Pousada Convento da Graca - Tavira - Algarve

Pousada Convento da Graca set in a former 16th century Convent
This Pousada was once the Convent of the Cloistered Augustinian Nuns, which was founded around 1569.
It stands on the castle hill on the site of what was thought to be the Jewish quarter. It's most noteworthy features are the 16th and 17th Century Renaissance cloister, the facade facing the main square and the central staircase, both in the Baroque style. Archaeological traces of Islamic origin were discovered during restoration and, as a result, the architectural plans were changed. These items were recovered and are now partially visible from the bar and lounge area.
Pousada Convento da Graca has a total of 36 bedrooms comprising 5 suites and 16 rooms with balcony. One of the suites has a private garden terrace. All bedrooms are air conditioned and have LCD screen television with Cable TV, mini bar, direct dial telephone, safe and hair dryer. The Pousada also has non smoking rooms.
Services and facilities include restaurant, bar, 2 outdoor swimming pools, family games, wireless internet access in some areas, information service and a car park. Pousada Convento da Graca has a museum area featuring 12th Century archaeological remains from the Arab occupation.
Tavira, one of the main towns in the Algarve, was once one of the Moors’ most important settlements and remains of this occupation, and that of earlier civilisations, are still in evidence today. At one time Tavira was a Phoenician village, it was also inhabited by the Romans and, it was an important city during the Muslim occupation.
The Pousada is close to the Gilao River and the Ria Formosa Natural Park, one of the most important points in the network of wetlands which links Europe and sub-Saharan Africa. The region is characterized by lovely sunny days perfect for exploring the beautiful countryside.
There are a number of golf courses nearby including Benamor, Quinta da Ria and Quinta de Cima.
The Pousada is approximately 30kilomteres from Faro International Airport and approximately 160 kilomteres from Seville in Andalucia, Spain.

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Spain surges as rivals flounder

By Jeremy Skidmore (Filed: 06/05/2006)
Spain is expected to enjoy a boom in popularity this summer as British holidaymakers turn their back on its Mediterranean rivals.

Over the past three years, travel companies have reported a decline in bookings to Spain in favour of cheaper destinations such as Greece and Turkey. But that trend has now been reversed, with more Britons creating their own holidays in Spain using no-frills flights and accommodation booked over the internet.
In previous years, most visitors to Spain were families sticking to the familiar destinations of Majorca, Menorca, Costa Brava and Costa Blanca, but visitors are also now venturing further afield, to areas such as the Costa de la Luz and Costa Calida.
There has also been an increase in couples booking city breaks, with Seville, Madrid and Barcelona the most popular destinations. Manny Fontenla-Novoa, chief executive of Thomas Cook, said: "Spanish hoteliers have dropped prices and improved standards, which has made a big difference. And just about every no-frills carrier goes to Spain, which makes it easier for people to build their own holidays."
A spokesman for Thomson agreed: "People see Spain as a safe destination and are comfortable booking their own trips. There are now so many flights there that the prices are very competitive. " The latest statistics from the Civil Aviation Authority show that in the fourth quarter of 2005 three million Britons visited Spain, compared with 2.9 million in the same period the previous year. The number of holidaymakers heading to Spain this summer is expected to surpass the five million who visited in 2005.
Meanwhile, holidaymakers are likely to enjoy bargains to Turkey, Greece and Egypt due to a fall in popularity. Tourists have been put off by scares over bird flu in Turkey and bombs in Egypt.
"Sales to Turkey are around 28 per cent down," said Mr Fontenla-Novoa. "It has been hit by bird flu, but it has also dropped out of fashion, partly because it is no longer much cheaper than Spain. As for Egypt, there was a huge fall in bookings following the recent bombing in Dahab and I'm not sure the destination could withstand another act of terrorism. Companies will have to lower prices to encourage people back."

