19th July 2010:
The Brussels EU headquarters have approved the final loan for the Murcia International airport Corvera. This is welcome news for all Murcian property owners as the airport sits in the middle of all the golf resorts and will make travel to the resorts much more convenient.

The construction that is well under way had slowed almost to a halt as the city waited for approval from the EU that the loan offered was in fact legal and that the funds could be released. The EU have deemed that in fact it is legal and now with that word we will see the airport construction continue and the pace pick up. It has also been confirmed that the construction company are arranging to employ more workers to speed up the completion which is likely to be around June 2011.

30th June 2010:
The Mayoress of San Javier has announced that a new bus route will start functioning on July 1st, to and from San Javier airport. This will link the airport of Murcia to Cartagena, Alicante, San Javier and the Ciudad del Aire.

The timetable will be linked to the times of arrivals and departures, and has yet to be announced. The two buses which will drive the route have been fitted with ramps for wheel chairs and pushchairs. This is something that locals have been demanding for a long time, and will make taking a flight much easier

20th April 2010:
ALHAMA DE MURCIA will hold its first Roman Market, organised by Amata, on 24th and 25th April at 11.00 till 14.00 and from 17.00 till 22.00 (Sunday closing at around 21.00) in the Plaza de la Constitución. There will be Gauls, druids and slaves and food, trinkets and necessities for the refined Roman household.

All merchandise is handmade: silver; glass; wood; ceramics; leather; fabrics - beautifully crafted, with stalls offering tasty traditional foods. Gaulish soldiers and musicians will entertain and there will be a man-powered merry-go-round and workshops for the children.

Alhama de Murcia is off the A7, 35 kms from Murcia toward Granada, exits 627 and 631.

25th March 2010:
There is to be a BBQ party and evening with a live group on Sat. 3rd April from 7pm onwards on El Valle resort near the clubhouse. The cost is 10 euros per person with no charge for kids.

3rd March 2010:
Paramount pictures is considering the Murcia region as a possible location for a giant theme park to rival Disneyland Paris.

7th Feb 2010:
It has been reported that the golf course at Las Terrazas de la Torre will be open within the next 3 weeks and is looking excellent. Work is also continuing on the Town Centre there.

27th Jan 2010:
The new Hacienda Riquelme Golf Society will be holding a golf day on Sunday 28th Feb 2010. It will be a team event similar to last year with lots of great prizes and a trophy to win.

Serious work has begun on restoring the old Hacienda building and on commercial facilities on Hacienda Riquelme resort. Major Spanish building company ETOSA are doing the work. Therefore new facilities should be available May - June 2010.

It is reported that China is to invest 1 billion euros in the Murcia region in a logistics and entertainment complex to begin in 2011 and complete in 2013-2014.

The project is known as Special Zone of Chinese Investments and will include 2000 apartments, shopping and entertainment complexes, and educational facilities in addition to a theme park showcasing the Chinese cultural heritage. The complex will be built in Lorca.

A commercial area is also part of the plan which will include business and services of China, a casino, food services, entertainment services, a five star hotel and a golf course.

Lorca is only a short drive from Condado De Alhama.

6th Jan. 2010:
The Golf Course at Condado de Alhama resort is now open. There is also a temporary Club House in the Al Kazar town centre, and also a pro shop.
 
There are also two restaurants open on site now as well as the Clover Bar:

LIMONERO – this restaurant serves a variety of rice dishes all cooked over an open fire, and traditional paella.

ACACIA – this restaurant serves the best of Italian cuisine with dishes like pasta, risotto and pizza.

Both restaurants are housed in the luxurious and beautiful setting of the Al Kazar town centre

4th Sept. 2009:
Festival of Carthaginians and Romans - 19th to 28th Sept. 2009
Cartagena is a beautiful Mediterranean city on a unique setting of south eastern Spain. Mastienos, Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians and Romans, Byzantines and Arabs, all left their historical traces and forged, with the passing of the centuries, the idiosyncrasy of contemporary Cartagena natives.

It is a bright and cheerful city where the sun shines for more than 300 days a year. Its gentle weather, with mild temperatures in winter, and the beautiful, rich variety of its landscapes make Cartagena a place of extraordinary tourist appeal, where one can also find interesting ruins, XVIII-century castles and fortresses, as well as late XIX and early XX century modernist buildings.

