Friday, March 29, 2024
Riacrdo Arranz Photo By Villa Padierna Wikimedia Commons

Four Seasons finally comes to Costa del Sol

THE construction of a brand new Four Seasons hotel on the Costa del Sol is edging closer. The start of the project in Marbella is understood to begin this summer after a €650 million investment was pledged by local business magnate Ricardo Arranz.   The development in...
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DON’T MISS: The Best of What’s On in Spain

Top events in Spain for the week and month ahead from Malaga to Madrid via Barcelona and Cordoba. THE WEEK AHEAD Ronda Romantica (May 11-13). Ronda (Malaga) wholeheartedly returns to the heady days of bandoliers, horsemen, wine and song with performances, markets and processions. Cordoba Patio...
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From Ibex to insects: meet the famous fauna of the Alpujarra of Spain’s Granada

A MOUNTAINOUS region rich with forests and pastures, the Alpujarra supports a wealth of wildlife – from birds to mammals and bees to butterflies.  Although tourism has replaced agriculture as the main income, ‘ganaderia’ (farming) remains important to this day.  Historically, livestock supported local families by...
Aerial Photo Distant View Charming Mijas Pueblo, Typical Andalus

BEACHES: The secrets of Mijas on Spain’s Costa del Sol

THEY turn up in their droves. On tour buses, or in cars, and stretch their legs for about 400 metres. Out come the cameras and the ticklists and, wait… there is the donkey statue, perfect for a family snap, the vista to the sea,...
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The spa town of Lanjarón in Spain’s Granada celebrates the Crosses of May

THE Cruces de Mayo (May crosses festival) is celebrated annually throughout Spain on 3 May. It is popular in Andalucia, with the most famous event - of floral, decorated patios - taking place in Cordoba. It is also celebrated in Granada, including in the...
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Why the city of Cordoba should be top of your travel list right now

SPAIN is not short of beautiful cities oozing history from between the cracks of their ancient iconic buildings, such as Granada’s Alhambra and Sevilla’s Alcazar.  But one comes above the rest, according to a poll published by global travel bible Lonely Planet: that of Cordoba,...
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FOOD: The 10 cities in Spain with the best free tapas

The tradition of free tapas are not only a long-standing tradition in Granada—find out where else with the Olive Press’ Tapas guide
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In with the new: Marbella’s most successful restaurant La Sala has seen a substantial...

It’s 15 years since La Sala launched in Marbella. With a new restaurant, bowling alley, sports bar and estate agency soon to be added, Jon Clarke discovers why the restaurant and lifestyle brand is still going stronger than ever SITTING on a roundabout overlooking the...
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UNDERGROUND COOL: As Spain’s temperatures rise, opt for a cave house

EXTREME athlete, Beatriz Flamini, recently caught Spain’s attention by spending 500 days in a cave in Los Gauchos, near Motril. Her idea was to write about the troglodyte lifestyle and attempt a world record for solo cave-dwelling. Staying 70m below earth, unable to tell day...
Hotel Image For Andalucia Hotel Stays Increase Story Wikimedia

Hotel stays in Andalucia increase by almost 25% compared to last year’s first quarter

Hotels in Andalucia welcomed a total of 3,508,896 travellers during this year’s first quarter, according to the Junta.  This is a 23,9% increase compared to the 2022 first quarter.  These tourists stayed for over 8 million nights in the region, a 24,8% rise in the number...
British Man Breaks Ankle Trying To Escape Arrest For Gang Sex Abuse Of Underage British Girl In Spain's Marbella Area

Marvellous Marbella: Taking a look at the Costa del Sol city synonymous with style...

SWIRLING a glass of flinty French rose, he looked every bit the suave English gentleman you’d expect of Hugh Grant. Holding court with a group of friends on a warm early summer evening, hardly anyone batted an eyelid. It was early June, after all, and Marbella...
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PLAN AHEAD: THE 2023 FERIAS IN SPAIN’S ANDALUCIA

STARTING as cattle markets (or occasionally, religious ceremonies), ferias have evolved into the cultural highlights of the year. They tend to be week-long events in the larger cities, and run from midweek to Sunday in the smaller towns.  Expect food, drink, loud music and flamenco...
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FLOWER POWER: How to get around Cordoba’s spectacular Festival of Patios this May

A PRESIDENT of the Amigos de los Patios association once said, ‘the Festival of the Patios is to Cordoba what San Fermin is to Pamplona’.  Cordoba’s annual festival sees property owners and groups of neighbours open their flower-filled patios to the public for 12 days...
Escalera Arabe Credit Malaga Ayuntamiento

