EasyJet, one of the leading providers of flights between Spain and the UK, has said that the internet has “revolutionised” the possibilities for holiday arrangement.

The budget airline company said that with the options so clear and so wide-ranging, internet-searchers are encouraged to travel by the availability of a great number of deals and an increasingly flexible and easy service.

EasyJet was one of the first airlines to offer a range of cheap flights across Europe, but has found that new internet booking and information systems are far more effective than the telephone services the company initially used.

A spokesperson for the airline hailed the transition: “In 1998 we launched our online booking service and very quickly, within a year, our total online booking was about 30 per cent.

“It means you have greater choice, people always love a bargain and the internet enables you to search for exactly what you want.”

Thanks to airlines like easyJet Brits are able to enjoy frequent flight to Spain and elsewhere on the continent - research published by the Office for National Statistics in 2006 showed that 80 per cent of all visits abroad made by UK residents were to European destinations.

EasyJet flies to Valencia from Stansted, Gatwick and Bristol airports, while Malaga, in the heart of the Costa del Sol, is served by the airline from a further six UK airports.

The peaceful Costa Azahar is entering its season of autumnal calm as sizzling Spanish temperatures finally subside, but the region’s current tranquillity tells nothing of the summer festival frenzy which set it alight.

Dubbed “the Costa Azahar’s answer to Glastonbury” by ThinkSpain.com, the Festival Internacional de Benicassim brought a touch of UK rock to its peaceful Spanish setting for the 13th annual mud and music-fest this July.

Running from the 19th to the 22nd of July, this year’s show brought in both local Spaniards and British ex-pats and tourists, with Iggy Pop, The B52s, the Arctic Monkeys and Armand Van Helden leading the host of high profile acts gracing the Costa.

Even popular but controversial UK singer Amy Winehouse was at the Benicassim event, helping attract the 100,000 fans that make the festival one of Spain’s most renowned.

Changing the complexion of Castellon for its three days of musical mayhem, the rock acts grab the spotlight, but the festival is also popular for offering an array of dance, art, theatre, fashion and short films that are not out of place with the region’s rich cultural heritage.

With Valencia in easy travelling distance from the Costa Azahar, the festival is set to light up the region’s summers and bring in British and Spanish music-lovers for years to come.

British tourists and property-seekers are coming in ever-increasing number to the Iberian peninsula, but a Portuguese housing specialist has highlighted problems with Portuguese holiday regions that may leave Spain an even clearer favourite.

Portugal shares many of Spain’s climate and lifestyle perks in the eyes of UK investors and tourists, but property consultant Alentejo Home said that Portugal’s top destination, the Algarve, was no longer as desirable.

Owner of Alentejo Home, Bert Snijder, said that the Algarve region in southern Portugal was overdeveloped and "has gone sky high with prices", identifying a problematic phenomenon affecting many popular areas where development is not kept on check.

Advising property-seekers to look instead at the less high profile Alentejo region, further north up the coast, Mr Snijder indicated new trends which could affect property purchase across the Iberian peninsula.

Neighbouring country Spain receives over 50 million visitors per year, making the risks of overdevelopment a key concern and demanding the constant emergence of new less developed areas hoping to channel new property investment.

The Costa Azahar region in the east of Spain is an example of up and coming Iberian property prospects, perhaps similar to those of Alentejo.

Mr Snijder hailed the frequency of cheap flights as a spur to opening up new regions, saying that many in Alentejo were "flying in on Friday evening and back Sunday evening and having a good weekend here in our nice climate", a trend which also follows for new Spanish resorts.

Costa Azahar visitors are brought to and from the region by frequent flights from the UK to close-by airports just to the south in Valencia and slightly north in Reus.

Leading Spanish airline Iberia is involved in a big money takeover deal, sending shares in the Spanish flag carrier soaring as speculation continues.

The latest chapter in the intrigue of the Iberia sale saw Banco Santander Central Hispano rumoured to be joining the bidding for the airline, with shares rising again in response to the claims.

High competition for the airline is no surprise, seeing as Iberia is one of the leading providers of flights between Spain and the UK, allowing numerous British property investors and tourists easy access to the country.

According to Forbes.com, interannual demand measured in passenger revenue kilometres rose 3.5 per cent to 40.758 billion over the nine months to September of this year.

With such potentially lucrative proceeds, competitors and joint bidders have been rumoured to be challenging the original British Airways group indicative bid for its Spanish rival.

Air travel to Spain, especially regarding UK routes, demands a high premium – apparently higher than the €3.4 billion (£2.4 billion) offered by the British Airways group bid in May and rejected by Iberia.

Investors looking at the Costa Blanca for overseas property purchase are continuing to lead the way in Spanish housing buys, according to new research figures.

Reporting on Richmond Green Marketing consultants’ recent survey on the sales of Spanish properties by UK estate agents, TypicallySpanish.com highlighted positive figures for the Costa Blanca.

The sunny Eastern coastal region was identified as the most troublesome area for Spanish house sales by only 11 per cent of agents, reflecting the continued boom in buying in the region.

With increased competition from other property markets opening up in Eastern Europe and elsewhere, some areas of Spain were shown to be suffering a slowdown in purchases from UK investors, a dip largely weathered by the Costa Blanca.

With the sub-prime mortgage problems in the US unleashing problems in financial – and especially property – markets across the world, some areas of Spain are indicated by the research to be suffering from a global lack of confidence in short term profits from house purchase.

The Costa Blanca has, however, continued to perform well for most agents – the region is popular with buyers and tourists alike, seeing late summer hotel occupation reach near full levels.

