestyle attractions that entice people looking for a second home or an overseas property to Spain.

The incredible climate of the country, not to mention the stunning cities, superb beaches (and beach resorts), and varied terrain make imagining your new life in Spain about as easy as achieving it. With all the cheap flights and property choices, it’s no wonder that thousands of Europeans have turned their dream Spanish homes into a reality.

The wealth of variety and the value-for-money of Spanish property mean the market has become a hotbed for more serious investors; the kind of people that want to put their money in a safe place and get sensible returns.

The UK was the chosen destination for career investors interested in parking their wealth in property investments for quite some. The uncertainty of the Brexit has begun to unravel the reputation the country has for being a stable safe haven however, and the property markets in Spain and Germany are starting to draw attention.

According to a Knight Frank poll of 148 of the leading real estate investors controlling over £300 billion of real estate assets, 20% of the surveyed investors view Spain as their preferred market for investment in 2018, second to Germany. Only 12% of investors said that the UK would be their property investment destination of choice in 2017, down from the 27% for this year.

The investors were mostly concerned about the lack of available stock and the unrealistic prices in the UK.

By contrast, Spain has a rising demand for home, officespace, retail, and leisure facilities that make the residential and commercial markets particularly strong. The prices are also a fair reflection of the market value of properties. Because of the resurgent Spanish economy there is sure to be an increased demand for industrial and office space as time passes, according to the investors.

A Tale of the Generous Boss and What Make Marbella a “Treat” Destination

Marbella is the best place to come in Andalucia 

If you were to run a Google search for “Marbella” this week you would be inundated with pictures of happy employees from the travel and party firm Red7, who were treated by their employer to an all-expenses paid staff holiday to sunny Marbella as a reward for all their hard work.

The story has become such a hit with leading tabloids because it has everything an online story needs to be easily digested: There’s the Costa del Sol and Marbella; there’s pretty girls in bikinis; there’s the sunny backdrop; and there’s more than enough to make everyone reading it jealous.

The managing director of Red7 Ian Lucas must no doubt be enjoying all the free publicity. It also reflects well on him as the owner of a specialist in partying and travelling. It’s clear the man knows how to choose a good location, a good time, good reasons, and a good vacation length to reap plenty of excellent PR.

There’s a larger story working itself out here outside of the generous boss doing a generous thing. That is the question of what makes Marbella the destination of choice for these kinds of work-based rewards.

Now we do understand that most British firms will just spring for a hundred quid or so at a local Wetherspoons when they decide to treat their staff, but there is still the curious trend – mostly found in London recruitments, sales, and marketing companies – that looks at Marbella as being the carrot on a stick at the end of the year, the reward for hitting targets, the dream of summer that can be realised when the staff go above and beyond to boost business and make money.

There’s no denying it’s a smart strategy; work out a target that allows for a Marbella trip while still keeping the company firmly in the black. Even if it doesn’t go as planned, profits and staff motivation are still on the up.

Marbella is the perfect choice of destination for something like this. It’s close – which allows for a few days stay; unlike the Caribbean which – while appealing visually – is not worth the cost in terms of productivity and financial cost. Marbella has a reputation for being glamorous, which sure to motivate staff to see and enjoy it for themselves. The on-the-ground costs of staying in Marbella are cheaper than most people realise, and it offers a wealth of variety. Companies can hire their own yachts, nightclubs, beach bars and restaurants, or they could just stick their staff in a hotel room and leave them to their own devices until it’s time to go home.

As great as Benidorm, Barcelona, Tenerife and Ibiza are, they have either too little going on or too much (particularly Barcelona) to make them a viable destination for work reward programs. On the other hand, Marbella offers the complete package and has an undeniable level of prestige that make it stand out.

If you’re out on the beach and you happen to see some office workers packing away the cocktails, you should cut them some slack. They’ve likely worked long and hard to get there!

