I HAVE found a place where for less than the price of many a British beach hut you can buy your own holiday villa. It comes with Sahara levels of sunshine, crystal turquoise waters and miles of golden sands. Where? Fuerteventura, off northwest Africa. It is one of the Canary Islands, which until the advent of mass tourism hadn’t been in the news since, well, their days as an outpost of the Roman Empire.
The geographer Ptolemy had already drawn his zero meridian through the islands, giving these tiny specks of volcanic rock the distinction of marking the edge of the known world. They were all but forgotten after the fall of Rome, and a thousand years went by before the Canaries, brushed by the trade winds, were back on the map as a staging point for Christopher Columbus on his journey to the new world.
The odd invasion by pirates apart, not much was heard of Fuerteventura until Franco plunged Spain into civil war from Corralejo, a town on the island’s northern tip. Corralejo’s Avenida del General Franco now rings not with the crunch of the dictator’s boots but the padded patter of flip-flops. The trade winds bring in windsurfers from across the globe. Fuerte- ventura’s new invaders are tourists.
As a holiday destination, it requires a bit of adjustment: treeless, lunar-like landscapes, high hills of volcanic rock, sweeping desert dunes. Even the official guide calls it barren and spent. But it grows on you, a desolate beauty all of its own. The starkness of the land is offset by constant clear blue seas and skies, hundreds of miles of unspoilt beaches of sand blown in from the western Sahara, and temperatures well over 20C (68F) for most of the year. Rain? Not in this bit of Spain. The island has the same latitude and climate as Mexico or Florida, yet is only four hours or so by air from the UK. That fact explains the free-for-all rush for year-round sun that has led to some disastrous holiday development everywhere in the islands — most notably, perhaps, on Tenerife, with its high-density hotels and dodgy timeshares.
Now Corralejo is starting to reverse this trend. The local council is reviewing all its development plans and has put a block on those that no longer measure up. The new emphasis is on quality, not quantity. Meanwhile, money is pouring in from EU special status grants for new roads, landscaping and planting. Which brings us to Origo Mare, a new oceanside community of villas, luxury hotels, shops and a championship golf course, under construction beside the beautiful Majanicho Beach, 10km outside Corralejo.
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Here, on a site backing on to the national park and with views to Lanzarote, the Spanish developer Nombredo is building 700 villas. They are being laid out in clusters of between 50 and 70 homes in a series of 12 individual oases. Each will have a large, landscaped central area with swimming pool and tennis courts. Homes in the first six oases, due for completion next summer, are now being sold in the UK and Ireland through Hamptons International (www.hamptons-int.com, 020-7589 8844, or www.origomare.com).
Prices are from €130,000 (£89,000) for a one-bedroom villa, €180,000 for the two-bedroom, two-bath villas, and €236,000 for three-bedroom semis. Each villa has its own large front and back garden and a roof terrace. They come with ten-year construction warranties similar to those available in the UK.
Jonathan Salsbury, manager of new developments for Hamptons International, who showed me around, says: “The northern end of Fuerteventura is a hidden gem and Origo Mare is being built to make the most of it. The villas here are in interesting small groups, carefully laid out along wide roads to give the best views out to sea and across to the hills of the national park. This is protected, so there will be no other big developments.
“Even now, while it is still a building site, you can feel the spaciousness of the layout. It is part of the push for quality. The aim is to be a little different, to get away from box-like holiday homes packed into claustrophobic rows.”
He sees the development as a good long-term investment, adding: “With sunshine almost the year round, these villas will rent out well. And as the place matures over the next couple of years, I’m expecting good capital growth, too. Of course, if you buy now you can’t move in for a year. But you will still be getting a good deal, because villas in the second stage are likely to go for a premium above present prices.”
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Claire Burton, who is in charge of sales for Hamptons in Origo Mare, says: “What people really like is the location and the views. My first sale here was to a couple from the South East who bought a two-bedroom villa off-plan, over the telephone. They knew the area. We talked a lot on the telephone and I sent them photos.”
Her second sale was to a family from Wales who had already visited other developments on Fuerteventura. “While I was driving them out here I got the impression that they weren’t really very interested. That changed when they saw all the villas overlooked Majanicho Beach, each with its own garden. They just went for it and cancelled their other appointments.”
Buyers pay a reservation fee of €6,000 and the balance of 10 per cent of the purchase price 30 days later on exchange of contracts. Two further 10 per cent payments are due in stages, with the final 70 per cent being paid on completion next summer.
A 5 per cent Canaries property tax is also paid in stages. A service charge of between €60 and €90 a month will be payable by all owners to maintain the communal grounds and pools, and there is a local council tax of €150 to €200 a year. Any rental income is taxed at 25 per cent. Hamptons will help buyers with the legal side, using an independent Kent lawyer specialising in Spanish property.
Origo Mare is equidistant from the pretty fishing port of El Cotillo, with its glorious surfing beaches, and the bustling town of Corralejo.
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So, who will come here? Let me refer you to the Nelles Guide: Canary Islands, which describes the area as “unpretentious . . . not overly British, or German”, adding: “There is a pleasant mix of all kinds of vacationers here: surfers, unmarried mothers with curious children, shell-collecting beachcombers and energetic retirees.”
Four hours from London! Well, I came with British Airways and spent four hours on the tarmac at Heathrow. Nonetheless, count me in.