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Marbella Scandal - 18 Arrests

The Marbella scandal has resulted in over 18 arrests, over six imprisonments including the town Mayor, Vice Mayor and associates along with numerous extravagate artifacts confiscated for the upcoming trial which includes horses, a helicopter and five kilos of jewelry. The mayor of Marbella and 18 close associates were arrested and accused of bribary, corruption and misuse of public funds on March 29th last.
The scandal caught international headlines, severely damaged the PP party and put another black cloud over the already dubbed, Costa del Crime. Those arrested were accused of receiving valuable gifts of money, jewellery, luxury cars and art works in exchange for issuing building licenses and rezoning areas that had been previously designated for gardens, parks and public use.
The sensational charges and arrests still continue and last week the chief of the local police, Rafael del Pozo, was charged following a five-hour interview with a judge. The charges were not clear, but after dealing with the formalities in respect of the €20,000 euro bail for his client, Pozo’s lawyer claimed that there were no accusations of bibery nor misappropriation of public funds. The same day saw before the court, Torremolinos businessman Rafael Llopis was alleged to have paid money to obtain advertising contracts. He was detained without bail bringing the total number in custody to 12. The house of the man alleged to be at the centre of the Marbella corruption, Juan Antonio Roca, has been shown in a video released by the Ministry of the Interior shot inside one of his properties.
It has emerged that the now ex-Marbella’s head of Planning’s house had several animal heads hanging as hunting trophies and stuffed examples of exotic animals he has killed –including a giraffe. A Miró original painting hangs in one of the bathrooms. Juan Antonio Roca is the main person accused of money laundering in a huge operation that covered a lot of Andalucia as well as Madrid. Police also revealed that they had further evidence as a result of the wiretaps they had carried out during the investigation. Meanwhile Marbella’s Deputy Mayor, Isabel García Marcos has presented an appeal against her remand without bail.
She claimed the judge was acting beyond his jurisdiction in the case. Previously, Judge Torres who smashed a huge money laundering racket last year, has jailed six people that he found were involved in the scandal: former mayoress Marisol Yague; deputy mayoress Isabel Garcia Marcos; the head of the Urbanisation department and the alleged head of the corruption ring, Juan Antonio Roca; the Marbella councillor for Traffic and Transport Victoriano Rodriguez; businessmen Ismael Perez and Oscar Benavente and Montserrat Corulla. Police stated that a large part of the cash confiscated was found in a bag that the deputy mayoress of Marbella Isabel Garcia Marcos kept in her home.
As the first part of the operation ended, police found €830,000 in cash, confiscated 275 works of art, 103 horses valued at more than three million Euros, 14 cars, 24 historical weapons, five kilos of jewelry and a helicopter in addition to the five vanloads of documents. Bank accounts containing €2,400 million were also confiscated in the initial raids. In the intial raid, police in Murcia detained one person and collected evidence from various houses, one of which was set inside an estate of 100 hectares that has an orange grove, heliport and three industrial warehouses.
Furthermore, there was a small palace of a house where police discovered a gold mine of objects whose value is difficult to calculate according to media reports. These included old cameras, a large number of jewels, a golden chalice, a highly valued old sextant, and three old Mercedes cars in perfect working order as well as a perfectly working ancient bus. In another development, it has been revealed that the wife of Marbella police superintendent Rafael del Pozo worked for a company affiliated with the town hall and made €4,000 a month. On the political front Manuel Chaves, the regional president of Andalucía, was prepared to dissolve Marbella town council and appoint an administrator in light of the arrests and accusations. However, apparently, he was not prepared to call elections, as the latest polls showed that the Partido Popular would win hands down, and this is something that his party wants to avoid at any cost.
The PP, however, believes that even more unease amongst the people of Marbella would be if an administrator is appointed until the next elections in 2007, and this view is born out by Pio Garcia-Escudero, the PP spokesman in the Senate in Madrid, as it is the Senate that will have the task of legally dismissing the council. Mr. Garcia-Escudero expressed the belief that elections could take place in Marbella on May 27. The Marbella case has landed like a hot potato in the lap of the Andalucian president Manuel Chaves, who has been accused of knowing that a huge mafia-like network of corruption was operating in the region, yet did nothing about it.

