# Best beach town for a young family



## moblondie (Jan 17, 2013)

We are looking for a beach town for us and our two young children to live year round. Would love some suggestions for the best places for us to look at. We would like to live somwhere safe and where there are other familiels with children. We're not even sure how we will make it work financially, but trying to figure it out. Would love any ideas.

Thanks so much!


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

:welcome:


moblondie said:


> We are looking for a beach town for us and our two young children to live year round. Would love some suggestions for the best places for us to look at. We would like to live somwhere safe and where there are other familiels with children. We're not even sure how we will make it work financially, but trying to figure it out. Would love any ideas.
> 
> Thanks so much!


Welcome to the forum!

Before you even start to consider which of the hundreds of possible locations which may meet your criteria, you should probably review the recently revised/implemented Mexican immigration regulations ... to ensure that you and your family meet the criteria to be issued visas to reside in Mexico. There is a discussion of that topic elsewhere on this fourm, and on other expat-in-Mexico forums on the www.

As for possible locations where you might reside, if you can satisfy the immigration requirements: the list of possibilities expands greately if you and your significant other, and children, have the ability to communicate in Spanish. If you speak Spanish, there will be a huge number of possibilities.

My suggestion is that, if you haven't already done so, you spend some time at your local public library or independent bookselller to carefully examine maps of Mexico, the individual coastal states, travel guidebooks (such as _Lonely Planet Mexico_), and a copy of the _People's Guide to Mexico_. Then, too, devote a considerable amount of time for online research of the websites (including blogs) which specifically address Mexico ... .it's culture, its current events ... and the experiences of expats who've made the transition from another country into Mexico. There are scores of discussions archived here which specifically address concerns others planning to move to Mexico have had and where many of the same concerns you have or will have are discussed.

After you have done these things you should be able to develop a list of, say, a dozen possibilities, after which you will probably want to make some familiarization trips to see, first-hand, which of those on the list satisfy your particular criteria.

My best guess is that if you haven't started the process I've outlined above that it'll take you a year or two to be in a position to make your selection and move.

I'll say it one more time, to emphasize its importance: Don't do anything further until after you thoroughly research the immigration question. Because the new regulations appear to make it much more difficult for people to meet the minimum income requirements in order to qualify for a visa to reside in the country.

Good luck with your planning.

And, once again ... :welcome:


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## sparks (Jun 17, 2007)

If finances are an issue then I'd suggest staying near the Calif/Arizona border so you can renew your tourist cards with an easy drive. You can check with a Mexican Consulate near you to find what you'd need for a resident visa. I know a number of young families that have online businesses and are able to work anywhere. Good luck


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## Lorij (Jul 8, 2012)

For a family with children you will want a safe, tranquil town where the residents are very friendly and it is not dangerous. I however have not traveled all around Mexico like many people in the forum but have visited several states for short periods of time. The only place I have felt completely at ease is in Oaxaca. My fiancé's family live in Puerto Angel a small beach town on the Pacific most southern part of Mexico. Oaxaca has some beautiful beaches. There is also a lot of tourists in Huatulco Oaxaca as well as puerto Escondido, puerto Escondido is a small quiet fishing village, but there is larger hotels and resorts in Huatulco. My fiancé Emmanuel's uncle is the manager of Hotel Castille in Huatulco they often hire Americans in the hotel because of all the tourists they always need people that speak and write fluent English as well. Also Emmanuel's brother in law is the manager of the HSBC bank in puerto Escondido an they like to hire people fluent in English as well, just some ideas to pass along. I'm not sure how you plan on supporting your family when you move, but here may be some options. But in all I strongly suggest you check into oaxaca is is very safe! Good luck keep us posted!!!!


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

Good advice from Longford and Sparks. Sparks´ suggestion that, at first at least, you come down here on a tourist visa with periodic cross border 180 day refreshments is important as, otherwise, you must demonstrate sufficient income _independent of Mexico _to qualify for temporary resident visas. Those income requirements have recently been revised and are now more stringent so that is also an issue. You can of course, live on a beach near the border with Guatemala or Belize (Quintana Roo or Chiapas) and still be within an easy drive of a border where you can get a new 180 day tourist visa. The eastern Gulf Coast beaches near Texas are probably not a good idea these days but perhaps there as well. 

For many of these places you might wish to settle, it is important for at least one of you to have a good command of Spanish and you do not mention language skills. Without that Spanish capability you choices are limited. 

