News & lifestyle in Riviera - A Blog by LiguriaHomes Casamare

Foreign Buyers Spare No Expense in Liguria

From: Italymag.co.uk

Demand for homes in Liguria, Umbria and Tuscany is reaching an all time high among foreign buyers. The competition for Ligurian properties is driving prices up, and attracting homeowners who will spare no expense in finding the perfect Italian getaway.

Expatriates are willing to pay enormous sums for a Ligurian address. According to entrepreneur Martin De Rosa, Germans spend an average of 300,000 Euros and 76% of British buyers look at buildings in the 300,000 to 500,000 euro price range. The Russian buyers put other foreign homeowners to shame, willing to put down over 900,000 for the perfect Ligurian home.

Property values have risen throughout Italy in spite of the global economic downturn, and 61% of real estate agents expect the housing market to get even better in the next two years. The thriving market is attracting buyers who are willing to pay up to 17,000 Euro a square meter for properties in Ligurian towns like Santa Margherita Ligure.

The increased interest in the region may signal a trend of foreign buyers moving away from major cities and preferring to purchase homes in smaller villages.

Record-Breaking Blue Flags

As prices hit record highs, Liguria has achieved a record number of Blue Flag beaches. In fact, the award-winning beaches play a major role in increasing the desirability of property in the region.

Blue Flags are awarded around the globe by the Foundation for Environmental Education. The sought-after distinction is bestowed according to a range of environmental indicators such as water quality and protection of nature.

In 2011, Liguria was awarded the most blue flags out of all the regions in Italy, so those seeking a prestigious coastal location can head east or west to find decorated beaches.

In the Western Riviera, blue flags were awarded to Camporosso and Bordighera in the province of Imperia. In the province of Savona, Albissola Marina, Albisola Superiore, Bergeggi, Celle Ligure, Finale Ligure, Loano, Noli, Spotorno, Savona-Fornaci, and Varazze were the most decorated beaches.

While  in the Eastern Riviera, Chiavari, Lavagna and Moneglia were the recognised coastal towns in Genoa. Lerici and Ameglia-Fiumaretta in La Spezia were also awarded blue flags.

Location, Location, Location

It is unsurprising that foreign buyers are willing to pay high prices given Liguria’s incomparable location. The small region is bordered by the sea, the Alps and the Apennines.

Liguria is home to the famous Mediterranean seaside towns of Cinque Terre and Portofino.

In addition to beautiful beaches, the region is best known for its fresh seafood cuisine and as the birthplace of pesto.

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All the properties on the market in Liguria are on www.liguriahomes.com

Italy’s Blue Flag Beaches: Liguria top region again

Italy has 233 top beaches, two more than last year, in 125 municipalities. The figures emerge from the 2011 Blue Flag table, which certifies the services and environmental friendliness of coastal and lakeside resorts, as well as the cleanliness of the water.

Blue Flags are international distinctions, created in 1987 and awarded every year in 41 countries with patronage and support from UNEP, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the World Tourism Organisation.

LIGURIA’S TOP SLOT – Liguria again tops the regional table with 17 flag-winning resorts. Equal second with 16 are Marche and Tuscany while Abruzzo on 14 has one more than last year. Campania is unchanged on 12 and Emilia Romagna has one more flag this time with nine. But Puglia lost two flags and is now on eight. Veneto has six blue flags and Lazio slips back to four, leapfrogged by Sicily with six and Calabria on five. Sardinia secured blue flags for all five resorts taking part in the scheme. Friuli Venezia Giulia and Piedmont both confirmed last year’s two resorts while Molise and Basilicata have one flag apiece. This year, a resort in land-locked Lombardy joins the line-up, Gardone Riviera on Lake Garda.

In Liguria these are the 2011 Blue Flags: Camporosso, Bordighera (Imperia); Loano, Finale Ligure, Noli, Spotorno, Bergeggi, Savona, Albissola Marina, Albisola Superiore, Celle Ligure, Varazze (Savona); Chiavari, Lavagna, Moneglia (Genoa); Lerici, Ameglia-Fiumaretta (La Spezia)

Blue Flags for Marinas & Small Boat Harbours

The Blue Flagis an annual environment award to Small Boat Harbours or Marinas that have focused on good management of facilities and services regarding the environment and nature, as well as provide information to their users about the environment. To be eligible for this award, the Small Boat Harbour or Marina has to fulfil a number of criteria related to education, information and environmental management, safety, services and water quality.

Even for Marinas, Liguria again tops the regional table with: Portosole in Sanremo, Marina degli Aregai (Santo Stefano al Mare), Marina di San Lorenzo, Porto di Imperia, Marina di Andora, Porto Luca Ferrari in Alassio, Vecchia Darsena di Savona, Cala Cravieu in Celle Ligure, Marina di Varazze, Porto Internazionale Carlo Riva in Rapallo , Marina di Chiavari, Marina di Porto Venere, Porto Bocca di Magra (Ameglia) and Porto Lotti in La Spezia.

