# Pros and cons of the area in Spain where you live



## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

I thought it might be useful for people visiting this forum, who are thinking of moving to Spain but not sure where to start looking, if we posted what we think are the good and bad points about our particular neck of the woods.

I'll kick off with the Southern end of the Costa de la Luz (the Atlantic coast between Cadiz and Tarifa), as I have just come back from a wonderful morning on the beach watching people falling off their surfboards.

THE PROS:

Vast beaches of pristine golden sand that stretch for miles, intersected by sandstone cliffs with secluded little coves, and which only get crowded in July and August;
An absence of high-rise development;
Good flight connections to the UK from Gibraltar;
Large areas of protected nature reserves;
Great for birdwatching as it is on the migration route between Europe and Africa;
Lots of fishing harbours and wonderful seafood restaurants;
Reasonably priced property compared to the Mediterranean coast, especially if you go inland a bit;
Plenty of golf courses (this could be a pro or a con I suppose);
Mild climate, rarely goes below 10 or above 35 degrees.
Good facilities for surfing and kitesurfing and other wind-related activities - which brings us neatly to:-

THE CONS:

Strong winds, often going on for days at a time;
Apart from Chiclana, which has about 1,000 permanent British residents, there are few concessions made for non-Spanish speakers. And even if your Spanish is reasonable, you may have problems deciphering the thick _gaditano_ accent.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/alcalaina/sets/72157623371963038/


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

It's impossible to do this imo as the pros and cons of a particular area are entirely subjective. 
For example: I like where we are as there are hardly any Brits, no high-rise and no nightlife.
For many people that would be a reason to stay away....


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## JBODEN (Jul 10, 2009)

mrypg9 said:


> ... are entirely subjective.


The idea of the thread is, IMHO, excellent.
I doubt if they could ever be objective therefore they can only be subjective.
In which case we should all start our comments 'IMO'.


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## Guest (Sep 3, 2010)

hahaha, well, "IMO:"

For the Bilbao to Santander area: 

*Pros:* Green landscape. Mountains. Amazing food. Friendly People. Nice beaches. Gorgeous rural areas like Potes, southern Vizcaya, etc. General lack of tourists, compared with other parts of Spain. 

*Cons:* Rain. Rain. More Rain. Wind. Life is expensive here. Linguistic politics in the Basque Country (currently) exclude me from ever working in the public school system, as I would have to learn Basque and be certified at a fairly high level to teach there.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

JBODEN said:


> The idea of the thread is, IMHO, excellent.
> I doubt if they could ever be objective therefore they can only be subjective.
> In which case we should all start our comments 'IMO'.


Well then......?????!!


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

I'm going to be more local with my pros and cons. I live in the campo and its beautiful, peaceful, amazing scenery, views, walks and open spaces, However, its a car drive to anywhere, the roads arent good, powercuts are fairly frequent and it can be boring!

As for the larger area, well the local town is lovely (Alhaurin de la Torre), we're fairly close to beaches, mountains, the airport and shopping centres! So all bases covere - we're even close to the expat town of Alhaurin El Grande if I ever need to feel that we're in the UK LOL!!!


Jo xxx


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

Imo, pros. No Brits., lovely people, cheap to live , 10 mins to stunning beaches where, even in july & august when everyone is on vacation , you could still play football behind them .Sun, Plus you don't get many foreigners.Fantastic easter fiestas, No golf courses, reasonably priced property , buying or renting.
Cons; lack of rain, extremely hot in summer, lack of rain, absolute furnace in Lorca town itself in summer, telefoníca.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Too difficult for me. I started to write a response but as I'm not living in my dream place, just a place where I ended up, it's stuff like there's a bus stop near by, I can walk into town, the schools are OK. I could be writing about Brighton or Bombasai.


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## gerrit (Jul 15, 2008)

Barcelona:

PRO
- very wide offer of cultural activities
- excellent public transport
- very multicultural and multi-ethnical population with all cultures, subcultures and religions visable in the streets
- Catalan public healthcare is very well organised
- you got the beach and the big cosmopolitan city combined
- for those who like it (which excludes me): nightlife


CONS
- the rental prices are incredibly expensive, even when your salary is above average it's still being careful to get around
- the affordable housing will be either in a relatively boring suburb or will be an old house with the inevittable flaws
- the nightlife can get quite decadent in some areas, which can be a bother to those who aren't into nightlife
- pickpockets are very common, more common than in a lot of other big cities in Europe


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## owdoggy (Jul 23, 2008)

Pro's?......this every morning









Cons?....too many brits but having seen the pro.....who cares

And integration?.....well, we've been asked to help organise a lapsed local fiesta by the people who really miss it.....er.....that's not us immigrants by the way......and we haven't got the full take on the lingo yet (if indeed we ever will)

There's Brits all over the place here but most of our friends are the local Spanish...... make of that what you will but just because there's a big expat community doesn't mean you going to be stowed out with brits.....they can be avoided....... with a bit of practise :clap2:


Doggy


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## gerrit (Jul 15, 2008)

It looks like a semi-desert. Not intended negatively, because I love such landscapes and wish we had more of those in Europe. I thought Almeria was more of a coastal place. How wrong I was apparently. I can only imagine how lovely the smells and noises must be on a hot summer night. One of the many things I love about the South is the smell, that thick dry air and the smell of plants. But you need a landscape like that to experience it, living in the center of Barcelona you're in a big city ; even only 10 miles out of town I often smell that lovely smell. Your house must be a great place to spend the evenings or awaken in the mornings


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## Caz.I (Mar 21, 2009)

gerrit said:


> It looks like a semi-desert. Not intended negatively, because I love such landscapes and wish we had more of those in Europe. I thought Almeria was more of a coastal place. How wrong I was apparently.


I am sure Doggy will answer you more fully in a minute lol. I dont live there but I can tell you it does have a coast lol. Actually, I have just come back from a holiday on the coast of Almeria and very nice it was too. (Though I do prefer the beaches here . It's just a different kind of landscape. We did visit the theme park in the desert (semi-desert, I dont think so, its an official designated desert area, and having visited there in the sweltering heat of August I can vouch for that! ) .The park is known as mini Hollywood, where many of the spaghetti westerns were made and also has a zoo, hence the trip.


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## owdoggy (Jul 23, 2008)

gerrit said:


> It looks like a semi-desert. Not intended negatively, because I love such landscapes and wish we had more of those in Europe. I thought Almeria was more of a coastal place. How wrong I was apparently. I can only imagine how lovely the smells and noises must be on a hot summer night. One of the many things I love about the South is the smell, that thick dry air and the smell of plants. But you need a landscape like that to experience it, living in the center of Barcelona you're in a big city ; even only 10 miles out of town I often smell that lovely smell. Your house must be a great place to spend the evenings or awaken in the mornings


Aye, your right.....it's not what you would call all "lush & green"
Before we moved here it was described to us as "Dry, dusty & desolate" and we thought that we quite liked the sound of that...... each to his own eh

You're right about the smells though, especially after rain (when we get any!) or a heavy dew, you get such a blast up the nose from all the different plants...... very nice first thing on a morning.... as long as you have a cup of magic coffee to compliment it :clap2:


Doggy


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## gerrit (Jul 15, 2008)

Ah, the rain, that's the only time when you can get a tiny bit of that smell in Barcelona city. If we want that typical smell we have to take the local train to a tiny town outside of the big city, but when it has rained quite heavily you get a very bit of the smell of all the plants and trees along the lanes. Nothing as good as where you live of course, but it's the closest you get to it when living in the big city.


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