If we haven´t discouraged you, tell us more about whether or not you or at least one of you speaks Spanish and whether, after review of the INM rules, you feel you may quality for temporary resident visas and we can take it from there.


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

I like Lorij´s suggestion. I mentioned that one place well located to cross the border into Guatemala to renew your 180 day tourist visa is Chiapas but the beaches in Chiapas are somewhat rustic, primitive even, and isolated and, there, fluency in Spanish would be absoluetly critical. However, the beach communities she mentions in Oaxaca State are, in my opinion, an excellent alternative close enough to the Guatemala border to make semi-annual trips to the border for tourist visa renewal practical. It´s a long drive from, say,Huatulco, to the Guatemala border but feasible. Places such as Huatulco or even Puerto Escondido might make sense for the family-oriented environment you seek and these are stand-alone communities not just tourist beaches with the civic infrastructures you may need to support you while you learn Spanish if you need to do so.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

Tourist cards ... are for tourists, not residents. And to work legally one needs more than a tourist card in addition to government approval. If someone is going to move to Mexico, I expect that they will respect the laws and ... the people.


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

Longford said:


> Tourist cards ... are for tourists, not residents. And to work legally one needs more than a tourist card in addition to government approval. If someone is going to move to Mexico, I expect that they will respect the laws and ... the people.


Quite true. I have not addressed the issue of working in Mexico as that did not seem an imperative of the original poster. However, there is nothing wrong with the notion of coming down here under a tourist visa at first to see if you like the place and there is also nothing wrong with renewing that tourist visa for an additional 180 day period or even more while one becomes settled. While I have never done this, it is commonly done and, as far as I know, not frowned upon by the Mexican government. I would agree that, once one has made the decision to move to Mexico if that is the case, one should graduate to temporary and then permanent residency as did we. Now that we are permanent residents, our next move is Mexican citizenship and that we will accomplish this summer. 

It should be noted that, if one lacks sufficient income and/or financial resources independent of Mexico to quality for residency over time, the whole notion of moving to Mexico in the first place as other than temporarily as a tourist makes no sense. Forget working down here as a practical alternative. If you can eventually land a job, good for you but that is not a basis for the move.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

> It should be noted that, if one lacks sufficient income and/or financial resources independent of Mexico to quality for residency over time, the whole notion of moving to Mexico in the first place as other than temporarily as a tourist makes no sense. Forget working down here as a practical alternative. If you can eventually land a job, good for you but that is not a basis for the move.


Yes, I agree.


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## DebMer (Dec 31, 2011)

moblondie said:


> We are looking for a beach town for us and our two young children to live year round. Would love some suggestions for the best places for us to look at. We would like to live somwhere safe and where there are other familiels with children. We're not even sure how we will make it work financially, but trying to figure it out. Would love any ideas.
> 
> Thanks so much!


If one or both of you is inclined to teach English online, you might check out Open English. You need a good Internet connection, but I'm told it's a good way to work from anywhere. That could be one way to start out - a 180 day visa and online work.


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## moblondie (Jan 17, 2013)

Thank you for such detailed and helpful information. I do speak fluent Spanish and my children are exposed to it, but not fluent. It will be at least another year until we attempt to make the move. I will look into all of this and look forward to more responses as well. I am a teacher so I love the teacher possibility. Thanks so much.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

moblondie said:


> Thank you for such detailed and helpful information. I do speak fluent Spanish and my children are exposed to it, but not fluent. It will be at least another year until we attempt to make the move. I will look into all of this and look forward to more responses as well. I am a teacher so I love the teacher possibility. Thanks so much.


One more thing to think about - will you need a school for your children? I'm guessing that a lot of beach resort areas may not have a great selection of good schools for you to choose from.


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## Belizegirl (Oct 21, 2010)

Hello moblondie. Myself, husband and two young boys live in Playa Del Carmen and I thought I would share some of my thoughts regarding PDC.

I find PDC to be very safe and a wonderful place to raise our boys. Whilst, it is primarily a tourist town it still has a small town feel. 

There are many things to do in and around town with children and great experiences to be had. There are also voluntering opportunities that the whole family can participate in. I have found it quite easy to meet other families. 

PDC has a variety of great schools to choose from. Currently, my boys are attending a Waldorf school, just outside of town, that is in the jungle and they absolutely love it.

For travel NOB, the Cancun airport is only 40 minutes away. PDC is also close to the Belizian border should you initially be here on a tourist visa and need to leave MX for your periodic 180 day refreshment (I like how another poster put that). 