Spain Ranked Third-Most Popular Destination by World Tourism Organisation

Spain Ranked Third-Most Popular Destination by World Tourism Organisation

Southern Spain continues to be very attractive to all visitors

coming to Spain

The latest data from the UNWTO – Word Tourism Organisation – ranks Spain as the third in global tourism rankings for 2016.

The data showed that 68.2 million visitors flocked to Spain last year, putting it behind the USA (with 77.5 million visitors), and the first-place France, which saw a total of 84.5 million visitors from overseas.

The statistics from the UNWTO are a little different from other metrics as they record every visitor from a foreign country, rather than just legitimate tourists booking an overnight stay at the very least. This is the likely reason that France came in first, as many people pass through the country on their journeys to surrounding countries.

This doesn’t mean that France doesn’t have a strong tourism market though, it just means that France – which finds itself in the middle of the UK, Italy, Belgium, and Germany – is always going to deal with a lot of ‘visitors’.

Spain – on the other hand – has land borders with just Portugal, France, and Andorra – and it isn’t as large or as populated as France is. The UNWTO also published a separate set of data about the number of tourists per resident. This metric saw Spain beat France; drawing 1.4 tourists for every resident, beating the 1.25 France scored.

An interesting note is that Andorra – that small principality between Spain and France – that topped the charts for tourists-per-resident; drawing in a massive 33.5 tourists per resident.

As far as overall numbers go, Spain is just in front of China (56.9 million overseas visitors during 2016), Italy (50.7 million) and Turkey (39.4 million). The UK came in eighth for the total number of visitors, pulling in 33.4 million tourists during the year; just behind the 35 million of seventh-place Germany.

The top ten was completed with Mexico in ninth with 32.1 million tourists and Russia in tenth with 31.3 million.

The Spanish tourism sector is expected to continue to grow this year; growing 3.2% over 2016 figures.  Southern Spain and the costa del sol breaking all records.

Malaga the Second-Most Popular Cruise Ship Destination in Spain

Malaga continues to be a great stop of for Cruise Ships

Malaga the Second-Most Popular Cruise Ship Destination in Spain

Have you ever gone on a cruise? Despite the stereotype that old people are the ones taking cruises are over 50 years old, cruises are becoming more popular with the younger generations of Europe. There are so many young people taking cruises, in fact, that cruise companies are changing the way that they market holiday packages.

What’s likely not about to change any time soon is where these cruise ship passengers choose as their destination. A cruise ship needs to offer something special to be worthwhile, from the beautiful Caribbean to the sunny Aegean and frozen fjords of Norway.

The main highlight of cruises has always been docking at an incredible port city. It seems that this includes plenty of places in Spain this March. Data from Cruise Trade News has shown that the port of Malaga was the second-busiest port in Spain across March in terms of cruise ship traffics. The top spent went to bountiful Barcelona.

This is hardly going to be a surprise for regulars to the Costa del Sol who understand the beauty held by the city of Malaga. The city has medieval architecture, breathtaking vistas offered by the incredible vantage points, and tightly winding streets that all contribute to the plentiful number of reasons to visit.

Even though cruise ship passengers might only get to stay in the city for a few hours or days, the city is sure to delight even in such a small amount of time. The reputation Malaga has for being one of the most alluring sights of Spain is only growing; especially in the cruise world.

Travel company TUI are set to send their TUI Discovery 2 cruise ship to the city of Malaga for the first time next month. The ship will be packed with thousands of passengers – and their sizeable wallets – all eager to hit the shops and see the sights.

Managing director of Thomson Cruises Helen Caron said that the company was delighted to name Malaga as the homeport of the TUI Discovery 2. She said that Malaga is the ideal base for families, friends, and couples looking to see a stunning destination.

The TUI Discovery 2 has 915 cabins and is capable of housing 1,832 people. The largest cruise ship in the world – the Harmony of the Seas – impressed onlookers last summer as it pulled into the port of Malaga or a day, heading from Vigo in the northwest of Spain.

