Beryltheperil2211

we are planning to move to the Valencia area in the coming months and will need to rent a home but not having any knowledge of which areas are more sought after etc would welcome any advice about which areas are recommended and which are not so.

we don't have a desire to live in the city center itself but rather the surrounding towns within about an hour from Valencia airport.

we have seen a few areas within a reasonable commute to the airport where homes are available to rent such as Alberic and Picassent but have no clue what these areas are like.

we don't require schools to be close by, just that the neighborhood has a good reputation etc.

any information anyone can give would be very much appreciated.

Rosemary

Hi and a warm welcome to the Spanish forum on BE. Myself and Fred James are the moderators for the Spanish forums whilst BEVS moderates Europe. Moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. This is so that members gain the information that they are looking for and find their experiences on the forums to be friendly and worthwhile.

Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderator who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are usually friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge about the issues of living in Spain. I hope that you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

snikpoh

I live in Ontinyent which is about 50 minutes from the airport - just to give you an idea of distances.

Beryltheperil2211

thank you for replying to our enquiry Rosemary and Snikpoh.

I just had a look at the map and see Ontinyent is about an hour from Valencia airport which is the maximum distance we would like to travel as I will be commuting back and forth for work each week.

I haven't seen any rentals advertised for that area although I see it is about the same distance as Oliva from the airport which has many listed properties.

any guidance on the different towns within an hours drive of Valencia airport would be gratefully appreciated so we would have a better understanding of which locations to target when we eventually arrive in the country.

thank you again.

Rosemary

Personally I would avoid Oliva, I love the town but the traffic through the town is horrendous so if you found a place on the more distant side it would add a lot of time to your journey. Each town has something going for it so it is difficult to advise you unless you would also find it a benefit to be able to use the trains too.

Rosemary

johnnyone

Rosemary is right the traffic through the town can be a nightmare although this should be sorted when the tolls are removed (31/12/99), together with another spur off the AP7 to the south of the town.
If you are on the north side of the town it's not a problem getting out of the town northwards.
If I were commuting on a regular basis I would consider a town with a direct metro/rail link to Valencia as the airport is on the metro system.

Dick Dasterdly

Montserrat, Montroy and Turis are all less than an hour away by car and quite pleasant pueblos in nice countryside with lots of Valencian weekend homes scattered around the Campo.
Monserrat is the closest about half an hour away.
Picassent and Torrent are much bigger places and both have regular Metro services into Valencia.
Picassent is a bit industrial, but Torrent is very pleasant and well maintained only about 15 minutes out by Metro.
There are also some very pleasant houses scattered about the area just to the West of Torrent.
The afore mentioned three pueblos I know well and I've found the residents to be exceptionally friendly and helpful, though you may need to brush up on your Spanish as Brits are fairly thin on the ground and there are no little Britain type communities.

snikpoh

I regularly do the trip to the airport and it takes me 45 mins (sticking to all the speed limits).

Have you looked at fotocasa.es or enalquiler.com - loads of villas there for around 400 - 500 euros per month

Beryltheperil2211

Thank you so much to all who have replied giving us valuable information about the various towns within about an hours drive from Valencia airport and the important point regarding the rail connection from the airport itself which we knew nothing about at all and definitely puts a new perspective on the commute.

Our problem is that not having any local knowledge at all about the different areas, prior to us eventually landing in the city, we have to rely on websites featuring houses to rent and roughly how far they are from Valencia airport to give us some idea about what we can expect but this doesn't give us any knowledge about the actual towns where the properties are situated and so to hear a few comments from you about what each town is really like e.g. industrial or more rural etc has been extremely welcome as once we arrive to find a home to rent, we had hoped to have narrowed down our search areas as we won't have unlimited time and would like to be settled within a few weeks if possible.

So if anyone has any more in-depth advice and information that only locals would know about any of the towns or villages within an hours drive of Valencia airport and if these are situated close to the rail network, based on personal experience etc, this would be gratefully accepted as we are sure you can imagine, we feel the prospect of finding the perfect long term home and neighborhood, without first checking out the area in person, a daunting prospect.

Thank you once again for any help you can give.

johnnyone

These rail maps may help. Local towns usually have good websites that include much useful information.


http://www.visitvalencia.com/en/plan...PlanoZonal.pdf

Renfe - Plano de Cercanías Valencia

Horlics

Have a look at Xativa. Very nice place. Stay a couple of nights in a B&B and look around. 50 mins by train into Valencia.

Dick Dasterdly

Another little tip, do not venture too far inland say 25 kms max,
nor too high, say max 300 mts asl as the winter weather inland can be quite a contrast to the coastal areas.

Oh,by the way Beryl the Peril, I hope you are not bringing Dennis the Menace along too.

Beryltheperil2211

Thank you Horlics and Dick Dastardley for the info.

Any advice on the different towns and villages and what they're really like to live around from a local's point of view is gratefully accepted as we will only be able to find this sort of inside info out after spending time there but time isn't something we will have a lot of as obviously we will want to get settled and comfy ASAP.

So if we can refine which areas will fit our needs and cross those that are not suitable off our list before we arrive, will make our lives a lot easier.

Ha ha, no Dick Dastardley, Dennis the Menace won't be joining me but Mr Bean will be !!!!!!!!

Again thank you.

Mitzyboy

No one has mentioned Gandia, which is at the other end of the Valencia train line, south. It's about 55 minutes on the train, and it's a decent journey. Gandia is a bustling town with tree lines paseos and a weekly big market. There is also the beach and port area which is a few kms away. Lots of small villages dotted around along with national parks, beautiful countryside very close and blue flag beaches nearby.

In the 12 months or so I researched where to live in Spain, this was the area we chose and I never regreetted it.

Tourism in Gandía in Valencia, Spain | spain.info UK

Kenwoodlad

I'll second MitzyBoy. We chose one of the small villages between Gandia (5 minutes drive) and Oliva (2 minutes drive). Love it to bits. By car to Valencia Airport is about an hour. By public transport (bus, train, tram) it's nearer 2 hours.