Call Of The Bulldozers

Fuelled by an unrelenting and in large part British appetite for holidays and accommodation in the Costa del Sol and other fashionable coastal areas, thousands of homes and short-term apartment rental buildings were built on protected land. Now the national government and environmental groups want to roll in the bulldozers.

Playground for the rich and formerly most sought after area to buy property, Marbella in the Costa del Sol has faced the most corruption and planning scandals. Thousands of homeowners continue to battle the threat of demolition of their Costa del Sol apartment, house, or, in the case of Antonio Banderas, 300sq ft wing of a beachside property.

This equality of opportunity, however, has done little to placate property owners who complain it's unfair to apply the law retrospectively. In the aftermath of the threat of demolition, many developers have stopped promoting Costa del Sol accommodation to the scared off British market completely.

Then in March 2008, a court ruling claimed 22 Lanzarote hotels were built illegally. Are none of Spain's concrete jungles safe? Perhaps not, such was the neglect to consider local including ecological factors in the race to acquire coastal land - all of it - for Costa del Sol apartment blocks.

British and other Rich World immigrants and holidaymakers have in this way had a detrimental impact on local communities and habitats in Spain. Local people have been priced out of local housing markets, and swathes of previously unspoilt coastline have been hijacked, and seeded some pretty beastly developments - often tower block constructions - on beachfront land.

Spread thick like butter, high-rise resorts and settlements - each one packed with Costa del Sol apartments for rent or sale - dominate the coastline. It's hard then to imagine this region in the south of Spain, as it was only a few decades ago.

Before the onslaught of urbanisation, starting in the 1950s to meet the demands of tourism, the Costa del Sol was a string of fishing villages. But rural Spain is still there, beautiful and unspoilt in the mountains running down to the coast - just a little inland.

Near but far away from the business of Costa del Sol holiday apartment rental, restaurants with picture-board menus, and bars frequented by hordes of bleary eyed, pink foreigners, you are at once at home in your mind again.

Andalusia is rich with white villages, and national parks. And if you chance upon a bullfight, up high on the screen in some locals' bar, you might wonder if the matador has time to prove their worth before the bull figures out the game and thrusts horns at the person behind the cape.

If the bulls and bulldozers are about to deliver a fateful blow, it might have been better to have never been there, but best get out of the way. One thing's for sure, wake up calls are never easy

Tags to Search For : air travel,discount air travel,student discount air travel,cheap air travel,last minute air travel,private air travel,military discount air travel,air travel search engine,air travel tickets,air travel tips,international air travel,cheap international air travel tickets,discount travel,prepaid visa travel card,travel distances,travel channel,travel deals,air travel,travel insurance,travel directions,last minute travel,travel trailers,time travel

More Articles

The Problems Of Using The Internet To Book A Hotel

... rate. Therefore, whilst advisable to use the internet to begin with, the personal touch will always gain you an advantage. Perhaps a cheeky, but revealing question to ask is either whether the person on the phone has seen the website for the hotel, or what they think of the website. Their reaction can ... 

More To Munich Than Oktoberfest

... around Munich on foot, be sure to stop in at the Hofgarten. It is a palace garden where you can also view the impressive buildings of the University of Munich. Olympic Park (from the 1972 Munich Olympics) is a treat to visit. It is a huge park and recreational area where you can enjoy rollerblading, walkways, ... 

Must See Attractions In Rome

... sculptures. Many other fascinating museums exist in Rome. There are many accommodation options all over Rome. Many of the most interesting monuments and attractions can be found in one area and they are easy to visit on foot. If you want a bit more flexibility, you can hire a bicycle or a Vespa (which ... 

How To Persuade A Hotel To Lower Their Price

... chance. It also helps to call two or three times, at different times, so that you speak to different members of staff. One may be much more flexible than another, and so of course, you keep a record of the discounts offered, and then take up whichever was the lowest. Author Resource:- Victor Epand is ... 

The Sights And Sounds Of Sydney

... limits in the Taronga Zoo where you can go spot the animals at night and even sleep over in a tent. If tenting isn't quite the ideal accommodation for you, Sydney provides all you could ever need as an alternative. Hotels range from budget to top notch luxury hotels with the level of service you would ...