Lloret de Mar - Events

A look back to last weekends Medieval fair -
with a few more photos showing the many attractions to be seen....

The photo below shows a stall holder making wooden toys such as rocking horses, bows and arrows along with shields and swords etc for the children.

Another stall was selling all kinds fruits which were peeled and sliced then sugar coated making a very colourful display..

Below, shows how packed the very narrow streets were, it was just impossible to get through, if one person stopped to look at a stall everyone else had to as well!

Lloret de Mar - Events.

This week- end (25th - 26th Nov) Lloret de Mar steps back in time to the Medieval age!

The event is centered near the church and surrounding streets. Things to be seen are stalls making and selling all kinds of products from clothing and jewellery to toys and soaps.

The stall holders are all dressed in medieval style clothing, and as the photos show they are all demonstrating their various skills...

To give the narrow streets an authentic olden age look they have been covered in straw, and there's also goats, sheep, and brightly coloured cockrels in wooden pens.

This event only happens in Lloret once a year (November)...If you can manage to fight your way through the crowds, it is a really unusual sight which can be enjoyed by all age groups.

 

Costa Brava - Cheap Holidays

Fancy a cheap holiday on the Costa Brava?? With temperatures still approx 21c - 22c here in Lloret you could get a nice suntan before Christmas.

Prices for hotels and aptartments are very low just now. For example.....
7 nights half board in the Samba (26th Nov - 3rd Dec) £213 is the cost for 2 people.
7 nights all inclusive in Guitart Central Park again for 2 people will only cost £305
7 nights self catering in a 1 bedroomed apt in the Almirall Hotel is the cheapest option at £127, although its the cheapest it it very well situated right opposite the beach in Lloret de Mar. So with prices like these its the ideal time for a bit of sun and you can also stock up on your Christmas booze and cigs!  

Costa Brava Summer

As yet there is no end to the Costa Brava summer, although Lloret is much quieter these days with fewer tourist's in town. We are now well into November, and the weather is still very warm, with still a few holiday makers sunbathing on the beaches. The current temp is 21c, with just a little light cloud.

Many hotels and shops are closing down for the winter.

The biggest majority of visitors here now are from France. With only being about 1hr drive from the border, its quite easy for them to nip down here for a weekend break by the sea!
Also during the winter months, a lot of Spanish pensioners come to the coast for a bit of sun, as its now starting to cool down inland.
Snow has already started to fall in the Pyrennees which is good news for the skiers.

Lloret de Mar - Casino

Work is soon to commence here in Lloret on the new casino, which is due for completion in 2008. The cost of the work is said to be around 70 million euro.
Also on the site will be parking for approx 420 cars. The surrounding land is to be a public park.

Barcelona Boat Show.

This week end in Barcelona the 45th International Boat Show is being held. More than 1,600 exhibitors will be showing the latest boats and boating equipment. Dates for the event are 4th - 7th November. Also taking place will be the first BCN Dive at the Gran Via Exibition Hall, where the pool will be used for all kinds of activities.

Larger yachts and boats will also be on show down in Old Port of Barcelona. 

Lloret de Mar - Beach

 

Just a couple of beach scenes recently taken on Lloret beach....

Makes a change from building sandcastles I suppose!

Lloret de Mar - Costa Brava Rally.

Pictures from Saturday 21st October, with good conditions for the rally....

This week-end in Lloret was the '54 Costa Brava Rally' event for the Spanish and Catalan championships...

The main base for the cars was up near the Olympic Hotel where all the cars taking part could be seen, although these cars were on show outside the Town Hall. They were drawing lots of attention from passers-by, with every one wanting to take photo's.

Lloret de Mar - Beach scenes

The season in Lloret is slowly coming to a close. Less people are now here on holiday, these four photos were taken today, the top two showing plenty of room on the beach in Fenals. The weather is still very good with the temperature today being 25c with a nice breeze.

These two photos show the beach at boadella today, just a nice easy stroll over the hill through the woods at the far end of Fenals beach, again with hardly anybody sunbathing. Most of the sunbathers were nudist's who usually use this beach.

