Spanish Property Viewing Trips

Spanish Property Viewing Trips For the last few years – since 2008 really – foreign property hunters wanting to buy a home either for holidays or for a permanent move have been a rare breed indeed in Spain. However, in recent months we have noticed a distinct rise in the numbers of guests visiting us on one of our Spanish Property Viewing Trips, with the thought of looking for a property in the area. More such guests are Adam and Helen, who spent a week with us very recently, bringing their 7 month old son Zac with them, and they had their entire time here arranged around estate agent visits and property viewings. They were already familiar with the southern part of the Costa Blanca, but felt it was not typically Spanish enough for them and had too large a proportion of non-Spanish residents for their liking. They therefore decided to acquaint themselves with our part of the northern Costa Blanca, where there are properties of all sizes to choose from, and often at comparatively bargain prices. They had visited the Place in the Sun property expo in London before deciding to come out here, so were in a good…

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Spanish Property Hunting – Canadians in Spain

Spanish Property Hunting We recently received a reservation for a 6 night regional inspection tour, from Andy, who intended to fly here from England, where he had been visiting his daughter. Andy, however, now lives in Canada (although comes from the UK originally) and is interested in the possibility of purchasing a property here on the Costa Blanca. He is one of a growing band of people who are recognising that Spanish property now represents far better value for money than a few years ago, when prices had risen to unrealistic levels. Andy had done a fair amount of groundwork before arriving here and had contacted various agents to arrange viewings and be shown around the area to make sure that this part of the country would suit him. He arrived with us in the late afternoon on Saturday and took advantage of our evening meal service that night, rather than having to find a restaurant in unfamiliar surroundings. The next day was spent looking at various different types of property, as he did not have fixed ideas of exactly the type of home he was seeking – but knew he would know it when he found it! One thing…

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Spanish Property Hunters – Spanish Property Inspection Trips

Mark and Rosalyn arrived with us on Wednesday lunchtime from England, and are members of an increasing group of people – house hunters in Spain! Now that Spanish property prices here have fallen to levels not seen for several years, the possibility of buying a home – whether for a permanent move or for holiday use – is seen as much more realistic again. They soon settled in to their room and had some lunch here, before setting off on there property viewing trip, to see some properties that they had already shortlisted with an agent on-line. This gave them the opportunity of familiarising themselves with the area a little and getting a general idea of what was on offer. They were also being very philosophical about the appalling weather that we were having during their visit, saying that if the area and properties appealed to them now in the pouring rain, then they would absolutely love the place when the sun was shining! After dinner with us and a good night’s sleep, they set of the next morning with another Spanish property agent to see more houses for sale in several different towns and villages in the area. They…

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Guided Mountain Biking in Spain

David (guide) Mario, Alain & Scott – Mountain Biking in Spain Scott, Alain and Mario from Montreal in Canada arrived on Sunday evening to stay with us for six nights and the purpose of their visit was to spend their time here mountain biking in Spain, in the beautiful mountains and countryside of the La Safor region. Scott and Alain had visited the area before, and although they had hired bikes then, they had not taken advantage of the guided mountain bike service that is available. This time they decided to do just that, and be shown new routes that they would otherwise not have discovered for themselves. After their evening arrival from Canada, they dined with us that night before getting some well-earned rest and attempting to adjust their body clocks to European time. The following morning though, on the Monday, they were eager to get on the road and set off with Dave Warrington from Mountain Biking Valencia on a route of some 30kms in the mountains of the La Safor region, starting from Pla de Corrals. They took a packed lunch with them and had a great time, returning to us in the early evening in time…

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Gandia Golf Course – Oliva Nova Golf

Gandia Golf Course – Oliva Nova Golf More and more people are coming to this part of the Costa Blanca area to enjoy the beautiful scenery and take part in some sort of outdoor activity holiday, and one that should not be overlooked by anyone thinking of this part of Spain is the game of golf. When one thinks of golf in Spain, many are drawn to the south of the country but there are some beautiful courses in this part of the Valencia region as well. One such course is Oliva Nova Golf Resort, situated about 25 minutes’ drive from Gandia Casa Rural. It is located between the towns of Oliva and Denia, on the Costa Blanca. Enjoy a round of golf amongst wild dunes and Mediterranean beach environment. Designed and built by Seve Ballesteros, the Oliva Nova Golf Club course extends to around 50 hectares. It is a par 72 links course of 6,350 m with a slope of 120, the main characteristic of which is that 15 of its 18 holes include water obstacles. The only holes that have no water obstacles are numbers 2, 13 and 14. A technical course, with a gentle undulating terrain, easy…

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Walking in Valencia

Walking in Valencia Yesterday we decided to take a trip to the beautiful city of Valencia to have a walk around the streets and of course to pick up some useful literature from the tourist information office for our guests to use in the coming season. Also on the agenda was to have a look at the famous indoor food and produce market – known as the Central Market or Mercado Central – to see where many of the hotels and restaurants in the city obtain their produce. Valencia is so easy to visit from our area, and the best option is to drive to Xeraco station – one stop up the line, where there is plenty of free parking – and go by train. A leisurely journey through orange groves and rice fields brings you right into the heart of the city to the central station (confusingly called Valencia Nord!), which is perfectly located for exploring the historic centre of the town – all directly ahead of you as you leave the station. It was not the warmest of days to go walking in Valencia (but it is February after all!), so our first mission was to make our…

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