caitriona

Looking for a move to Germany and need to find house to rent,not sure where to go. I'm a pensioner and alone,small town and not a hilly area,maybe on Dutch border. Where is the warmest place? I'm not looking for hot but would prefer not to much snow and ice, I like Cologne but don't want a city. Ideas very welcome.

dmu

Hi, and welcome to the Forum!
The first place that springs to mind is Aachen, followed by Trier if you don't mind being further away from the Dutch border, but near another. Koblenz is also worth considering.... If you aren't sure, you may do better to visit various towns in the area, not as a tourist, but as a potential resident, before deciding....
Good luck!

caitriona

many thanks I know I will have to visit and I may take a look at Koblenz.My father came from Rostock but that's too far north for me.

ninaDGBCA

The warmest area is around Heidelberg, Weinheim, Darmstadt or further South towards Albstadt and Tuebingen but that's hilly.

I would look at Weinheim a.d. Bergstrasse, Schriesheim, Ladenburg, Speyer. It's nice around there, wine area, warm in the summer and not too bad in the winter. Loads of rivers and lakes, a few bigger towns around with Heidelberg, Karlsruhe and Frankfurt all accessible via train. Also the French border and Strasbourg is only about an hour/hour half west and Cologne about 2 hours North. All just a train ride away ;-). My auntie is a pensioner and lives near Weinheim and loves it there.

Novocastrian

I agree with nina wrt to climate, but I'd like to add the Rheingau/Mainzer Pflaz areas to the list.

BritInParis

Someone along the Rhine would probably suit you. The big German cities like Cologne and Düsseldorf aren't particularly attractive places given that the vast majority of the buildings are post-war but there are some very beautiful smaller towns and villages in between Cologne and Koblenz and thanks to German public transport (buses, trams, trains) you don't have to be isolated like you often are in the UK.

I used to live in Bad-Godesberg, a district of Bonn, on the banks of the Rhine opposite the Siebengebirge and it was stunning. Highly recommended.

twix85

Muenster, its 40 mins approx from Enschede by train, not 1 hill in sight and a mix of old people and students. Bring an umbrella, it rains a lot.

clars

Or you could consider smaller cities like Bitburg or Gerolstein - as far as I know beautiful places as well.

clars

I would also recommend Maastricht - great place to be a pensioner. Fantastic cycling infrastructure to stay fit and right on to the border with Belgium and Germany so lots of opportunity for day trips.

jamesshaffer

I totally agree that Maastricht is the real paradise for those who are retired and want to maintain active lifestyle. My aunt lives there and she always tells us how lucky she is to be there. I'm pretty sure you will like it. Good luck!

BerryBridge

I live in Germany between Krefeld and Kleve. Flat as a pancake and normally no extreme weather. Transport links good and Airport Weeze is brilliant for flights to London Stansted.

koalabear1

How do you find the local people? Have you got Dutch friends?

I like Maastricht too, but have always found the inhabitants overly proud of their dialect to the point of excluding outsiders.

For visiting, I'd recommend it but living there could be a different matter. How long have you been living in NL? (I lived in the country for just under a decade, but left in 2003).