Around 100,000 visitors will be heading to Malaga this June for what is being billed as the “first completely interactive leisure industry trade show”.

People are expected to flock to the Costa del Sol from countries around the world to watch and take part in Todo Ocio at Malaga’s Trade Show and Congress Centre.

The idea behind the show is to provide a platform for leisure industry companies and sports-related groups to network, while at the same time showcasing the sector to the general public and other visitors.

Malaga city council and the Provincial Council, as well as other local agencies and institutions, will be collaborating with Madrid-based Sistemas Publicitarios, which is organising the three-day event between June 13th and 15th.

The official website of the show calls Malaga “the capital of entertainment” and invites people to let the show “entertain and amaze” them due to the “presence of the most important companies”.

A new book, which includes “valuable information” for people looking to move to Spain, has been released.

Various issues are covered in the publication, including Spanish lifestyle, how to choose a location and the best ways to settle in the Mediterranean country.

We’ve Gone to Spain is written by Tom Provan, a former marketing and public relations professional who left England for southern Europe. Much of what is included in the book revolves around his personal experiences.

A great deal of what is stated is positive about the country, while a number of the stories he recalls may make readers laugh.

Mr Provan and his family chose the Costa del Sol as a place to reside, but the book highlights the benefits of a number of areas - including the Costa Brava.

In the internet version of the publication, the writer states: “The secret to success in buying the right property is the right research. And in every country the main consideration is location, location, location.”

Taxi drivers in the Costa del Sol tourist town of Malaga have opted not to go on strike in the build-up to this Easter weekend, it has been reported.

La Opinion de Malaga revealed that a written agreement produced by Malaga City Hall has prompted the workers to call off strike action they had planned earlier this month, according to TypicallySpanish.com.

Regular meetings will now be held between taxi drivers and the city hall from March 27th, while the drivers themselves will gather frequently to discuss matters related to the taxi-viability plan being suspended.

Prior to the decision, the planned protest over the unused licences of self-employed drivers being used in alternative ways, had threatened to cause problems on the roads during two of Malaga’s busiest days in springtime.

Budget airline easyJet recently announced that its UK to Malaga routes are going to be some of the busiest during the Easter period.

Spain is still a dream destination for many British people looking to purchase overseas property, it has been claimed.

According to southern Spanish newspaper Sur, many UK buyers are undeterred by recent negative publicity surrounding foreign property investment and view Spain as one of the most desirable places in the world to own a home.

Sur made these comments after attending the recent Homebuyers and Property Investors Exhibition at the ExCel centre in London, where many Britons spoke to the newspaper about their hopes of moving to Spain or buying a second home on the southern Costas.

Rebekah Lowe of Livingstone Estates told Sur that although some professional investors may be tempted by emerging markets where prices are lower, people looking to buy a property for their own use will continue to be attracted to Spain.

“Spain is for living in and people will always want Spanish properties,” she commented.

According to a recent report from Spanish property website Kyero.com, coastal regions such as the Costa Blanca and Costa del Sol remain “at the fore of the public psyche” for UK people hoping to move abroad.

A new marina is scheduled to be constructed in Mijas in order to boost the number of berths in the Costa del Sol region.

The Empresa Publica de Puertos de Andalucia, or Public Company of Andalucian Ports, reports that the new development will contain between 800 and 1,000 berths following an investment of €50 million (£38 million).

More investment is likely to follow, while there are also plans to incorporate two docks for transatlantic cruisers, which could increase access to the coast for tourists visiting the area.

Hotels, shops and other leisure facilities will be built around the marina, and Homes Worldwide suggests that now could be the ideal time to purchase a property nearby.

The Spanish Fiestas website states that “Mijas Pueblo stands high up the mountain above the coastal resorts and is a popular half-day excursion from the Costa del Sol, whilst Mijas Costa is the resort on the coast below which attracts mass tourism to its many attractions.”

The company that developed Manchester’s Trafford Centre shopping complex is to try and recreate the plans on the Costa del Sol.