The Oracle, Ayamonte
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One third of Brits seek property abroad

The Brits' love of property and of property investment is legendary and it appears to be a passion that is growing stronger.Partly thanks to the number of property investment programmes on television, more and more couples are deciding to retire abroad, while thousands of others decide to invest in foreign property to make money through a mixture of capital growth and rental income.
According to a new survey, almost a third of Britons say they are interested in buying property abroad or indeed moving abroad, with Spain continuing to lead the way in Europe.Based on research from Banco Halifax Hispania, the Spanish arm of Halifax, America and Australia are the favourite choices for potential property buyers, however, which is perhaps tied to family issues.
Nonetheless, in third place on the overall list, Spain is clearly still exceptionally popular with property seekers, helped by the enviable climate and a track record for strong house price inflation.With cheap flights running regularly between the UK and a number of Spanish airports, transportation is also much easier for those buying a property in Spain, whereas lengthy and expensive flights to America and Australia make it an awkward choice for people who would like to make trips back to see family and friends.
Despite rapid growth in the Spanish property market for a number of years, British investors still find they can get hold of stunning villas for extremely competitive prices, while the quality of life in Spain attracts a huge number of holiday home purchasers every year.Rental yields in the likes of Murcia are also generally high, meaning investors are often tempted to buy a property there with the exclusive aim of renting it out for a number of years before potentially moving down to live.
While buying a foreign property is becoming much easier thanks to the guidance of experienced experts, Banco Halifax Hispania has stressed there are certain things that everybody much consider before making the decision.Arranging a bank account is one such consideration, while deciding what will be done with any property in the UK is clearly another. It is also worth considering any inheritance tax rules that could be different from the UK, while registering residency status with both the Inland Revenue in the UK and the authorities abroad is also important.
Opportunities for foreign investment are now greater than ever and as demonstrated in this new research, it is also clear that Spanish property is as popular as ever.

Story from Assetz news

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France and Spain top with overseas property buyers

France and Spain remain the most popular choice for overseas property buyers, according to a new survey. This is because the majority of British overseas property buyers are 'traditionalists' who see their overseas purchase either as a holiday home or somewhere to retire to.
Foreign currency specialist HIFX reports that France and Spain made up almost half (43 per cent) of all its currency transactions for buying property abroad in March. Australia was in third place with 11 per cent of transactions, followed by Bulgaria (ten per cent), USA (four per cent), Canada (two per cent) and South Africa (one per cent).
The majority of Brits are looking for an overseas property that can be used for regular holidays, is easily rentable, with cheap flights, and offers a quick escape to the sun. Those considering retiring abroad are also looking for a well established expat community to help them feel at home. But HIFX has identified a more adventurous group of Brits, the adventurers, who are buying overseas property in countries such as Australia, New Zealand and Canada. This group does not mind travelling long distances in search of a more exotic location than the traditionalists, and often consider emigrating to their holiday home at some point. For this reason they do not want the hassle of a language barrier and are seeking somewhere that is culturally similar to that of the UK.
A further group of Brits, hot spot investors, are buying overseas property primarily for financial gain. They are looking to places like Bulgaria and Dubai, which could offer excellent investment returns because they are up and coming holiday destinations and have rising house prices.
HIFX marketing director Mark Bodega said: "People buy abroad for many different reasons but they tend to fall into three main categories. "For some it's an emotional decision based on a lifelong dream, for others it's an exciting step into the unknown and for some it's simply a financial investment.

Story from about property

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Britons Spend 23bn on a Place in the Sun

A huge demand for homes in the sun has seen Britons' spending on properties overseas increase by 45 per cent in four years.

The number of Britons owning second homes abroad now exceeds a quarter of a million people, at 257,000.

An official report today says British families have invested more than 23 GBP billion in overseas property, with most of that invested in Spain and France although increasing numbers are turning to Canada, the Caribbean and New Zealand.

But people buying villas and apartments have been blamed for soaring house prices in areas of France, Spain and Italy.

Figures released by the Office for National Statistics show that more than a million families in England own a second home, the vast majority of which (72 per cent) are in England, with five per cent in Wales and Scotland, and the remainder overseas.

"In recent years the increasing affordability and accessibility of foreign property markets has contributed to a rise in the number of UK households that own second homes abroad," the report, Social Trends, says.

"Between 1999-2000 and 2003-4 the number increased by 45 per cent."

Spain accounted for 27 per cent of all second homes abroad, followed by France at 20 per cent.

But in 2003-4 over a third of all homes owned abroad were outside Europe with almost 154,000 in the United States.

Property ownership was also increasingly common in countries such as Australia, Canada, the Caribbean, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa and Sri Lanka.

Alex Wright, director of currency specialist HIFX, which assists Britons buying property abroad, said there was strong demand in more adventurous locations.

"Spain and France are still the most popular destinations, but we have seen increased interest for investment property in Bulgaria and Dubai. Even Canada and Switzerland have seen their fortunes rise and new locations pop up all the time, including Egypt, Brazil and central Europe - Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic."