The Blue Flag Programme for marinas and beaches is run by the non-governmental, non-profit organisation FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education). Today, Blue Flag has become a truly global programme with an ever-increasing number of countries participating in the programme.
The Blue Flag programme promotes sustainable development in freshwater and marine areas.
It challenges local authorities and beach operators to achieve high standards in water quality,environmental management, environmental education and safety. Over the years, the Blue flag programme has become a highly respected and recognised eco-label working to bring together the tourism and environmental sectors at local, regional and national levels.

To know more: www.blueflag.org/

Luxury Villas for rent in Liguria

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We have some fantastic Villas in Liguria for rent, all with sea-view and swimming-pool and landscaped private garden…

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The San Remo Music Festival is coming!

San Remo is a small Italian town near the border of France. Located on the Ligurian coast, San Remo is known as a beautiful resort town, but its true claim to fame is the music festival held there every year. The festival della canzone Italiana, commonly called the Sanremo Music Festival is one of the oldest singing competitions in Europe.

The song contest began in 1951 and has been held in Sanremo every year since. Well beloved in Italy and beyond, the Sanremo Music Festival even served as the inspiration for the Eurovision Song Contest.
The festival has launched the careers of incredibly famous Italian singers, including Andrea Bocelli, Zucchero, Eros Ramazzotti, Laura Pausini and Massimo Ranieri. But Sanremo is almost as much about the host as the talented performances. Every year, eager audiences tune in to see who will present the show. This year, Italian pop legend Gianni Morandi will host the show, with George Clooney’s latest love interest, Elisabetta Canalis and Italo-Argentinian model and TV star Belén Rodríguez as co-host.
The festival begins this year on February 15 and goes until February 19. On February 17, exactly one month before the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of a united Italy, the festival will celebrate the event with a special programme which will include Verdi’s “Va, pensiero”, “‘O sole mio”, “Viva l’Italia” and other songs that Italians love and which represent their history. Below is a list of the singers who will participate this year and the famous songs they will sing on the 17th.

Patty Pravo – Mille lire al mese
Nathalie – Il mio canto libero
Roberto Vecchioni – ‘O surdato ‘nnammurato
Giusy Ferreri – Il cielo in una stanza
Luca Madonia con Franco Battiato – La notte dell’addio
Max Pezzali – Mamma mia dammi 100 lire
La Crus – Parlami d’amore Mariù
Anna Oxa – ‘O sole mio
Modà-Emma – Here’s To You, La ballata di Sacco e Vanzetti
Tricarico – L’italiano
Al Bano – Va’ pensiero
Anna Tatangelo – Mamma
Luca Barbarossa e Raquel Del Rosario – Addio, mia bella, addio
Davide Van De Sfroos – Viva l’Italia

The song contest features many more participants than it has in the past and is now a huge television event. Italian audiences will be tuning in for an extravaganza: music, fashion, entertainment and awards. But you don’t have to be in Italy to view the annual affair. To see international broadcasts, check the Rai programming schedule by selecting your geographic area. The festival will also be broadcast on Radio1 Rai.

The San Remo Festival is always an Italian entertainment experience, and with special secret guests expected this year, there’s no excuse for missing the singing or the spectacle!

Skiing in Riviera: Limone Piemonte

It is amazing to know that just 50 min drive from Sanremo, you can find one of the most fascinating ski resort of North Italy: Limone Piemonte

80 km of runs, 16 ropeways, a wonderful conch which links the 3 valleys and offers both begginers and experts the chance to choose their level of difficulty: this is the Riserva Bianca’s visiting card in Limone Piemonte province of Cuneo.
This ski area, already gives the so called “Regione delle Alpi del Mare” (low Piemonte, Liguria di Ponente and Costa Azzurra) a decidedly convenient and easy tourism: obviously close at hand for the three above stated areas, it gives people the chance to ski in a resort at competative prices and where the runs (although some ski lifts are still to be totally completed), give great satisfaction for those who love skiing in a place where the environment is both fascinating and wild.
There is no doubt about the beauty of the scenery at the Riserva Bianca: all you need to do is spend a day in the conch of Limone Piemonte to realize the uniqueness of the place. In winter it nearly always has natural snow and a temperature which allows you to ski in comfort, unlike some of the other known resorts in the Alps.