Cartagena lives within history, but history is also alive in our city, so intensely that our people played a leading role in the events which took place in this region more than 2200 years ago, turning them into a unique festival in Spain: Carthaginians and Romans.

This festival is based on the second Punic War and on characters such as Hannibal and his winning rival, Cornelius Scipio. Celebrations begin with the foundation of Qart-Hadast by Asdrubal in 223 B.C. and end with the Roman victory in 209 B.C. For ten days, all the heroic deeds which took place during the years of the Carthaginian rule, as well as the defeat and invasion by the Roman Empire, are performed and lived in an unparalleled atmosphere by natives and foreigners alike. Troops and legions represent the scenes of events based on the city history and perform grand parades in which the costumes and armaments one would only expect to find in film productions are there on the streets. In the second fortnight of September, Cartagena and its people get inside history and revive it for ten magnificent days in which the heroic deeds of Carthage and Rome are remembered. The scenes are usually staged at the very place in which the event took place in ancient times.

THE CAMP
In a huge setting, the 50 groups (more than 5.500 actors) which embody Carthaginians and Romans decorate the camp and put up bars open to all the visitors. In this way, the camp becomes a big city set in ancient times where the art and symbols of Rome and Carthage, Greece, Iberia and Phoenicia are found all around. Joy, hustle and entertainment are the stars of these nights where one can eat and drink with Scipio himself, share a wedding cake with Hannibal, witness the kidnap of a beautiful damsel or the invasion of enemy tents by Carthaginian and Roman warriors. The Carthaginians and Romans Festival typifies the way of thinking and acting of a city which has managed to blend present and past to playfully live what it was.

22nd July 2009:
The Clover Bar on Condado De Alhama opened today. Reports are that they have good cold beer, fast service and great surroundings!

6th July 2009:
A new shuttle bus timetable has been released - you can download it here (note that the file is an Excel Spreadsheet). The Polaris shuttlebus "shuttles" between the various Polaris World resorts all day and evening.

6th July 2009:
Yoga lessons are to be held at the La Torre Intercontinental Hotel on Friday July 17th from 7pm until 9pm. Limited places are available. Not sure if this is to be a regular class at this stage.

1st July 2009:
The website at www.GolfHolidayHomes.com (from the makers of PolarisRentals.com) goes "live" on the web. Explore golf holiday properties available to rent throughout the world.

16th June 2009:
The creators of PolarisRentals.com announce that they have a new golf property rentals website in development which will feature golf property rentals throughout the world. The new website is at www.golfholidayhomes.com and you can get more information from there.

1st June 2009:
You can save 25% on green fees at La Torre, El Valle and Hacienda Riquelme resorts during June, July and August 2009 with every green fee booked through Club Mercia The offer applies to all 18 hole reservations. Details available at www.ClubMurcia.com

17th April 2009:
Ex England football hero Martin Peters visited La Torre resort recently. He flew in to hit a few balls on the golf range and to shoot a promotional video.

7th April 2009:
The 12th San Javier Jazz Festival takes place this year between June 27th and July 25th. Artists taking part include John Fogerty, Steve Windood and Randy Crawford. 

16th March 2009:
The InterContinental Hotel at La Torre has a great new brunch offer at the hotel - traditional Murcian cuisine with entertainment on hand for the children.
The brunch offers rice in three different styles and Fideuá and is priced at €22.

12th March 2009:
At the InterContinental Hotel at La Torre on Friday March 20th. An event called Fiesta Flamenca which is a taste of authentic Spain featuring the fantastic Los Pinana group and dancing plus beautiful guitar led flamenco music.
The hotel is hosting a set menu meal for the night (€38 adults, €18 children) and it the event starts at 21:00.

14th Feb 2009:
The brand new 5 Star Hotel InterContinental has now opened on La Torre golf resort. The hotel offers 133 luxury rooms, an exclusive wellness centre and several choices for dining

14th Nov 2008:
July 2008 saw the start of the construction of the new international airport in Murcia. The airport is expected to take its first flights in the summer of 2010, and  will be one of Spain's largest airports. Once flights begin in 2010 this will be excellent news for tourism and holidays and therefore also rental opportunities in the region.

18th Jan. 2008:
The new medical centre is now open on La Torre resort. The centre offers general medical services, physiotherapy and medical products and can also arrange appointments at other medical centres.