 

Lloret de Mar - Bus services

We are very lucky in Lloret to have a bus station with so many links to other places, both near and far. To start with there is a choice of 3 free buses which will take you to either the Go - Karting, Waterworld or Marineland, ( but you do have to pay the entrance fee when you get there)....
There are direct buses to take you sightseeing or shopping in the nearest cities of Girona or Barcelona. Then there is the direct service to the nearest airport of Girona.
Other resorts such as Tossa de Mar or Blanes are also easily reached by bus from Lloret, both places are only 20mins away.
For trips further afield its possible to catch buses to Olot, Palafrugell or Auigamolls, on the way seeing a lot more of the beautiful Catalan countryside!
Also very handy - although not so much these days with the bargain flights available, is that the Eurolines bus company have a ticket office in the bus station. From here you can book and travel to anywhere in Europe.

Lloret de Mar - Weather

After all rain which we've had last week, the weather is now back to normal, for this time of year. The beach is quite busy with the boats and water sports centre up and running again. 

 With the hot weather this year we had a lot of jelly fish out at sea - gladly, they now seem to have cleared up.

The above photo is the glass bottom boat up the coast at Tossa de Mar. This boat goes from Tossa up the coast towards San Felieu, taking you around the rocks and into the many caves there. Where you should be able to see all the different kinds of fish and 'things' that live out there in the sea!! 

Lloret de Mar, Weather .

Over the last 4 - 5 days we have had very bad rain and storms, its certainly gave everyone some thing to talk about. Not only here in Lloret but just about all over Spain. The heavy rain along with thunder and lightening caused severe flooding in many places, so much so that its been the main topic on the Spanish TV news.

Streets here in town were almost deserted, with only people venturing out were those who had to!
The holidaymakers here just now probably didnt fetch suitable clothes or shoes for the unsuspected bad weather, so they have been dodging in and out of their hotels in between downpours in shorts and t shirts!
September is usually a nice month here weatherwise, with the heat being a little less harsh than that which we get in July and August...

Today so far has been dry, although more rain is forecast until Sunday, we may get back to the sunshine then!!

Lloret de Mar - Best Bars

The bar at Cala Banys......

Walking past the statue of the Donna Marina (the lady looking out to sea) on Lloret sea front will bring you to what must be the best location for a bar on the Costa Brava.

The bar is tucked into the cliffs running between Lloret de Mar and Fenals. All the rock has been cut away to enable the building of the bar and also paths and stairways, leading in and out and up and down the cove of Cala Banys.

Drinks are a little more expensive here, but you will find it a very relaxing place to have a drink while looking out to sea - where the only noise heard is that of the waves breaking on the rocks below!

Lloret de Mar - Holidays

Now that we are well into September, all the children are back at school here after a long summer holiday, just as they are in the rest of Europe.

The children above are on a school outing in Girona, all dressed in their very smart uniforms.

Lloret de Mar - Meeting New Friends.

We are now into September with August the busiest month of the year behind us. With September we seem to get a much more relaxed atmosphere in Lloret!
August is the favorite month for many old friends to meet up here.
One family in particular who come back every year, is the Vinall family from Bicester near Oxford.

They have been coming to Lloret for many years now, Colin and Maggie even lived and worked here back in the 80s. Their children Lucas, Callum and Poppy now seem to look at Lloret as their 2nd home, as they come for the whole of August every year!

Here for the first time this year was some of my family, Bev, Daz, Amy and Jodie. They were here for one week and immediately hit it off with all the regulars in town.

So hopefully they will come back to see us again, and all the new friends they made while they were here !!

Lloret de Mar - Marineland

Marineland is an excellent day out for all the family, with everyones favourite - a show put on by the dolphins. Situated just out side Lloret de Mar, its easily reached by the free bus which leaves the bus station every hour starting at 9.15am.

The entry price is 20euro for adults, with a reduced price for children aged 4 - 12yrs, (under 4s are free)

The days entertainment begins with the parrot show at 10.30, followed by the very funny sea lions at 11.30. The dolphins do their excellent show at 12.30, after which the rest of the day can be spent in the waterpark area with the slides and watershutes etc. So it is actually 2 parks in one.... for more info along with video clips and a 3 euro discount voucher click here!

(Looks like Amy enjoyed this water slide, not sure about Daz though!! Hope you all enjoyed your week in Lloret, Hope to see you all again soon :-)

Lloret de mar - Things to do

Once again we had another entertaining night here by the beach in Lloret, with another tribute band - this time ABBA REVIVAL.
As the final part of the Clon Festival, everybody danced and sang along to all the well known Abba songs.

The weather was kind to us, just like it was last week for the Stones revival night, as we have had quite a bit of rain over the last few days.

Lloret de Mar - Things to do.

