More than 26.1 Million international Tourists visited Spain in the first half of 2013

In June Spain welcomed 6.3 million foreign holidaymakers, marking not just a 5.3% gain over the same month in 2012 but also setting a record for June since Frontur began to measure border movements. Overall, Spain was the preferred holiday destination for more than 26.1 million international tourists, which represents a 4.2% or 1.1 million increase year-on-year.

Many of these tourists are first-timers, visitors from emerging markets such as Scandinavia, South America, Russia or China. They come and like what they see in Andalucía. More often than not, the purpose of their next visit is to find a more permanent holiday home at the Costa del Sol. Andalucía welcomed 817,000 international visitors in June this year, which represented an increase of 2.5% to 2012.
 
Although the Balearics are at present the preferred destination for visitors from Scandinavia, more and more of them discover the delights of resorts like Marbella, Manilva, Estepona or Fuengirola. Package holidays seem to be falling out of favour, as visitor numbers arriving without a booked holiday package rose by 10.3%, while those with a booked package tour dropped by 4.2%.

With Spanish property prices still in free-fall, investors can look forward to good holiday lettings yields in the future, if they buy a property now. Guadalmina, an affluent beachside community in Marbella, is a good place to start a property hunt. The area is located a mere 10 minutes from Marbella’s prestigious Puerto Banus development as well as being just a 10 minute driving distance from the town of Estepona. Within even closer reach is the village of Sand Pedro de Alcántara, an affluent neighbourhood where beachside apartments can easily cost EUR 900,000 and more.

Guadalmina boasts three international schools, which is something buyers from Russia and China are always particularly interested in. Swans Primary School, Aloha College and Calpe College are all within a short driving distance of the main urbanisation.

The area is also blessed with a 36-hole golf course as well as the golf courses of Monte Mayor, El Paraiso and Atalaya Golf. For permanent residents or those staying in their holiday home part of the year there is some serious pampering to be enjoyed at the health clubs of the area: El Paraiso’s commercial centre offers excellent health club facilities alongside a great choice of shops, cafes and restaurants, banks, a large supermarket and various furniture stores.

There is plenty of property choice from around EUR 250,000 upwards, although the recession has made it possible for people to find Marbella apartments for less than EUR 100,000. These are mainly second-hand properties, older apartments or studios that make a perfect starter holiday home; provided one includes some money for refurbishments and new furniture into the overall costs, they can be amazing bargains.

From around EUR 380,000 upwards it is possible to find small town houses or out-of-town villas with small gardens. These are mainly heavily discounted repossessions and may also be in need of some tender loving care and refurbishment.

The affluent and very traditional San Pedro de Alcántara neighbourhood lies on the main coastal road, the N340/A7. about 10km west of Marbella. It is also close to the new toll motorway, the AP7. Malaga Airport and Gibraltar are the nearest airports, providing easy access to pretty much everywhere else within Europe and beyond. Both can easily be reached within an hour.

San Pedro offers residents a different life than the rest of Marbella: here the clean and central shopping area is reminiscent of days gone by, before package-holiday hoards descended on Spain’s Costas. One can stroll in perfect tranquillity and enjoy the lovely parks and public gardens, explore charming squares and hidden courtyards at leisure and in peace.
 
The modern part of San Pedro, Nueva Alcántara, is the location most property hunters head for, as the luxury apartments built here overlook a long stretch of newly built promenade and golden beaches. It’s an excellent area to invest in, but only for those with more than EUR 500,000 to spend.