Peel Holdings has been given the go ahead to build a shopping mall similar in design to the one in north-west England, reports the Manchester Evening News.

Torremolinos will be the location for the 80-acre site, which is said to cost £500 million to construct.

Lindsey Ashworth, who is set to lead the project, told the newspaper: “While there will obviously be a flavour of the original Trafford Centre, the major difference is, because it’s in a warm climate, it can be outward-facing.”

The company representative added that bars and restaurants around the complex will have terracing, while some will be constructed around a lake.

Millions of Britons head to the Costa del Sol for their holidays every year, while many decide to purchase property in this part of Spain.

A new book has been written highlighting the famous names that have had some association with the beautiful village of Churriana, according to reports.

Local historian Cristobal Salazar has written a book Personajes de Churriana, which tells the tale of the Malaga district and the characters that have come from it.

Among the famous names are writer Ernest Hemingway who celebrated his 60th birthday at La Consula in July 1959.

Many influential names have been attracted by Churriana’s estates including El Retiro and San Javier.

Among them are Julio Caro Baroja, an anthropologist and the nephew of writer Pio Baroja.

Poet Maria Victoria Atenda and musician Francisco Martin Pino were some of the names who attended the launch of the book at Malaga City Hall.

The city hall has produced a thousand copies of the book, which can be purchased from the Junta de Distrito offices.

Malaga is full of history, with a number of exhibitions taking place throughout the year. One such exhibition is that of the Malaga artist Rafael Perez Estrada, which opened on April 23rd 2003 in the lower floor gallery of the Municipal Archives, Almeda Principal.

Leap year babies are being invited to celebrate their unusual birth dates together in style by attending a huge party in Malaga this year.

The Leap Association of people born on February 29th is organising the event, which hopes to bring together as many leap year babies as possible.

It is hoped that the get-together will get into the Guinness World Records for the highest number of people born on February 29th getting together in the same place.

The current record is held the gathering of 340 leap year babies which took place in Norway.

The celebration will be held at the La Brasa restaurant in the Alameda Principal.

Malaga is a great place to celebrate in style and has been increasing in popularity in recent years, since the opening of its Picasso Museum in 2003.

Over the next ten years, it is expected that many improvements will be made to the city as it vies for the title of European Culture Capital in the year 2016.

The regional government of Andalucia is attempting to make the area safer by banning the ownership of dangerous animals.

Under the new system, large reptiles, poisonous insects and large primates will not be allowed in Andalucian households and people who flout the law could be hit with a fine of €115,000

People living in the region who already own such pets will be given a six-month period to take the forbidden animal to their local city hall and hand it over, Homes Worldwide reports.

Andalucia is the first region in Spain to introduce this type of legislation and officials hope that the new law will prevent deadly species such as snakes from escaping into rural areas and breeding.

The regional government believes that the regulations should enable homeowners on the Costa del Sol to live in a safer environment.

According to southern Spanish newspaper Sur, the new regulations also include an extensive reclassification of dangerous dog categories.

Ski resorts in Spain are becoming more popular with winter holidaymakers while maintaining their competitive prices, it has been claimed.

According to Homes Worldwide, Spain’s ski resorts were largely “ignored by anyone outside the country” until recently, but are now gaining a reputation as some of the best skiing locations in Europe.

In addition, resorts such as those in the Sierra Nevada have a unique selling point which other popular skiing destinations such as France and Switzerland cannot compete with - their proximity to the Costa del Sol means that holidaymakers can take to the slopes and then sunbathe on the beach a couple of hours later.

The website stated: “If you are thinking of investing in a Spanish property, perhaps its time to consider the slopes as well as the costas.”

Property owners may not have to make this choice, however, as the relatively short distance from the Sierra Nevada National Park to Costa del Sol locations such as Malaga and Velez-Malaga allows people to enjoy the best of both worlds - winter snow and summer sun.

Foreign buyers now account for one in seven properties sold in Malaga province, according to figures recently reported by southern Spanish newspaper Sur.