# Looking at moving to Southern coast of Spain



## Garethc (May 30, 2011)

My wife has a few conditions which we have been led to believe will be easier to cope with if in a better climate.
So we have decided to take the plunge and look at moving to the southern coast of Spain, we have picked this area because of my passion for fishing and the belief of the weather being generaly good most of the year round, so i have a few questions i would like to ask - Firstly i have trawled through posts looking at some answers so please don't shoot me down with comments about looking as the answers are thier as i have had a look and want answers that are relavent to me and my questions please. 

Firstly :-

How safe are the southern coastal regions of spain between say Gib and Malaga as they are the areas we will be looking at ?

How easy is it to fit into the spanish way of life in your own opinions ?

Is broadband available everywhere and is it of a decent speed ?

Is it best to bring a car from the Uk and then re-register it out in spain or buy one out in spain once thier ?

Would anybody know the requirements i would need to start a small charter fishing boat for inshore sport fishing for Uk holiday makers ?

Thanks in advance for any answers!


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## Seb* (Mar 22, 2009)

Garethc said:


> My wife has a few conditions which we have been led to believe will be easier to cope with if in a better climate.
> So we have decided to take the plunge and look at moving to the southern coast of Spain, we have picked this area because of my passion for fishing and the belief of the weather being generaly good most of the year round, so i have a few questions i would like to ask - Firstly i have trawled through posts looking at some answers so please don't shoot me down with comments about looking as the answers are thier as i have had a look and want answers that are relavent to me and my questions please.
> 
> Firstly :-
> ...


1.) Safe? In what context? Crime wise? Safety of beaches? To both I'd say it's the same on all costas really.

2.) It all depends what you want and what you are willing to do. If you have a good grasp of the spanish language and are open minded to meet people, you can immerse in the "spanish way of life" very easily. Just move away from the big expat "colonies", where you find less catering towards the northern european. In the "more expat heavy" areas I rarely see a difference between northern and southern europe nowadays. Overall the "spanish way of life" gets closer and closer to the northern european one  You will even see that the spanish stereotype "Mañana, manana" is disappearing rapidly.

3.) Internet is readily available in most areas, but just like in other countries it depends on the location. The quality and speed varies, but overall you should be able to cover most areas with one of these: adsl, cable+fibre (rare), wifi, wimax, 3G, speed wise it's everything from 256Kb up to 50 mbit - totally depends on location.

4.) Car wise it's personal preference as long as it is a left hand car. Driving a RHD on the continent is a royal pain in the behind. If the car is on UK plates it will involve some (in some cases heavy) extra costs (matriculation, import tax etc.). Personally I would buy a used LHD car in Spain.

5.) I have no idea


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Garethc said:


> Would anybody know the requirements i would need to start a small charter fishing boat for inshore sport fishing for Uk holiday makers ?
> 
> Thanks in advance for any answers!


From what I have read in the past, you will need to be granted all kinds of licences and unless things have changed you will have to have a skippers license and / or an International Certificate of competence International Certificate of Competence (ICC).


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

Stravinsky said:


> From what I have read in the past, you will need to be granted all kinds of licences and unless things have changed you will have to have a skippers license and / or an International Certificate of competence International Certificate of Competence (ICC).


Yes that is still the case. Personally, I really like driving rhd cars over here. Never had a problem at all.


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

In addition there's 3 if not 4 different types of fishing licence That are for each autonomous community & they are rigidly enforced. In Murcia , at present, you can obtain a licence on production of passport & UK fishing licence. In Andalucia the only way to get one is to take a 'fishing ' course to obtain it. There's a licence for beach fishing, sea fishing , freshwater & another that I can't remember . Legally , as a spanish resident, any boat would have to be spanish registered ( as opposed to being under another flag if you are non-resident. But if you're running a business it would have to be spanish .) In addition you'd have to have a spanishor RYA licence , insurance , public liability insurance along with all the other licences necessary to open a spanish reg. business. The paperwork is legendary !!


