Hi, we are considering moving over to the Villamartin area in the Costa Blanca. We have 3 kids aged 3,5 & 8. At first, we looked inland in Hondon de las Frailes, but the lack of facilities has put us off and with the kids it would mean we would be travelling a lot. We have now looked around Villamartin (we have an apartment there already) and it has ample facilities (mainly for the holidaymakers) and it also has several schools. Are there any members who live in this area with young children that could give us some advice before we make our final decision of coastal v. inland??

Hi ST,

I spent 3 months in Villamartin when I first arrived in Spain and it certainly has it's charm. You pay a premium for being right on the golf course though and this translates into smaller property which might not be what you want with 3 kids. Very busy in the summer too with terrible traffic along the N332 but it nice being right there at the beach (La Zenia). There are lots of options in between Villamartin and Hondon though. Check out Ciudad Quesada for example. Good quality houses (no blocks of flats) but cheaper than Villamartin. All the services, telephone, broadband, shops, health centre.

Regarding schools you have a choice of private, grant maintained private or state. Lots of people are happy with state school but they are only open 144 days a year and the lunch break is 3 hours long. You have to pay for lunch for kids under 6 (about 70 Euros a month) but the older ones may be entitled to a lunch grant which must be applied for at the start of the school year. If you start mid-year you would have to pay. If you are not happy with your kids being stuck out in a school yard for 3 hours a day (12:30 - 15:30) and you can collect them and drop them back for the afternoon session. By the way, no packed lunches, they either eat the school food or go home.

Sorry I can't tell you about any specific school but I didn't have kids when I was living there.

Thanks very much for the advice. We will have a look around Quesada when we are out in a couple of weeks.

Hi Sara
I live in Daya Nueva with my husband and 3 kid's aged 4,2 and 10 months we decided on moving to the coast but then changed our minds and moved in land. It's the best decision we made. The kids are in spanish School and nursery and Daya nueva is a lovely small town the kids love it here. My advise is take time looking round until you find somewhere that feels right and speak to the town halls find out the information on schools. Hope this helps Sarah

I agree totally we started in Playa Flamenca 6 years ago but now live happily in Rojales

we started in Playa Flamenca, but are now in Campoamor, much nicer area.