Amandacooper

Hi,

I am new to this site so hoping i have posted in right place!
Me, my husband my my 2 sons are looking to relocate in Europe.
We are looking into Spain but have no idea what parts are best for families and with other British because we dont know the spanish language.
My husband works away so no job needed, we just want to live somewhere with nicer weather and a better way of life for our sons.
Hope i get some answers.

Thanks
Amanda

jay01

You will get plenty of answers, but they will be so broad that in my opinion of little use, Spain is a very big place and it offers many different things to people. It all depends on what you want, not what suits me or jo blogs etc but we can only tell you how it is for us and what we looked for will be very different from yours.

Nothing beats good old leg work, self research and making lots of notes on what is important to you and what is not, what you need as in schools, shops, public transport etc and what type of property are you looking for 2/3/4 bed, bathrooms, land, villa, town house. Do you want to be in a town, the country by the coast, in land. Do you want to live Allicante way, Malaga, Cadiz. So as you can see you will get lots of answers.

As for the Spanish language I would recommend starting to learn it before you make your move out of courtesy for your adoptive country, even trying a little will mean that the whole experience you get will be so much more beneficial and it will make things so much easier as many service providers and call centres plead ignorance of speaking English.

How old are your 2 sons as the older they are the hardier it will be for them to settle as they will be so far behind with education unless you send them to one of the English schools, is the move something they want as unhappy kids, a partner that works away, the stress of a move and the feeling that happen afterwards can make for a very unhappy start to your new beginning.

I hope this is of help to you, I live inland CdS and love it but I did lots of research spent 2 years making little visits and then travelling around to get my barrings so I knew what I was letting myself in for, having been here 12 months what we thought we wanted and what we now realise is needed is very different, rent for at least 12 months/ 2 years this gives you the flexibility to move if necessary,

Leper

I'm totally with Jay01. Spain is so diverse, the only person who knows where you want to live is you. You have to start somewhere. Choose where you will have a choice of airports, accessibility, schools. Don't have a choice that is written in stone, be prepared to change your mind. Visit in the off season and as often as possible. Believe me, you will probably stumble on a place that suits you and the needs of your family.

Consider renting (as buying might be a wrong option in the present financial climate). Then write down your truthful SWOT Analysis between Spain and yourself. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats.

Rosemary

Make a list of the things that you want from the place that you will live in. Proximity of the sea, mountains, countryside, town, shops, healthcare, type of housing, schools, sports etc. Look into what area would appear to tick the majority of the boxes for you and then visit as often as you can for as long as you can so that you can evaluate it properly for yourselves. As Jay said we all have our own agendas so we cannot really advise you.

My own agenda was that I wanted to live in an ordinary small town, wanted to be able to visit the sea easily but did not necessarily want to live right beside it, wanted to be able to see plenty of greenery and have a good view, not too far from the hospital services (getting older not younger) and not up a mountain side as I was nervous of driving on twisty bendy roads.

Your needs will be very different because you are a different age group and still have childrens needs to consider so your list will be unique to you and your family.

Everyone says to rent initially so that you can move if necessary but it is still advisable to thoroughly check out all the factors on your list prior to renting to save too much heartbreak and upheaval.

Good luck.

Rosemary

JLFS

I would say the major factor depending on the age of your sons, would be, what opportunities there will be for them when they leave school.


It is often put to the back of requirements, behind mountain views and such considerations, but, if you want your children to be able to stay in Spain as young adults, then a lot of thought must go into that.

There are lots of young British who have no job prospects here in Spain.

megmet

Spain is a very diverse country as are the people on this forum, we all have our own ideas of living our dream in Spain!
Personally I couldn't live on the CDS or in a town surrounded by lots of people, but others equally couldn't stand living where I do in the campo surrounded by hills and mountains and with just a few Spanish neighbours nearby.
The best thing you could do is visit as much as you can, look at different places and weigh up the pros and cons. Make a list of things that are of importance to the lifestyle you wish to lead, but do be practical and look at the down side of places too....there will be some!
Be flexible, as what you think you want now may not be what you end up wanting.....we lived on the coast for our first three months and hated it, the decision to move inland was the right one for us, we love it!

Most important of all, do make an attempt at learning the language even if it's only a little, in many places away from the Costa's no English is spoken, even where it is they really do appreciate a few words of Spanish....it goes a long way towards you being accepted.

Jur

Agree with learning the language, after all at school, the doctor, the postoffice, townhall, etc. etc. you will need to communicate in the countries´own language.

JLFS

"Learn the language, even it its only a little", could be argued that it is fine for poeple who are retired, have no need for a job, but for people who are bringing up children, you need to learn the language "a lot". You owe it to your kids,
what example does it set them, if they are expected to cope with all the schoolwork and the language and the parents can just get by with "a little", lead by example.

agoreira

Agree, but I'm not sure how often that happens. The kids seem to pick it up at school, out playing etc, but most parents seem to have very limited Spanish, and very little interest in learning the lingo. The kids can translate for us! Some parents do get stuck in, but they rarely match the kids, they are not exposed to it as much. Plus, ¡la vejez no viene sola! It definitely gets harder as you get older!

Amandacooper

Thanks for the replies and i will take it all into consideration.
Our sons are 2 and 11months so still very young, which is why we anted to get moved and settled before they start school.
Good schools are obviously high on our list of priorities, but we are happy to go private so that shouldnt be too much of a issue (we hope!).
Also property wise we wanted a villa or something similar with a pool and garden for the boys to run around in.
I hadnt given much thought to the language as the boys would pick it up and i assumed we could just learn enough to get by, however if it is as importaqnt to learn a lot as has been suggested then maybe we will continue looking for other options.

Thanks
Amanda

JLFS

Well I think that Captain Wenchs horror stories should put the willies up every parent who cannot speak Spanish to a decent level....

agoreira

When they start coming home from school with Spanish homework, it´d would be nice to be able to help them out when they get stuck, you would in English. You´ve got several years to get up to speed, get learning!

marqueemoon

The most important question you have to ask is what is best for the children. I can't comment on other parts of Spain, but where I live I see little evidence that the children of expats are integrated with their Spanish peers. This is because their parents aren't integrated. The British kids end up hanging around together, doing what they would be doing in the UK. Are they having a better life that they would have had at home? Here they are outsiders, and they know it.

Other posters have mentioned the importance of learning Spanish, school choice, future job prospects. What might appear idyllic to an adult escaping the depressing reality of life in the UK, could end up a nightmare for their children.

As your children are very young they should have no problems, but when you have to meet teachers or take the kids to a Spanish friend's birthday party, wouldn't it be great to be able to talk to the adults yourself, rather than have your children translate?

Anyway, good luck with your dream.

JLFS

I agree that is very important and not just homework, a lot of parents put their kids through embarassing times through not speaking the language,(been there myself as a child) and as for kids translating for the parents, iti is ok for going to the shop and them telling you how to ask for "thin slices" or trivialities but there will be lots of situations where that would be the worst thing for a child to have to do

Also very serious things can happen at the most crucial times, and to be the parent responsible for a child in an extreme situation is a big responsibility and if parent is not equipped to deal with it, (lack of language) it would be a hell of load on ones conscience.

The chances of it happening may be very remote, but you never know.

JLFS

Some K for you......very important the job prosects for the children.