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

gus-lopez said:


> In addition there's 3 if not 4 different types of fishing licence That are for each autonomous community & they are rigidly enforced. In Murcia , at present, you can obtain a licence on production of passport & UK fishing licence. In Andalucia the only way to get one is to take a 'fishing ' course to obtain it. There's a licence for beach fishing, sea fishing , freshwater & another that I can't remember . Legally , as a spanish resident, any boat would have to be spanish registered ( as opposed to being under another flag if you are non-resident. But if you're running a business it would have to be spanish .) In addition you'd have to have a spanishor RYA licence , insurance , public liability insurance along with all the other licences necessary to open a spanish reg. business. The paperwork is legendary !!


This is first hand advice.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

Garethc said:


> My wife has a few conditions which we have been led to believe will be easier to cope with if in a better climate.
> So we have decided to take the plunge and look at moving to the southern coast of Spain, we have picked this area because of my passion for fishing and the belief of the weather being generaly good most of the year round, so i have a few questions i would like to ask - Firstly i have trawled through posts looking at some answers so please don't shoot me down with comments about looking as the answers are thier as i have had a look and want answers that are relavent to me and my questions please.
> 
> Firstly :-
> ...


Its as safe as anywhere else in Europe

Yes broadband is available, as in the UK, the speed varies

IMO, Its best to sell your UK car and buy one over here

My friends bought a boat and fishing business at the end of the summer last year. They had to jump through many hoops, paperwork, permissions, even having to take lessons in how to sail (both were keen sailors in the UK). Anyway they're finally up and running now and hoping to see a profit by the end of the summer??!

Jo xxx


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## steveB (Apr 26, 2008)

Hi Gareth
I am in a similar situation and the research I have done so far in relation to your enquiries is that it depends on which area between Gib and Malaga you live in, which could be determined by where you work. Areas like La Duquesa, Alcaidesa, SotoGrande or Santa Margarita look ok. 

All those areas seem to have good Internet access and Sky TV. 

There are a number of good schools and most English kids go to local schools, the international schools area expensive. 

I have looked into buying v importing a car and think buying locally is by far the best otherwise you have to pay import tax, reregistration fees and you will have a RHD car that you might struggle to sell. Like for like Spanish cars seem more expensive than English cars but factor in the additional taxes and fees plus the hassle and I think buying a local car is the best way. You will need a Gestor to handle the legal paperwork for the registration/change of ownership. If you buy off a dealer they might throw this in. 

Not sure about the requirements for setting up your own business but I would be keen to gear about the highs and lows of how you get on.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Garethc said:


> My wife has a few conditions which we have been led to believe will be easier to cope with if in a better climate.


I'm sure you've read all the posts about how cold and wet it can be on the Costa del Sol in the winter, so do make sure you get a house that is easy to heat and gets plenty of winter sunshine. Some friends of mine moved here for similar reasons, bought the house in summertime, without realising that from October to March it got no sun at all because it was in a valley! 



Garethc said:


> How easy is it to fit into the spanish way of life in your own opinions ?


Hard to know what you mean by that, but I reckon you can do this as much or as little as suits you. I would imagine it depends where you live - probably easier in a Spanish town like Estepona than an _urbanización_ in Sotogrande.

We live in a Spanish village (only a dozen or so other Brits here) and socialise about equally with them and the Spanish friends we've made. We watch Spanish TV, read Spanish papers and novels, eat Spanish food and support Spanish football teams. But we observe British mealtimes, avoid crowded beaches and _ferias _like the plague, use indicators on roundabouts, and detest bullfighting. To our neighbours we are "los ingleses" and always will be, and I don't have a problem with that.


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

Alcalaina said:


> I'm sure you've read all the posts about how cold and wet it can be on the Costa del Sol in the winter, so do make sure you get a house that is easy to heat and gets plenty of winter sunshine. Some friends of mine moved here for similar reasons, bought the house in summertime, without realising that from October to March it got no sun at all because it was in a valley!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I think that is the way we are heading, apsrt from reading Spanish newspapers and novels. I don't read newspapers at all and my taste in novels is such that Spanish novels are unlikely for me, apart from the fact that since moving here I have had no time at all to finish the novel I started in the UK (back in August last year) The Book Thief, and back in the UK I was reading 3 or 4 novels a month.


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