Spanish Property in Costa Calida
Aguilas | Cartagena | La Manga | Mar Menor | Mazarrón | Murcia
Costa Calida literally translated is ‘Warm Coast’ and is aptly named, making it a perfect location to buy a Spanish property to enjoy a slower pace of life. The major attraction is, of course, the Mediterranean coast with beaches of fine sand. The salt-water lagoon Mar Menor and La Manga del Mar Menor offer great for water sports. The inland area is very dry, almost desert like in places, but with many towns still boasting medieval structures and buildings.
Typical cooking includes stews, salads, roasted meat, rice, and of course great sea-food all along the coast. Murcia also produces renouned wine of high quality - what better way so spend you evenings in your Spanish property than with fine wine and fine food?
Approximately 155 miles in length, Costa Calida borders the Alicante province in the North and ends in the South in Águilas, towards the border of Costa de Almería. All along the coast are plethora of small towns such as Los Urrutias, San Javier and Los Alcazares, each having a truly traditional feel to them.
The Costa Calida is serviced by Murcia (San Javier) Airport into which a variety of budget airlines fly from UK airports, making your Spanih property a short, cheap trip away.
Aguilas
Aguilas boasts 28 kilometers of coastline offering many unspoilt, beautiful secluded beaches. It is a paradise for divers, and caters for all types of water sports with the Marina Club Nautico de Aguilas. With its varied coastline and crystal clear waters it guarantees to be an unforgettable experience.
In the centre of Aguilas you will find the resplendent gardens in the Plaza España, the 19th century Town Hall and the church of San José. In the old quarter stands the castle of San Juan de Aguilas, built in 1579, at the foot of which you will find the harbour and a typical lighthouse.
CartagenaVery few European cities have the rich history that of Cartagena. It was founded almost 2,300 years ago under the name of Quart Hadast, by the Carthaginian chief Asdrubal. Occupation of numerous civilisations (Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Byzantines and Arabs to name a few) have left the city with a unique heritage.
Despite the slightly deshevilled feel as you enter the city, if contains a wealth of history and wonderous architecture. If you explore the port area you will find a unique blend of old and new. The large naval base occupies a large area and throughout the city, the importance of the port being obvious as you explore. Here you will find the Naval Headquarters, Artillery Headquarters, Dockyard Gate, Midshipman School and a Naval Museum. On the hilltops that surround Cartegena you will still see several forts and castles.
There are plenty of parks and squares to visit, invariably surrounded by restaurants and bars and you will almost certainly find life here relaxing. The beach offers a wide range of activities from sailing to windsurfing and good diving while the local countryside is perfect for hiking, horseriding and cycling.
La Manga
La Manga has more than 40km of beaches and offers the unique proposition of choosing between two seas with very different water temperatures, the Meditteranean with waves and the Mar Menor which is practically calm all year long.
The jewel in the crown is the luxurious resort of La Manga cocooned by the pine-covered Murcian hills set amongst the lemon groves and dotted with thousands of palm trees, an area the size of Monaco features three 18-hole championship golf courses, one of Europe’s finest tennis centres, and many other excellent sporting and recreational facilities favoured by top sportsmen the world over. At the heart of the resort lies the stunning Hyatt Regency Hotel resort, whilst small clusters of villas and apartments populate the surrounding hillsides. In fact the number of hotels at La Manga make up 50% of the total hotels in the region.
Mar Menor
Mar Menor (litterally "Little Sea") is a unique area which has both a saltwater lake and a Mediterranean shoreline. The salt water lake with an area of 170sq.km is the largest salt water lake in Europe, divided from the Mediterranean by a 13-mile peninsula of land.
The Romans valued the area highly and developed a valuable salt industry. However, it was about 1000 years ago that the lake took on the appearance that it has today. The Romans called it 'Belich' and used it as a port of refuge from bad weather. It was much deeper in those times so could cope with even the largest of Roman vessels.
The Mediterranean shoreline is a rugged landscape of beach coves and sheltered bays with natural sandy beaches while lying on the other side of the spit are natural salt lakes where people come to apply the mud from the bed of the lakes to their bodies, then wash it off in the Mar Menor. The Spanish firmly believe that this process relieves aches and pains and is especially popular with those who suffer from arthritis and muscular problems.
The average annual temperature here is 17ºC and the average during the summer is above 21ºC. With over 3000 hours of sunshine a year and the mild climate, the water here can reach an incredible 30º in the hight of summer. The coast of the Mar Menor is flanked by small towns, in the past homes to fishermen and today, tourism magnets. San Pedro del Pinatar in the north covers 21.7sq.km and has 15,200 inhabitants which can swell to 60,000 in the summer months. Below this is San Javier with over 20,000 residents.
Mazarrón
Puerto de Mazarrón is a seaside resort town with excellent hotel facilities, a lively nightlife and a bustling, working fishing port complete with fish auction. About 3km from Puerto de Mazarrón is the town of Mazarrón with some excellent buildings including the Town Hall and several churches as well as the ruins of Velez Castle.
Murcia
Murcia was founded in 831 by Abd-Al-Rahman II in the centre of the Valley of the River Segura. The construction of the city wall belays the importance of the city while under Arab rule, and the remains of part of the wall are still visible in different places around the city. The originall wall measured 15 metres in height and had 95 towers!
Murcia is defined by its old history of commerce and agriculture even now. It original inhabitants - Iberian tribes - forged commercial relations with the Phoenicians and the Greeks. Later it became a Carthaginean colony, then a Roman colony. (Carthago Nova, today's Cartagena still reminds us of that historical fact). The Moors then went on to establish effective and modern agricultural production, which still today is an important economic factor for the city and region.
The square in front of the cathedral is the heart of the city, and is occupied late into the evening with the enjoyable hustle and bustle so typical of Spanish city pavement cafés, tapas bars, bodegas and restaurants.