As I have said before ¨There is always something happening in Lloret¨ and this weekend something really special happened....
We were able to see a free show of the Rolling Stones tribute band - Smoking Stones as part of the yearly Clon Festival here in Lloret. They're show was on Friday 18th August at an outside venue on the edge of the beach. The show started at 10.30 and they played through to 12.30. It was a perfect summer evening, with people dancing and singing to songs which everyone knew from the original 'Stones'

The band originates from this area of Spain and have been together 11yrs, and are said to be one of the top tribute bands in the world of the Rolling Stones. If you are a fan of the Stones music, you will enjoy the Smoking Stones should you ever get chance to see them!

Otherwise you could visit they're website and see them in action in the videos section, click here...

Costa Brava Weather.

Over the last fewdays here on the Costa Brava we have finally had the rain which we have needed for many weeks now (if not months) but for people spending their annual holiday here its a big disapointment. Today however looks a little more like August, although temperatures have dropped from the high 3os we were getting a couple of weeks ago.
It is now 10.15am and currently 22c with hardly a cloud in the sky!
Tomorrows forecast is for the same as today - but more rain is forecast to follow, fingers crossed for our relatives, friends and other holiday makers here it will hold off until they have gone home!

Costa Brava - Camping.

For a change from the normal hotel/package holiday, camping here in Lloret could give you a completely different holiday. The campsites are very well equipped for a family holiday, with different options of accomodation. You can either park up your own camper van or rig up your own tent, but there are also apartments, tents, or chalets to rent.
Facilities include - bars, swimming pool, paddling pool for the younger children, shops , supermarket, electricity, restaurant, showers, laundry and in the high season entertainment.
So every thing what you could need for your holiday is catered for.

The nearest campsite to Lloret de Mar centre is Campingtucan.com which is on the road at the back of the resort.
The other one is Canyelles.com which is located just a short way up the coast in its very own picturesque bay on the beach.

Ryanair - New Route

Starting at the beginning of November is a new long overdue flight into Girona from Yorkshire.
The new link is from Doncaster airport, and will operate three times weekly - Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
Departing from Doncaster at ..... 19.55
Arriving at Girona at .................. 23.10

Return flights operate the same days.
Departing from Girona ................ 18.05
Arrive Doncaster .........................19.30

Some free flights are on offer, but if you are not lucky enough to get one I have seen them for as cheap as £14.99, but for more detailed information go to the Ryanair website at Ryanair.com

Buying Property in Spain.

Every year thousands of British buy a property in Spain, some just for a holiday home but many move out here permenently. What ever the reason may be, its always advisable to ensure you choose the area most suitable for you and your family. Prices are rising every year,but you still get much more for your money here than in Britain...

Coastal propertys are approximately 20% dearer than inland, so it maybe tempting to buy inland, but it's always advisable to make checks on your chosen area, as it may not come upto your expectations. Then after putting down a non-refundable deposit, you may find out that the property you are planning on buying is not connected to all services such as water, electric, telephone and sewage drainage. So it could be too much of a culture shock having to get your water delivered, or the cess-pit emptied once or twice a year!

Once you do find your property, whether its a run-down finca, apartment or one of the best villas around, the buying process is the same. As soon as you pay your deposit, the property will be taken off the market. Your lawyer will then write out a contract of sale, agreeable to both the the seller and the buyer. After which he will do all the necessary checks to ensure the property is free from all debt from the previous owner, and is rightly their's to sell!

It's always wise to remember while you are looking for property here in Spain, the price advertised is not the total cost. On top of the purchase price you should always add on approx 10%, this is for your legal fees and taxes.

If you are planning on buying a resale property its quite normal for the sale to be completed in only a couple of weeks.

So happy house hunting.....don't let the horror stories you may have heard about buying abroad put you off. The best advice I can give you is to, just do your homework on the area you have chosen. A lot of people have taken the plunge and regretted it, but everyone that I know out here are very well settled with no intention of ever going back to the UK (me included!!)

Spanish Artist's.

Some of the worlds most renowned artists have originated from Spain.
To name a few -
Francisco Goya, born in Saragossa. 1746 - 1828.

Pablo Picasso, born in Malaga, 1881 - 1973.

Joan Mirò, born in Barcelona, 1893 - 1983.

Salvador Dali, born in Figueras is the most recent, 1904 - 1989.

Here in Lloret you can purchase your own piece of artwork, a portrait of yourself done in almost any style you choose! Take a walk on the sea front early one evening, and you will see artist's painting their subject's.

So you can take home your very own piece of Spanish art for only about 20 - 30 euro!!