Enjoy your search and research. 

On another note, a previous poster mentioned Open English. I have a friend who previously taught at one of the schools here and now works with Open English and loves it.


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## vantexan (Sep 4, 2011)

And to keep some posters here happy, occasionally buy t-shirts that say I Heart Cancun, and drink mixed drinks with little umbrellas, and point your cameras at stuff. That way when you pass through customs they'll say "if it weren't for all the touristy behavior I'd swear you've been living here on tourist cards! How'bout another 180 days?"

I threw my hands up in frustration at the new income requirements, made my mind up to move to South America. Having investigated the costs of Air Travel to Bolivia, I'm back to Mexico. And having discovered that one can get by pretty reasonably in Playa del Carmen, with excellent infrastructure and and very good access to the States via Cancun, have decided it's worth trying for awhile.


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## cuylers5746 (Mar 19, 2012)

*Safe Beach Communities for kids*

If you don't need waves? There's beautiful beaches in Bahia San Carlos in 
Sonora. Actually some great Diving and Fishing there. It's less than a 8 hour 
drive back up to Tucson, AZ to renew any Tourist Visa and for shopping and returning.
Most people speak some or a lot of English as it's almost like a mini-subburb of
Tucson, AZ. HOT in the summer though. And, it can get almost cold in the winter.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

cuylers5746 said:


> Most people speak some or a lot of English as it's almost like a mini-subburb of
> Tucson, AZ.


If I were looking for a place to live in Mexico, that would be one place for me to cross off my list. Why move to another country that is just like the one you're planning to leave?


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

Well, I wouldn't describe the San Carlos and neighboring Guayams communities "almost like a mini-suburb of Tucson." San Carlos certainly draws its share of snowbirds, but the community is larger (when you add-in Guaymas) and more Mexican-centric than all of that. For people wishing to remain relatively close to the USA, and also Vets who need to be close to a VA hospital (at Tucson), this area is a good option. As the saying goes, "To each his (her) own ..."


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## Lorij (Jul 8, 2012)

Isla Verde said perhaps beach towns may not have a great school selection, and perhaps that is true. However, in Puerto Angel the schools do teach English classes to the students, also some of the teachers speak English as well. My soon to be sis-in-law speaks fluent English and teaches children ages 5 through 7 in the school here.!


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

Lorij said:


> Isla Verde said perhaps beach towns may not have a great school selection, and perhaps that is true. However, in Puerto Angel the schools do teach English classes to the students, also some of the teachers speak English as well. My soon to be sis-in-law speaks fluent English and teaches children ages 5 through 7 in the school here.!


That's good news for you. Most schools in Mexico City provide English instruction to their students, but that doesn't mean that most of them learn to speak the language even fairly well. Your future sister-law's students are lucky to have her as their teacher. I have met far too many Mexican English teachers who can barely hold a simple conversation in English.


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## cuylers5746 (Mar 19, 2012)

*Bahia San Carlos*

Isla Verde there is a high interest for people to be able to move to a Mexican town or resort while they're learning the culture, language and lifestyle and yet have the ability to help get up and running by being able to express themselves to Mexican's if they're not very affluent in the Spanish Language. Many people have not had the years of access to Mexico that we have had and yet need; a starter community for them to slowly inch into Mexico and see if it's really for them or not?

That's what thousands are doing in Northern Baja living between Ensenada and Tijuana Beach. Many have the interest in relocating to Mexico, but it is so foreign to them from their community that they grew up in. They want to see if it's really for them and can they adapt to this culture? The owners of the home that rented to us in Baja Mar Country Club north of Ensenada, B.C.N. were just such a couple. After living there a few years and making trips deeper into the interior of Mexico, they left to see if they wanted to move to Ajiic where they knew friends. They did not, but went further and eventually settled in Progresso.

That and having close driving accessibility to the USA and being able to purchase what they prefer to buy in the USA and all the other benefits such as being able to access their Medical Services via Medicare and being able to take advantage of both sides of the border - is a real plus.

That's why?


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## Lorij (Jul 8, 2012)

Very true Isla Verde, but yes Dora speaks fluent English and teaches there in Puerto Angel. I suspected many english speaking teachers in D.F. but I would not have thought smaller towns would have English teachers. Also my other future sis in law Haydee speaks and writes fluent English and teaches in Oaxaxa, Oaxaca as well!


