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Just a few weeks ago on the 29th October was the Grand Opening Celebration of Hard Rock Cafe Marbella. The Marbella cafe is Spain’s fifth Hard Rock Cafe after Barcelona, Madrid, Mallorca and Gran Canaria. It is situated in the heart of Puerto Banus, on the corner of Plaza Antonio Banderas, opposite the El Corte Ingles department store and adjacent to the Marina Banus shopping centre. The new establishment is of around 1000sqm and has recently received a 2.5 million euro installation and decoration investment. There is space for around 300 people. As well it includes a bar, an open-air terrace and Rock Shop, and also features Hard Rock’s limited-edition merchandise. The new cafe is expected to create about 70 permanent jobs and up to 100 in summer and will definetly bring some more tourists to the port of Marbella. Read more »

Marks & Spencer (M&S) is a major British retailer with over 885 stores in more than 40 countries around the world. But there was none in Spain. The company had stores in Spain before, in Madrid and Sevilla, but closed it eight years ago. But with Marbella as a city with many english people living here they want to try it again now and will use the new store in La Cañada Shopping Centre as a pilot for further expansion. The new store in Marbella is being established on a franchise basis by the same company which has been in Gibraltar since 1968, which is York Marbella SL. The new shop is on the second floor store in La Cañada, next to Benetton.

Making excellent use of the space, the 1.300 square metre shop squeezes in a good selection of clothing, the ever popular lingerie, home wear, gifts and children’s wear. Attracting more than its fair share of interest was the food store, which although small, is packed full of delicious British goodies including much of the ambient food range, including teas, biscuits, crumpets, chocolate, competitively priced wines, and a superb selection of frozen goodies, among them many mouthwatering Indian, Chinese and Italian dishes. About three million euros have been invested in the new Marbella store which will employ between 50 and 70 people according to the time of the year.

The famous action hero Dolph Lundgren is the new Ambassador of Marbella. The swedish actor lives together with his wife and his two daughters in Marbella. The actor, director, script-writer, producer and once Captain of the Swedish National Karate Team is well known for his martial arts films in Hollywood or the part of Iván Drago in Rocky IV besides Sylvester Stallone and as well played together with James Bond in “A View To A Kill” where he had to protect his partner, actress and singer Grace Jones. Besides Alejendro Blanco, President of the Spanish Olympic Committee, Dolph Lundgren is the second Ambassador of Marbella.

Considerations are many when planning a family holiday; are there adequate facilities to keep the children and yourselves entertained? Is the resort/hotel you are staying in close enough to the attractions? Will the children get bored while they are there? Is there enough places to go and visit close-by? After you have overcome these hurdles, your next decision should be what method of transport you will use on your travels that will cater for your family’s needs and suit your holiday best. Package holidays are still a popular choice for many families, due to the fact that specialist companies often have decades of experience in catering for families. On arrival at the airport you will find your transfers are all arranged and all you have to do is get on the coach and be taken to your hotel. If you are of a more independent mindset and have organised your trip off your own back, you may have opted for a taxi to get you to your accommodation for the night or will have already arranged car hire. Read more »

Now is the perefct time to visit the Costa del Sol or at least to book your holidays. The weather is still ok, I mean, better than in northern european countries and the prices are down until the season starts again. Obviously the high season is over and the prices have dropped a lot. And in times of crisis many hotels have even special offers to attract tourists. A good example is Hostal Casa Mercedes in Nerja. They have a special offer until December 23rd. Get 4 nights and only pay 3 or get 7 nights and pay 5. You get the same between January 7th and February 7th which is the perfect time to relax after christmas. If you are more looking for a real holiday package, then they even offer holiday + spa + sightseeing. Between February 7th and March 7th you pay the normal price of 315 euros for a full week of holidays in one of their rooms with terrace (two persons) and you’ll get two free entrances to the famous Nerja caves (Cuevas de Nerja) and two entrances for a termal circuit in the Spa Paraiso de Agua in Nerja. Have a look on the website from Hostal Casa Mercedes in Nerja for this special offers.