Young woman falls to her death climbing notorious cliff face in Malaga

A 22-YEAR-OLD woman has died after falling 30 meters and hitting her head while climbing in El Chorro, Malaga.  The woman was scaling the ‘Arab Stairs’  in the municipality of Alora when she fell to her death. Emergency services were called to the scene at 11:30...
Malaga Airport Flickr Terry Whalebone

Malaga Airport third busiest in Spain 

MALAGA airport saw 3.7 million passengers during the first quarter of 2023.  This is a 9% increase compared to the same period in 2019, the year before the pandemic started.  These numbers mean that the airport was Spain’s third busiest during the first three months of...
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COSTA TROPICAL ROAD TRIP: the tranquil seaside towns on the N340 of Spain’s Granada...

WITH summertime officially upon us, and temperatures rising, many people dwelling on the south side of the Sierra Nevada are visiting the Costa Tropical of Granada, an hour’s drive away. Lying below the Sierra de Contraviesa, within easy access of the Alpujarra, the old N340...
Village Of Benahavis In Malaga, Spain

Benahavis on the Costa del Sol: Land of milk and honey

FREE tennis, football and golf lessons for kids, plus language, yoga and pilates for adults… is it any wonder Benahavis has seen nearly 30% growth in just over a year? The statistics for this tiny, privileged enclave, a vulture's wing flap inland from on the...
Chefs For Children. credit Chefs for Children. https://chefsforchildren.es/

Army of Michelin starred chefs to descend on the Costa del Sol’s Benahavis

IT is set to be a busy year for tiny Benahavis with two key events this Spring already set to make national headlines. The first this month is the prestigious Chefs for Children event, between the Benahavis cookery school and the Anantara Villa Padierna Spa...
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MÁGIC OF EASTER IN SPAIN: Female soldier leads Foreign Legion squadron across Ronda’s famous...

A TINY female legionnaire leads a crack army squadron carrying Jesus in a Spanish Easter parade this year. The diminutive soldier barks orders at her charges as they march Jesus on a cross around Ronda. The Good Friday midnight March was part of the normal Semana...
Palace Of Medina Azahara Near Cordoba In Andalusia, Spain

LITERARY INSPIRATION: How the ruined Moorish city of Madinat al-Zahra outside Spain’s Cordoba inspired...

WHEN I first heard about the ruins of Madinat al-Zahra, I was intrigued by the idea that a palace-city of such magnificence should have lasted for such a short time. Civilisations come and go, as any reader of history knows but for it to last...
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Explore the most charming streets in Spain’s Andalucia this Spring

SPRING is in the air and that can only mean one thing - warm weather and time to enjoy the outdoors; and what better way than exploring the most charming streets in Andalucia. Andalucia is rich in historic sites, cultural heritage, diverse landscapes and quaint...
Flour Festival Alozaina Credit: Walter Finch

The Flour Fight of the Sierra de las Nieves: One wild way to find...

In the days before online dating, telephones, and even the combustion engine, townsfolk had to get creative in order to find a mate. And Alozaina, a quaint hilltop village nestled in the Sierra de las Nieves, definitely won first prize in the fun and creativity...
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What’s behind Alozaina’s unique coat of arms?

The emblem of Alozaina depicts a woman standing atop a tower throwing beehives onto two Moors who are seen fleeing from below. The history behind this symbol of the village is an intriguing one with Maria Sagredo, a local heroine, taking centre stage.  The story goes...
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Setenil de las Bodegas: A Spanish pueblo paradise inside a labyrinth of steep cliffs

Spain's idyllic white villages are spread out all over the south, below or at the summit of mountains, in forests and hidden canyons, but there’s one pueblo inside a network of caves that deserves to be singled out.  Setenil de las Bodegas, in the province...
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ARTISAN ALPUJARRA – the tradition of crafting, recycling, and upcycling in Spain’s Granada

IN this era of moving towards sustainability, “slow fashion” and handcrafted goods are increasingly popular. The rural Alpujarra of Granada has a tradition of using natural resources to create artisan products. This dates to Neolithic times, over 4,500 years ago, when primitive craftspeople made...
View From Mountain To Costa Del Sol

Mountains of fun: The countryside behind the bustling Costa del Sol takes you to...

LOOK up inland and from just about every tourist resort or villa on the Costa del Sol you can see a line up of soaring peaks. Almost always framed by bright blue skies, the majority of them trump the UK’s highest peak of Ben Nevis...

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