Help with selecting area please
 

Hi, I'm going to live in Southern Spain from early May - Costa del Sol region - and would like advice on a good place to settle. I have school age children so a decent school as well as a nice area would be important. Have rented an apartment for one month as a base to explore from but would be very grateful for any pointers please. Thanks.

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

hi, just wanted to wish you and your family luck!!! can't give any advice on area i am afraid as i am in the warly stages myself of moving to southern spain, but i am looking at the costa blanca area. What job are you doing when you arrive? Donna

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

Nothing finalised yet, but hope to get something sorted when I'm there - possibly journalistic as have written articles for years and local BBC reporting.

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

well good luck in whatever you do, Donna x

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

That's very kind - best of luck to you too!

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

I think in your first month of being here. You should end up answering that question for yourself. I cant help with schools and stuff as have no idea about that. I too rented just for a month to start with then had a few runs up and down the coast. Spoke to a lot of people, found a job and I just ended up settling nearly an hours drive away from where I had originally rented. I had never even heard of Estepona when I had arrived.
I would say most places west of Marbella are lovely, Nice and Spanish but not too close to all the cheap package holidays - and the brits that come with it!

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

Thanks - that makes me feel better about my lack of research before moving!

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

Yeah best way to get to know a place is to come here. Make sure youve got some wheels and go explore it. Chat to people. Get a feeling of it. It takes time. Im still diong it and its been almost a year. Main thing is try not commiting to anything until your sure. Ie just do short term rents until you know youre in a suitable area. Just take it one day at a time. For the first couple of months you'll be very lost in a strange new world. But soon it'll start coming clear. What helped for me was starting a job and I was around people who had been here longer than me.

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

La Cala de Mijas in Mijas Costa is a lovely place to live with good state schools and an ex-pat community (good if you don't speak Spanish). Not too expensive either

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

Thank you for that, as it will give me a starting point, and of course I need to be sure the children are happy.

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

Yeah La Cala seems to be Brit Zone central. Which funnily enough I found a bit.. urgh!! after living in Estepona where it is mainly Spanish. I dunno, theres just something so fake about the place. But thats just my personal opinion. It is nice though.

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

I live near La Cala is nice enough play golf there some weeks. I'm up the road in Riviera what is a nice safe place going all the way up to the mountains and plenty of British and other nationalities so you would settle easy and get to know what is what. Global FM is only 5 minutes away so maybe a chance to work for them in some capacity. All up the coast from Malaga to Marbella is sort of the same so loads of chance to explore.

There are a number of papers along the3 coast aimed at the British market as well i can think of four of the top of my head.

Good luck

John

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

Try Alhaurin el Grande. Lovely village/town? with good mix of population, good schools etc. 35 minutes from sea, airport and mountains.
Whereabouts are you renting and for example a brand new 3 bed apartment with large terraces would cost you around €135,000.

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

That's really helpful John, thanks.

Re: Help with selecting area please
 

Haven't heard of Alhaurin el Grande, but it may be worth a visit. Inintially, I am spending a month in a colleague's apartment in Fuengirola which will hopefully will be as good a base from which to explore as any. Thanks for replying.