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## Belizegirl (Oct 21, 2010)

Isla Verde said:


> That's good news for you. Most schools in Mexico City provide English instruction to their students, but that doesn't mean that most of them learn to speak the language even fairly well. Your future sister-law's students are lucky to have her as their teacher. I have met far too many Mexican English teachers who can barely hold a simple conversation in English.


When we lived in Belize, my son's teachers did not speak very good English and yet were trying to teach the children in their classes the proper pronounciation of words. It did not work so well. My oldest son, used to say the "th" in words, now it is "da". For example the word 'the', is now da and I am his mudar  Nearly, three years later we are still working on correcting his pronunciation.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

Lorij said:


> Very true Isla Verde, but yes Dora speaks fluent English and teaches there in Puerto Angel. I suspected many english speaking teachers in D.F. but I would not have thought smaller towns would have English teachers. Also my other future sis in law Haydee speaks and writes fluent English and teaches in Oaxaxa, Oaxaca as well!


Where and how did Dora and her sister learn to speak English so well?


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## Lorij (Jul 8, 2012)

Dora has lives in the states before for several years. But I'm not really sure how Haydee learned, I will ask her or Emmanuel (my fiancé) though.


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## Lorij (Jul 8, 2012)

Oops **lived** iPhones auto correct is killing me lol


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## Lorij (Jul 8, 2012)

Isla Verde, I know too that Dora travels to nearby Pochutla and Chacalapa and teaches groups of people there too. Emmanuel has a lot of family in Chacalapa too.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

Lorij said:


> Isla Verde, I know too that Dora travels to nearby Pochutla and Chacalapa and teaches groups of people there too. Emmanuel has a lot of family in Chacalapa too.


But I wonder how they picked up such good English. Have they spent any time in the States?


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## Lorij (Jul 8, 2012)

Dora lived here almost 12 years and went to college in Colorada, Haydee has visited but didn't attend school here so I'm not really sure about here. But I'm going to ask.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

Lorij said:


> Dora lived here almost 12 years and went to college in Colorada, Haydee has visited but didn't attend school here so I'm not really sure about here. But I'm going to ask.


That makes sense. When I meet Mexicans who speak excellent English, it's usually because they've spent time living in an English-speaking country or have had a lot of contact with English through work or a good friend who's a native speaker. And there are the very wealthy, whose parents sent them to top-notch truly bilingual schools when they were children and adolescents.


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## cuylers5746 (Mar 19, 2012)

*Hit the nail on the head!*

Isla Verde in such few short words I think you hit the nail on the head as far as why so many
Mexicano's don't learn English very well - even though it's taught to them.

Here in Tepic before they graduate from High School (Prepa) they've had at least six partial 
classes in English.

1.) They're not interested and just sluff through the classes.

2.) English Teachers down here are generally SOooooo bad.

I'm sure you're busy to the gills with students with your background?


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

cuylers5746 said:


> Isla Verde in such few short words I think you hit the nail on the head as far as why so many
> Mexicano's don't learn English very well - even though it's taught to them.
> 
> Here in Tepic before they graduate from High School (Prepa) they've had at least six partial
> ...


Not really. I don't accept beginners and won't travel to students, they have to come to my apartment for classes, which cuts down quite a bit on the number of students I have. Also, I charge $200 an hour, which many potential students either can't afford or aren't willing to spend.


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## cuylers5746 (Mar 19, 2012)

*Teaching English*

Actually that's a fair price. My wife charged that a few years ago here in Tepic and got that.
She used to be a Berlitz Language Instructor. Actually doesn't like teaching English.
She worked the last 23 years in USA as an Occupational Therapist Assistant and prefers
very rarely to do referral work from a Doctor friend. Basically she's retired and wants to be
that way.

A little advertising in D.F. would probably have you swamped. Which you wouldn't want 
either?


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

cuylers5746 said:


> Actually that's a fair price. My wife charged that a few years ago here in Tepic and got that.
> She used to be a Berlitz Language Instructor. Actually doesn't like teaching English.
> She worked the last 23 years in USA as an Occupational Therapist Assistant and prefers
> very rarely to do referral work from a Doctor friend. Basically she's retired and wants to be
> ...


I think my price is fair, but many prospective students are looking for the cheapest teacher, not the best one.

I usually have a couple of ads running on the internet and have found a few students that way, but most of them come from referrals and connections.

You're right. I don't want to be swamped with students and am happy to supplement my teaching income and pensions with editing and translating, work which I also get through referrals and connections.


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