The British love affair with the Iberian peninsula and other sunny continental locations has given rise to a new term and phenomenon – the Eurocommuter.

While London-Paris may be a well-established commuting route thanks to the Eurostar, allowing bankers, lawyers and other high-flyers to spend the working week in one and the weekend in the other, cheap flights are claimed to be doing the same for Iberia.

Reports from the Times Online focused on examples of eurocommuting in Spain and Portugal, with the experiences of SkyTV weather reporter Jo Wheeler providing a blueprint of successful work and play between the UK and Spain – for those who can afford it.

Ms Wheeler, residing in the Algarve, told the Times that commuting to London for two long weekends of work a month was highly feasible, while allowing her to enjoy the calm and beauty of the region for the rest of the time.
Costs of transport and a lack of matching work-time flexibility may pour cold water on the dream for some, with Ms Wheeler claiming that the average airfare sets her back £175.

Other factors, however, could make the Eurocommuter phenomenon gain pace, with broadband internet connections and low cost web-wired phones allowing for instantaneous multimedia communications between employer and employee.

Working on the basis of the technology-fuelled homeworking boom, travel company Thomson’s Future Forum report has in fact claimed that by 2016 there will be as many as 1.5 million expat commuters into the UK.

Flying out to Spanish destinations like Malaga, Murcia and Palma, BAA Southampton Airport has witnessed an expansion in passenger numbers typical of the recent boom in regional airports.

Responding to huge demand for flights to European destinations from tourists and overseas homeowners, the expansion of the south coast hub has made travel and property investment abroad easier than ever for Brits.

With over 40 per cent of UK citizens revealing their willingness to consider buying property abroad – largely in Spain – in a recent survey from the Yorkshire Bank, building big regional transport hubs across the country has become a necessity.

A spokesperson for BAA Southampton Airport highlighted the three million people living in the Southampton area, saying: “Southampton Airport currently serves 47 destinations with 14 airline and tour operator partners, providing an efficient service for its 1.9 million passengers a year.”

She added that the airport “offers a range of carriers including Flybe, a low-cost carrier, as well as niche business carriers such as Eastern Airways and Blue Islands,” allowing the site to “provide choice and convenience for local people”.

Regional airports like Southampton have become popular with those who do not live in London and wish to avoid the stress – especially acute for families with young children – of traipsing through the capital en route to a major flight centre.

Americans visitors to Europe can often be awed by the impressive historical heritage nestling in every city, but USA Today reporters recently hitting Spain came back brimming with amazement at the country’s cuisine.

Valencia was hailed as one of the gastronomic gems of the trip, after the eating enthusiasts checked out the best in local specialities from one end of the country to the other.

The self-acclaimed ‘gastro-freaks’ setting out to find what fuelled Iberian appetites were single-minded in their approach: “We didn’t visit any museums or churches. We didn’t stroll around any parks or fountains. We didn’t write one postcard or buy one souvenir. We ate.”

The food samplers said that their Valencian adventure started with amazement at the 30,000 tomato-festival revellers in Bunol, but preferring a sit-down eating experience, the team embarked on a ten-course meal at a Michelin-rated restaurant.

Eating an array of Mediterranean specialities, the tasters claimed of the multiple courses: “Many of them sparkled with brilliant colours like the pumpkin with creamy foie gras, beans and corn.”

Eating well in the region is no surprise, with Valencian paella already a well-known favourite dish for locals and visitors, combining rice, chicken, rabbit and greens, to the delight of those who like their food rich and typically Spanish.

People owning property in the Valencian area could benefit from a tax break as Spanish authorities revamp rural and urban area classifications, it has been claimed.

According to property specialist HomesWorldwide, the reclassification of land previously labelled urban will temporarily exempt some properties from the Spanish equivalent of council tax during the process.

As many as four million square metres of land are reported to be on the way to returning to rural status, with houses in the affected Valencia, Alicante and Castellon provinces benefiting from delayed tax collection at present.

More good news could be on the cards for UK property owners and locals in the regions, with a transfer back to rural status promising a lower tax threshold, due to the higher premium placed on houses in urban or ‘urbanisable’ properties with development potential.

The tax in question, the IBI, translates roughly as a property tax, with local authorities deciding on the classifications of their land and subsequently levying differing levels of payment from residents

Regional information site Andalusia.com claimed that a simple property in a rural area of Spain could be liable for as little as €50 (£35) IBI per year.

British property seekers and home-owners in Spain have been given a boost by the announcement of new Iberian flights from low-cost airline Clickair.

The Barcelona-based firm has indicated that a summer-trialled flight route between Edinburgh and the Catalan capital will continue through the winter, on the back of successful passenger uptake.

Bringing British tourists north of the border to the gateway of great coastal regions like the Costa Azahar, the Edinburgh-Barcelona flight path attracted some 18,000 passengers between August and September, meriting the green-light for continuation.

Meanwhile, other great Spanish cities could be brought into ever easier reach by reports suggesting that Clickair plans to increase flights from the UK to Seville and Valencia in the coming year.

Four flights a week are now planned for the promised Edinburgh-Barcelona expansion, with the Seville and Valencia outlook likely to improve if passengers continue to jump at the opportunity of exchanging the Scottish frost for the crisp sunshine of Catalonia.

Spain is an all-year-round hit with UK travellers, with many wishing to make their stay more than just a brief one and set up for good on the Iberian coast – a trend made easier by an abundance of low-cost flights to top regions.