The Association of British Travel Agents estimates that home ownership abroad will double over the next five to seven years.

The Spanish Ministry of Tourism predicts that more than one million foreigners will set up home on the Spanish coast in the next six years, a figure expected to treble by 2025.

Sarah Vaughan, a property specialist and director of a public relations firm based in Spain, said estate agents still received inquiries from British people who thought £100,000 would buy them a four-bedroom property on the Costa del Sol.

"Realistically the minimum you can spend is 145,000 GBP for a two bed apartment, or 210,000 GBP if it is in Marbella.

"The Costa del Sol is going through a bit of a wobble and is not the place to buy if you are looking for a good investment.

"You can still buy places for a song in northern Spain, and inland, but northern Spain tends to be rainy, and without the bars and restaurants, and if you are inland you might not be near the airport, or have a phone connection, or the property might need a lot of work."

Recent research suggested some young Britons were looking abroad to take their first step on the property ladder because house prices were too high in Britain.

A poll of more than 4,600 adults, conducted by YouGov, found that nearly half of the 18- to 29-year-olds questioned planned to buy abroad, with two thirds of those stating that their foreign investment would be their first property purchase.

More than 80 per cent of those first time buyers said they would rent out their property.

The new breed of first time buyers, dubbed the "jet to let generation", said they would spend an average of 101,000 GBP to buy abroad, nearly 80,000 GBP less than the average house price in Britain.

Simon Burgess, a director at Oceanico Developments, a property development company, said: "More than two in five want to live in foreign climes because it's more affordable than the UK.

Story from the telegraph

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Record Numbers of Britons Leave for Better Lives Abroad

Record numbers of people are leaving Britain to live and work abroad, figures show. More than 350,000 men and women are emigrating every year, a rise of 30 per cent in 10 years, The Independent reports.Experts are particularly concerned that the number of people in professional occupations leaving Britain has doubled since 1994.Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that 359,500 people migrated from Britain to other countries in 2004, up from 236,500 in 1994.While the outflow of people was offset by 582,000 foreigners coming to live in the UK for at least a year, there are concerns that Britain is proving less attractive to migrants, whom it desperately needs to plug staffing shortages.Of the people leaving the UK, 207,600 were British citizens, the highest since current records began in 1991. The number of people in the professional classes emigrating almost doubled from 69,000 to 122,000 in the same period.More detailed figures for 2003 show that the number of people going to live in Australia, for the first time, went over the 20,000 mark.
Nursing organisations have been warning that Britain's policy of recruiting nurses from abroad is backfiring as many of the foreign recruits are simply using the UK as a stepping stone before going to the United States, where salaries are much higher.Figures from the Nursing and Midwifery Council show that, last year, 4,393 nurses left Britain for jobs in Australia and New Zealand, double the number who went in 1995.
Howard Caton, of the Royal College of Nursing, said: "It seems that nurses may be attracted to Australia and New Zealand early in their careers. But we are also seeing large numbers of nurses going to America. The opportunities for career advancement can be very good there."We have heard of foreign nurses being recruited by agencies to come and work in Britain, and then, six months later, they are approached by the agency to go and work in the US."Poor workforce planning has also meant that hundreds of newly qualified junior doctors have found that there are no jobs for them in Britain, despite the fact that the NHS needs more staff.
Andrew Roland, deputy chair of the British Medical Association's junior doctors committee said: "These are people who have trained for years to work in the NHS and have then found that there is no job for them."Doctors are not going abroad for an easier life, but to start their careers. The problem is about whether they come back or not."A report by the World Bank last year found that one in six graduates leaves the UK, more than any other Western country. Professor Andrew Oswald, professor of economics at Warwick University, said: "We have a severe problem in holding on to our best graduates. A junior academic economist in Britain will earn about 25,000 GBP's a year; in America, they start on about 50,000 GBP's to 60,000 GBP's."Observers said that the growth in ownership of second homes may also be both a cause and effect of the migration out of Britain.Enquiries to the currency specialist HIFX about buying a property in Australia have tripled since the beginning of this year.
Mark Bodega, marketing director of HIFX, said: "The traditional markets for buying a second home are France and Spain, but we are increasingly seeing people buy in places such as Australia and Dubai."

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