porcelainwhite

Been checking out fotocasa.es for long term rentals and if there's a good apartment for a great price, great size, great location, the interior is ugly as hell Has anyone else noticed this? Does anyone know where to see unfurnished or minimum furnishes apartments for rent?

cricketman

Because they dont want the tenants to ruin their nice furniture

I've only even known people rent unfurnished in Spain, that is the usual in the cities. And it means you get a choice of the nice properties that don't have grannies furniture left in them

Unfortunately you also normally need to bring your own curtain rails, light fittings, washing machines, shower rails etc, the whole lot

jimenato

The norm here is for houses to be sparsely and cheaply furnished - the last three houses we rented were. The current house isn't and we have had to furnish it ourselves which is fine until we have to move on. The next house will probably be already furnished.

Domino

Both flats we rented in Granada city were fully furnished.
In the second one the landlord brought us a new fan in the height of summer as he was embarrased at not taking the airconditioning option when he bought.

Our current house has fridge-freezer, cooker, top, m/wave, washing machine, all lighting, built-in wardrobes and a large 3 piece suite.
We provided the rest from the UK

Lenox

Many andaluz homes have an imposing 'mueble', a 'furniture', in the sitting room, facing the settee and looming over the entire ensemble. This will be a faux-wooden thing with drawers and cupboards, holding a set of unread books from Salvat and an old-style TV.
In general, homes are for sleeping or eating in. There's such a huge, intriguing and fascinating 'outside' just beyond the door.

amideislas

I've oft heard the remark that the Spanish missed the 20th century.

steviedeluxe

Of course, they jumped straight into the 21st!
Try taking something called "the Gatwick express" after having a AVE journey in Spain. Or even spending half a hour at Border Control in the UK just so the civil servants can take their time looking at passports...
Easy to bandy about this "backward" jibe, except that in many ways it can be applied to the UK instead. But it's a nice sunny morning here in London and no doubt the Underground will move millions of customers around. On balance there are a lot of great things about both countries.

johnnyone

Agreed.
There should be positive only thread about the two countries.
I love the Uk because it's the Uk and I love Spain because it's Spain. I don't need to analyse why, I just enjoy both countries.

Domino

yes - border control seems to think it is still in the 19th Century

as the Gatwick Express, like all things rail - the desire was there but restricted by funding and lack of support infrastructure in the rest of the system. But doesnt Gatwick have a mag-lev internal system that was a 60's/70's British invention ??

If the Spanish managed to skip the 20th Century then they were lucky as they don't have all the baggage that goes with it

And as Johnny says - both have their +ve and -ve points that make the UK and Spain so interesting

steviedeluxe

Well at least CrossRail is being built (and I understand Spanish companies are involved), so come 2018 travelling across London will be a pleasure. I don't expect to live long enough to see HS2 in operation to birmingham, still less arrive further north, but I'm sure when it does get built it will make a real difference to travel conditions in the UK. I have to admit I often forget about the Chunnel link, and everything about that route now, from the high speed trains and St Prancas station, are impressive.

rspltd

So you didn't use your chip passport then? Place the passport on the reader. wait about ten seconds, doors open. Simples!! As far as Gatwick express goes, even though it is a two station system it has to interweave with some of the most complex railway systems in the world. Most of it designed in the 19th century. No quite the same as the AVE which for the most part went over virgin ground. The price structure is quite different too.

jackytoo

Amen, would that others would be so level headed

jimenato

You obviously haven't tried to enter Spain from Gibraltar lately...

jackytoo

Most of the AVE is fairly empty too

steviedeluxe

Wrong.
I took a mid-week journey from Valencia to Madrid at around 12.40. It wasn't 100% full, but it was certainly at least 75% full.
The Gatwick express was actually a lot emptier - although to be fair they do operate on a more regular basis.