As far as the quality of the runs is concerened it has been approved not only by the fact that the Isolde Kostner, Olimpic Champion national French and Italian teams trained at the Riserva Bianca last year, but also by a statement made to the papers by the champion Isolde Kostner after training: «The impression I have after these days of training is unquestionably positive. Even though the runs are not yet at the level of the major national and international ski resorts, Limone offers extraordinary runs which can easily compare with first class resorts such as val d’Isère. I really believe that if Limone adapted their structures to the modern skiing and snowboard demands of the times it would be in the running to compete with even the most established resorts ».

www.riservabianca.it

Imperia Classic Yachts: Vele d’Epoca Regatta

Vele d’Epoca di Imperia celebrate this year its 16th edition. Over the years, the Imperia Regatta has become one of the most important competitions in European vintage sailing calendar.

From 8th to 12th September 2010 Imperia Bay will be the setting for the 16th Edition of the “Imperia Classic Yachts”, one leg of the Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge 2010 international circuit, an unmissable event reserved for vintage and classic sailing boats , sponsored for the first time by the Ministry of Tourism.

This is an event which attracts increasing numbers of Queens of the Sea, each with her own fascinating story. But it is the warm hospitality and the series of events organised around the regattas which has drawn all eyes along the coast to this Italian town.
Visitors from all over the world are bewitched by the Riviera climate, the colours, perfumes and flavours of the Province of Imperia, and the breathtaking sight of a thousand sails silhouetted against the setting sun.

“There’s a lot of hard work on a classic boat…. no electric winches, only bent backs and arms hauling the sheets and hoisting the halyard on these masterpieces of the sea which the passion of a few have restored to their original splendour” – says Lucio Carli – President of Assonautica Provinciale di Imperia which has been the organiser of the event from the very outset.

The new face of PORTO MAURIZIO means a more elegant setting for IMPERIA CLASSIC YACHTS: and improved facilities for participating boats which must have been built prior to 1950, the classic yachts built between 1950 and 1975 and their replicas recognised under C.I.M. regulations 2010-2013. Modern sailboats can also take part in the special “Spirit of Tradition” section if the design or construction materials are in the traditional style. Among these are the “classics” and the metric classes which include the 12 metre (International Rule), which have been the protagonists of the America’s Cup classic challenges.
2008 saw a new section with the invitation to craft in the historic “J Class” which will take part alongside the other well-loved sections. The “J Class” made history in the America’s Cup in the 30s thanks to characters like Lipton, Sopwith and Vanderbilt.
Since 2006 the Panerai – Imperia Classic Yachts event has been part of the “PANERAI

CLASSIC YACHTS CHALLENGE” which touches on some of the historic ports on the Mediterranean (Antibes, Cannes and Mahon) as well as overseas ones like Antigua, Nantucket and Newport. Every two years, Imperia is also part of the Circuit and plays an increasingly important role. Craft are divided into categories and challenge one another in exciting regattas.

The circuit, organised by A.I.V.E. (Associazione Italiana Vele d’epoca =Italian Classic Yachts Association) and C.I.M. (Comité International de la Méditerranée =International Mediterranean Committee) is divided into four regattas, plus some high seas races. At the end of the various trials, the Challenge winners will be declared in each class and category.

FRATELLI CARLI, AGNESI, has long been a byword for Mediterranean cooking and Imperia, together with FONDAZIONE BANCA CARIGE, PORTO DI IMPERIA SPA and IMPERIA YACHT SRL, are present at this edition alongside the TITLE SPONSOR OFFICINE PANERAI and, together, have contributed much to a deeper understanding of the seagoing tradition. The Imperia Classic Yachts event will also see the Italian debut of EILEAN, the 22 metre ketch from Bermuda, designed and built in 1936 in the legendary Scottish Fife boatyards, recently restored to her original glory in the wake of conservative philological restoration which took over three years to complete. Officine Panerai, the Florentine luxury watchmakers and sponsor of the Classic Yachts Challenge was behind the purchase and restoration of this historic craft.
In order to celebrate the return to the regattas of this Queen of the Sea, there will be a real feast for all lovers of classic yachts, an exhibition along the quays recounting the story of the painstaking salvage and rebuilding which brought Eilean back to life, using original parts and historical photos of the boat.

Since the first edition, the Classic Yachts has been organised by the Imperia Sailing Association, Assonautica Provinciale di Imperia, with a contribution from the Imperia Chamber of Commerce, under the sponsorship of the Liguria Region, the Province of Imperia, and the municipal authority and Prefecture of Imperia, with the administrative and logistical cooperation of the Harbour Office. The organisation and logistics of this event, one of the major ones in the Mediterranean, is possible thanks to the help of Yacht Club Imperia, Yacht Club San Marino, Yacht Club Marina degli Aregai, Club del Mare Diano Marina, Circolo Nautico Arma and Club Nautico San Bartolomeo al Mare.
The main area where the even will take place is in Calata Anselmi, the dock of Porto Maurizio but the entire city of Imperia is in a festive mood.

COLLATERAL EVENTS to be held in the International Naval Museum on the western Riviera of Imperia at Calata Anserlmi, Porto Maurizio from 8th to 12th September.

From: www.veledepoca.com

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