La Sella Golf de Denia in Alicante will host the Valencian Community Investments European Ladies Golf Cup this week.

Having beaten the Algarve in its bid to host the competition, the venue will attract some of the best female golfers in the world between Thursday April 3rd and Sunday April 6th.

Comunitat Valenciana, the tourism website for the Region of Valencia, reports that players Trish Johnson and Ibenn Tinning chose to be present in this tournament despite lucrative offers to play in a conflicting event in the US.

The portal states that they were attracted to the Spanish golf course due to “the very specific nature of the La Sella competition”.

The pre-selection for the event means spectators will be able “to enjoy an unprecedented display of golf in Denia”, the site adds. Furthermore, the US and Australia will be competing in two types of matchplay over the four days, which will offer yet more excitement.

Major sporting events attract crowds of people, which is a factor property investors may consider when choosing a location. The city of Valencia recently hosted a world indoor athletics championship, proving the Region of Valencia is a credible sporting venue.

Tourism professionals and members of the public alike will find the International Tourism Fair an “attractive option”, according to official tourism website for the city Comunitat Valenciana.

Representatives from the whole region will be on hand to distribute information on a number of areas of interest, including where to go and stay when in Valencia.

Indeed, people looking to invest in Valencian property may find that the Feria Valencia-based event gives them an insight into what the Spanish region can offer them.

Over the last three years, the event has reportedly proved popular with visitors. This is the fourth year that it has been held and people will be able to access the information stands from Friday April 4th until Sunday April 6th.

The portal states that travel agencies, tour operators, hotel establishments and campsites, as well as Spanish and international official tourism bodies, are all scheduled to be present at the event.

The show’s official website indicates that the occasion “is now recognised as one of the major trade events for the tourism industry in Spain”.

A percentage of the thousands of passengers flying out of Southampton International Airport this coming Easter period will be heading for the Spanish regions of Alicante and Malaga, it has been reported.

The Daily Echo reports that an almost-record-breaking numbers of people will be using the southern hub, as they seek sunnier weather and a break from England.

Some 31,000 passengers are expected to pass through the terminals at Southampton, as they head to hotels, apartments and investment properties, among other accommodation, across Europe.

Earlier this month, budget airline easyJet released a statement saying that the two aforementioned Spanish locations were set to be popular with its customers during the Easter holiday period.

Popular tourist areas, such as Malaga and Alicante, are often seen by investors as ideal places to purchase property - due to the regular demand for accommodation.

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.

People with an appreciation of cartoon art are advised to head to southern Spain this month, as an interesting new exhibition has opened in Alicante.

The Enrique 1972-2005 exhibition contains a selection of drawings by the celebrated Spanish cartoonist Enrique Perez Penedo, who was born in the Costa Blanca city.

Giving visitors the chance to view the work of one of Spain’s most gifted and humorous cartoonists, the exhibition runs until February 18th, according to Communitat Valenciana.

Penedo’s work has appeared in the local newspaper Informacion de Alicante, as well as Spain’s leading sports publication La Marca and the magazine Panorama Azul. He is also president of the Spanish branch of the European Federation of Cartoonists’ Organisations.

Alicante is currently a major attraction for cartoon fans for another reason - the new Asterix movie was shot on location in the city and premiered at the Teatro Principal on Tuesday (February 5th). Nearby areas such as Benidorm and Santa Pola can also be seen in the film.

An area of the Valencia region will soon be protected as a national park, according to plans unveiled by the Spanish government.

The Sierra de Escalona, which provides a home of large number of rare animal species, will become Valencia’s first national park when it is established later this year, Homes Worldwide reports.

Maria Angeles Centeno, director general for the management of the environment, stated that the Sierra currently contains one of the largest populations of wildcat in the country, as well as a significant number of the Bonelli’s eagle.

The area’s new status as a national park will prevent major building projects in the area and ensure that the animals’ natural habitats are maintained, according to the website.

IberiaNature.com states that there are only about 1,000 pairs of Bonelli’s eagles in the whole of Europe, with 750 of these found in Spain.

Fans of Asterix may like to head to Alicante this week, as the comic character’s latest film instalment is set to premiere in the Costa Blanca city.

According to Typically Spanish, Asterix at the Olympic Games will be shown for the first time at Alicante’s Teatro Principal on Tuesday, having been shot in several locations around Alicante.

Made at a cost of €78 million (£58.5 million), the film is said to be the most expensive movie production in European history and was mainly shot at the Ciudad de la Luz in Alicante, while nearby locations such as Santa Pola and Benidorm were also used.

Gerard Depardieu reprises his role as Asterix’s faithful companion Obelix, while Clovis Cornillac takes the title role. Veteran French actor Alain Delon also stars as Julius Caesar.

The film is adapted from the popular series of comic books by French artists Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. According to Time magazine, the new movie also features cameo appearances from Zinedine Zidane and Micahel Schumacher.

An exhibition of ancient glass pieces has opened at the Archaeological Museum (MARQ) in Alicante, showcasing some fine examples of glasswork dating back hundreds of years.

Entitled La fragilidad en el tiempo: el vidrio en la Antigüedad (Fragility through the times: glass in ancient times), the exhibition of glass pieces from antiquity runs until March 4th 2008 in the Costa Blanca city.

The artefacts featured in the exhibition include pieces of jewellery, vessels, amulets, fragments and cooking utensils, have all been temporarily donated by the Catalonian Museum of Archaeology as part of a project on glass sponsored by the European Union, according to Communitat Valenciana.

Arranged to take visitors through different periods in the history of glass, use of the material and fabrication techniques, the exhibition features over 150 items made between the eighth century BC and the sixth century AD.

The city of Alicante is a Mediterranean port overlooked by the stunning Castle of Santa Barbara, with a population of more than 300,000 people and beautiful Costa Blanca beaches. The city is popular with both tourists and people buying homes in Spain and enjoys year round sunshine.

Property owners and holidaymakers on the Costa Blanca are in for a treat next week, when Spanish dancer Nacho Duato brings his new stage show to Alicante.

Described as “one of the best Spanish ballet dancers of all time” by Communitat Valenciana, Duato has been artistic director of the Spanish National Dance Company since 1990 and is renowned for his choreography skills throughout the dance world.

He will perform his Duato x3 show, consisting of three different dances from various stages of his career, at the Teatro Principal de Alicante on February 6th.

“Duato’s choreographies are a reflection of our times, concentrating in themes related to our everyday realities while remaining committed to important social issues,” Communitat Valenciana states.

Born in Valencia, Duato perfected his art at some of the most famous dance schools in the world, including the Rambert School in London and Maurice Bejart’s Mudra School in Brussels.