Alta Vista Spain, www.altavistaspain.com & Michael Liggan wonder just how do you most effectively measure the success of a tourist area; sunbathing bodies on beaches? Cafés and restaurants filling to capacity every night? Hotels packed to bursting point?
Well, if the local airport feels the need to construct a brand new, state-of-the-art terminal to cope with the massive influx it’s a pretty reliable indicator of an area’s enduring appeal. It is perfectly normal during August for half a million tourists to fly into Málaga’s Pablo Picasso Airport from other parts of the EU alone. This has meant that airport employees have had to maintain almost superhuman levels of efficiency to ensure that travellers start their holidays by moving through the arrivals hall as quickly as possible.
Known locally as T3, the new terminal was officially opened on Monday March 15th 2010 by King Juan Carlos. It is hoped that T3 will result in the total passenger capacity increasing from 12 to 30 million per annum.
However, as Michael Liggan of AltaVista Property Spain notes, it’s not just tourists who will feel the benefit of this new building.
“Whether you have bought a property on the Costa del Sol as a holiday home, a rental prospect or as an investment to sell on, T3 is bound to have a positive effect on your life. When visitors realise that they can be processed and passed through passport control and customs very quickly it makes a trip out here even easier.”
Despite the appeal of destinations further afield, such as Turkey and Florida, Spain has more than held its own as the tourist spot that most appeals to British holidaymakers.
Liggan observes, “The number of UK visitors to Spain increased by 1.1% in January this year, which is traditionally one of the quietest months, so it looks as though T3 has been a solid investment for the future.”
www.altavistaspain.com