Spain Once Again Proves to be Most Popular Destination for Irish Tourists

Spain Once Again Proves to be Most Popular Destination for Irish Tourists

Its no wonder Spain continues to be the best

destination in the world.

There’s an old – and bad – joke that says a holiday isn’t a holiday when the Irish go on holiday to the UK. It is somewhat accurate however. The data from the Central Statistics Office in Ireland showed that the UK was the most popular destination for the Irish last year, with around 2.4 million trips between the two countries.

Most of these trips could be considered to be related to work or family though, and aren’t necessarily holidays. This is the line that the CSO is giving at least, and we’re going to agree with them given that the data also shows 1.5 million of the 7.6 million trips the Irish took abroad last year were to Spain.

If one were to compare the total expenditure of Irish tourists in 2016, it becomes obvious that Spain is the most popular holiday destination and not the UK. Around €993 million was spent in the UK by the Irish across their 2.4 million trips.

On the other hand, around €1.4 billion was spent in Spain from 1.5 million trips. This shows that the Irish are definitely choosing to spend longer (and spend more) in Spain compared to the UK.

All of this data was further backed up by a recent AA poll, which surveyed 7,000 Irish people on their tourism and holiday preferences. The poll showed Spain was the most popular overseas destination for one-in-five tourists, with the USA, Portugal, France, and Italy following behind.

It’s worth noting that Spain has been the top of this particular poll for the past five years.

The excellent weather and the superb beaches and landscape of Spain has been one of the main attractions for the Irish. The most appealing factor, however, could be the affordability of the Costas.

The poll from the AA discovered many Irish under-25s are more cost-conscious as far as travel goes. The affordability and value for money Spain has makes it popular with those in the Emerald Isle.

Even though more people are going abroad for their holiday than before, it’s still obvious that holidays are treated as luxuries. Young people in particular regard them as luxuries because they are less secure financially.

Even though Spain was the ideal choice for 25% of the people polled, “staycationing” in Ireland pulled in 15% of the vote – and second place. We suspect that Ireland will stay in second place until Cork can generate as much bright sunshine as Marbella. Which isn’t likely to happen any time soon.

Spain Named the Safest, Cleanest, and Cheapest Holiday Destination in the World

Spain Named the Safest, Cleanest, and Cheapest Holiday Destination in the World

With the wonderful climate and outstanding food

no wonder Spain is considered the best

country in the world.

The World Economic Forum released their biannual Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report last week, naming Spain as the best country in the world for tourism.

The comprehensive study ranks 138 countries around the world on a range of factors. The main aim of the report is to rank the safety, cleanliness, affordability, leisure options, and accessibility of each nation.

Spain edged ahead of Germany and France this time when it came to destinations for global travellers thanks to several factors.

The World Economic Forum said that one of the reasons Spain came in first was because the country places such a heavy emphasis on tourism. The report praised Spain for how hard the country works to provide high quality airports and air travel, incredible cultural resources, comprehensive tourist-based infrastructure. The country has also become a popular hub for business travel.

Coupled with the natural attractions of the country – the beaches, weather, landscape, and location of the country – it all goes together to make Spain unbeatable.

The World Economic Forum measures all of the factors and policies that allow for the continued development of travel and tourism, which contributes to how well a country develops and competes.

It shouldn’t be much of a surprise that Spain has officially been recognised as having the best tourism reputation in the world. Spain has been the most visited country in the world for the past few years. Success begets success, as more and more holidaymakers head to the country there’s more word-of-mouth recommendations than ever before. The authorities of Spain have also taken all the steps needed to ensure the country stays special.

Second place went to France, with Germany coming third, Japan coming fourth, and the UK coming in at fifth. Despite the drab weather of the UK, the country performed well on cultural and historical attractions, as well as tourism services.

The top ten was rounded out by the USA, Australia, Italy, Canada, and Switzerland.

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.