Jane is a an owner who lives nearby and is a fluent Spanish speaker (oh and also French and Italian no less!). That means she’s as good as a local so knows all the best things to see and do. On top of that she even brings guests fresh bread and desserts. Now that’s a place we’d like to stay…
“When we go to clean the pool every other day we also arrive with a ‘loaf of the day’ fresh from the oven, or if we know they are planning a special meal we may take a home-made dessert”.
1) Tell us a little about your holiday let
We live in Almería in South East Spain, the driest place in mainland Europe, where the sun genuinely does spend the winter. We have two properties, the B&B (Finca la Serenidad) where we live and a large house (Las Tortugas) for holiday lets. Las Tortugas is a spacious country house set in a half acre walled plot with no near neighbours, two minutes from one of the most popular golf courses, Valle del Este, and about 10 minutes from the coast. It has wonderful 360º views, especially to the Sierra Cabrera to the south. Inside it is arranged on two floors, with two bedrooms/bathrooms, kitchen and a vast amount of living accommodation on each floor. The most popular area of the house, summer and winter, is the huge covered terrace beside the pool with ample sitting and dining furniture for up to 10 people.
2) What made you buy your holiday let – was it financial, emotional, a connection with the area, or something else?
We had always wanted to retire early to the sun and have a small B&B, preferably in France, but the weather was simply not good enough in the winter. We had never really considered Spain until we met a couple who lived in this lovely, unspoiled part of the country, so we came in 1999 and fell in love with the pace of life, the wonderful rugged scenery and the fabulous climate, and moved here permanently in 2001. The original intention was to build a house to do B&B but the planning process was taking so long that we needed something to do while we waited, so we bought Las Tortugas to do up meantime. It was a much longer project than we intended and took 4 years as it is a very large house and was in dreadful condition. Once we had finished it, our new house was still not ready, and we began to do B&B there. By the time La Serenidad was finally finished we felt so attached to Las Tortugas that we decided to keep it as a holiday rental.
3) What’s the best thing about the region your holiday let is located in? Is it the scenery, the pace of life, the locals, the activities, etc?
We love it that this area has not been over-developed like the other Costas. It is possible to drive less than 5 minutes from the centre of Mojácar, and be completely in the country. In our local village it is easy to fit in – although there a large number of expats from all over the world, they are well integrated into the community. The scenery is dramatic and over the millennia geological disturbances have made it very interesting. In the Cabo de Gata Natural Park are some of Spain’s best beaches and the sea around the Cabo is one of the most important marine habitats in the Mediterranean.
4) What are the 3 special touches you add to enhance the guest experience?
1. We are able to offer our guests a wealth of advice about the area based on the years we have been living here. This is particularly useful for those who are coming with the intention of buying a property here themselves, as we have been down so many paths in that respect: buying land, building from scratch, buying a house in need of renovation etc.
2. I am fluent in French, Spanish and Italian which is a big help!
3. When we go to clean the pool every other day we also arrive with a ‘loaf of the day’ fresh from the oven, or if we know they are planning a special meal we may take a home-made dessert.
5) If a guest had just one day in your holiday let what would you recommend they do for the perfect experience?
Assuming guests don’t want to simply laze around the pool all day (although who could blame them?!), the ideal day out would be to Cabo de Gata, for a look at the flamingos on the salt flats, and a visit to the museum at Rodalquilar where there used to be a gold mine and the village is being restored. Agua Amarga is our favourite place for lunch in Cabo de Gata: A charming little bay where the village comes right onto the beach. There is a choice of three bars/restaurants and we would recommend La Playa for one of their delicious salads and some fish, followed by a spell on the beach and splashing in the sea before returning to base. A lazy hour or so round the pool, watching one of our fabulous sunset, sipping aperitifs while supper sizzles on the barbecue would make a perfect end to the day. Or if even a barbecue feels like too much effort, a trip to the charming mountain village of Bédar to sample the famous shoulder of lamb and patatas a lo pobre on the terrace of the Miramar restaurant with its beautiful views down to the coast
To rent the Spanish holiday let La Tortugas from Jane, please complete the contact form which can be found through the above link.
on May 2, 2011 at 2:13 pm
Hi Jane,
I recently moved to Costa Blanca and have taken early retirement. I found a fabulous apartment in a tranquil location for 400 euros per month including English T.V and internet.
Whilst I really enjoy it here there are two things that put me off! One is that I am surrounded by Brits (I am English) and secondly my landlady tried to cheat me out of a weeks rent, hence I cannot trust here plus I live next door to her.
I am visiting Almeria in June to look for a new place to live; a long term let. Could you recommend an area that is peaceful but has all the necessary amenities near by as well as being close to the beaches and very close to a decent golf course please?
I hope you don’t mind me asking for advice, I found your details whilst doing some research on the internet.
Thank you.
on September 19, 2011 at 8:27 am
Hi Barry
I am SOOO sorry – I must have missed the notification of your post and have not visited the bottom of this page for ages.
I could certainly have helped and would have been willing to do so. Are you still looking around here? Did you find somewhere?