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SUMMER 2024
SOTOGRANDE GLISTENS
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Oasis of calm
Discover the jewel tucked away on the Andalucian coast in our supplement
has blossomed Once simply farmland, Sotogrande privately owned residential into Andalucia’s largest Kuner development, writes Dilip
A
wealthy and faHAVEN for the discreetly as a beacon of mous, Sotogrande stands luxury on the Cadiz coast. location and With a scene-stealing science not surprising that this is founder of the eponymous man in near-perfect weather, it’s Park, a prestigious co dealer, once the richest places to live. overseen the creation of Forbes this and arts institution and one of Spain’s most desirable Sol west towards the fa- Philippine property development. Inspired by on Spain. It seemed fated for grander use – and Head down the Costa del its exclusivity and Jebel Musa it ticked the boxes. success, he dreamt of replicating mous pillars of Hercules (Gibraltar without eventually come to Soto- the Mediterranean. bought the land at Sotogrande in Morocco) and you will his cousin, Alfredo “We seen it, like a pig in a poke,” said Mchaving In 1962, McMicking tasked grande. Sotogrande is where ‘Fredy’ Melian, with finding the perfect location. Af- Mickling, speaking in 1967. “Paid $750,000 Roughly 100km from Malaga, by motorbike, largely on dirt down and had to pay another third in six types move to upgrade. business moguls and A-List extraordinary transfor- ter exploring the region estate Melian discovered an 1800-hectare months and the rest in a year.”nephews, Jaime The mastermind behind the of privilege, where roads,Gibraltar. with his near of McMicking arrived work on mation from farm to an enclave have a yacht (or at least The farmland had been owned by a succession Zobel (Enrique had overseen palace) most people seem to have the Larios fami- and Enrique 1,788-room Joseph McMicArcos, of Brunei’s of Duke the Sultan – the American-Filipino, famous the friend his rich and a rhib), was March, arms and tobacly and then financier Juan king. Corporation, he had As president of the Ayala
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PIZZE RIA
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pizzeria located in Visit our family-friendly Port. We the heart of Sotogrande parties and specialize in hosting birthday feature live proudly private events, and we every day. sports on our large screens
INLAND GEM Visit the historic town of Antequera See page 26
EXCLUSIVE
Kick it to ‘em!
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Vol. 18 Issue 450 www.theolivepress.es August 7th - August 20th 2024
PASSPORT CHAOS
Brits missing flights home and facing ridiculous queues due to shoddy police controls at Spanish airports
CRUEL: Donkeys are collapsing in the heat while tourists vow to never return BRITISH expats are declaring war on donkey taxis in Mijas Pueblo after tourists reported witnessing ‘shocking animal abuse’. A holidaymaker said she would ‘never return’ to the resort after seeing two burros collapse amid 40C temperatures this week. Her comments to the Olive Press were echoed under viral images online showing several animals struggling to pull people in carts - with scores of people threatening to boycott the town unless the donkeys are treated better.
Complaint
Today, Lynda Martin, 58, is taking on the controversial trade by filing an official complaint at the town hall before making a denuncia with the police. The British expat, from the Lake District, told the Olive Press: “These donkeys need a voice, what is happening to them is not right. “Every time I’m in Mijas Pueblo I see these big, fat tourists sitting on these tiny donkeys or being pulled along by them in carts - just the other day a baby donkey was forced to pull two carts of people at the same time. “The town hall promised to introduce Continues on Page 2
DOZENS of British tourists have missed their flights home from Spain due to poorly-managed passport controls, the Olive Press can reveal. At least 30 people missed their Ryanair service to London Stansted last week due to serious delays in getting their passports stamped. The chaos ensued at Lanzarote airport when passengers were informed they had failed to show up in time for boarding - after suffering ‘ridiculous’ waits at passport control.
Stamped
It came just days after similar scenes in Malaga airport saw British flyers queuing inside the terminal ‘all the way past duty free’. One British tourist arriving from Bournemouth spent 85 minutes waiting for her passport to be stamped. An affected passenger
EXCLUSIVE By Laurence Dollimore
at Lanzarote told the Olive Press, she had missed important cancer treatment back in the UK due to the delay. “Families were split up and ridiculously Ryanair then had to spend an hour and a half getting luggage off the plane. Therefore we could have boarded during that time. “None of us were actually late to the gate despite the long queues. “It was such disgusting behaviour by a supervisor who made the decision.” She added: “We were told the gate was shut and they couldn’t do anything. And then families were not given food, or alternative flights and hotels. “People were ultimately told to sort themselves out.” The issue emerged when airport bosses were ordered to stamp British pass-
DENIED PASSAGE: The passengers at Lanzarote
WAIT: Passengers have reported waiting 85 minutes in passport queues
ports on both entry and departure after it emerged they had hardly been doing it in a bid to reduce delays. Since the UK left the EU, Brits are only allowed to spend 90 in every 180 days in the Schengen zone - with stamps on entry and exit designed to keep a tally. But this has caused a nightmare at tourist hotspots, particularly in Spain, where millions of UK visitors arrive each year. Brits now have to queue with other non-EU or ‘third’ countries, creating painfully long queues for everyone on arrival and departure. For this reason, sources told a Canary Islands newspaper that border staff at Lanzarote were ‘subtly and verbally’ told not to stamp UK passports. The thinking was to ‘make the pas-
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sage of British tourists easier’ and lower queues for everyone. However this practice was recently discovered and quashed by Madrid, despite airport bosses warning police simply do not have the resources. In Malaga at the end of July, one line for passport control for UK citizens snaked all the way through the departures area of the airport, past restaurants, cafes and even duty free. The queue had got so long it had to double back on itself.
Brexit
One reader told the Olive Press: “Four years down the line, Brexit can’t still be used as an excuse! It’s just bad management!” Another said: “It was the same two weeks ago. Another Brexit gift. However, that does not make it acceptable at all.” Another Londoner arriving in Malaga for a short weekend break three weeks ago, said she had to endure a ‘nearly 90 minute wait’ to get her passport stamped on arrival. “It really took a shine off the weekend,” she said. A Ryanair spokesperson l a n told the Olive Press: “Due r natio te In & to passport control delays at All UK s m te s TV sy Lanzarote (31 July), a number of passengers missed Sound CCTV - n this flight to Stansted. & Visio “Should these passengers t e n have presented at the gate Inter G 4 & c pti desk before it closed, they Fiber O would have boarded this flight alongside the 140 passengers who did. 952 763 840 “We regret that these airport passport delays, which 635 400 099 are out of our control, and causing passengers to miss their flights.” info@theskydoctor.com www.theskydoctor.com Opinion Page 6