# places to live near barcelona



## fionadenen

Hi, 
me my husband and 3 kids are moving to spain in july not long i know, but the thing is we have not had the chance to go and see just where would be affordable and suitable for all of us, concidering schooling and all of that, my hubby is an accountant an we know he could possibly get work in barcelona. What i would like to know is can any one tell me where i could look for fairly cheap accomodation to rent near to barcelona an hour or so away, i have searched the web but everything is to much money we are looking at spending up to 700 pounds a month if poss please!!!!!


----------



## jojo

fionadenen said:


> Hi,
> me my husband and 3 kids are moving to spain in july not long i know, but the thing is we have not had the chance to go and see just where would be affordable and suitable for all of us, concidering schooling and all of that, my hubby is an accountant an we know he could possibly get work in barcelona. What i would like to know is can any one tell me where i could look for fairly cheap accomodation to rent near to barcelona an hour or so away, i have searched the web but everything is to much money we are looking at spending up to 700 pounds a month if poss please!!!!!


Hi and welcome to the forum. Barcelona is known for being a bit pricey, so I guess the nearer you go the worse it will become, also the time of the year you´re coming is also pricey cos of the tourists/holiday makers etc, so that wont help you either!!!

Going inland tends to get cheaper, so have a look at googleearth or maps and see whats around. I dont live in that end, I´m further west in Andalucia, so I cant help with whats good and whats not.

I´m sure someone who knows more about your chosen area than me will be able to put you on the right track.

Gibralter is also a possible choice for accountants??? with the added bonus of being "british" and the area around it is cheaper than Barcelona, however, I´m sure you´ve looked and chosen wisely for your needs and have made your minds up, so forget I said anything !! Its not easy is it, knowing what to do for the best, especially when you´ve got kids. 

Good luck

Jo xxx


----------



## SteveHall

Well, welcome to the forum but as so often I am flabbergasted that you have done so little homework when you are coming with 3 children and with no schooling, accommodation or employment organised. 

First challenge is the schooling - you do not not say how old the children are. In which language do you want them to be taught. If you go to most of Catalonia they are going to have to learn castellano and catalán. Do you or your husband speak either of the languages? 
If not, how are you going to help them with their homework? 

I am not sure why you feel your husband will get work in Barcelona but perhaps you have contacts there. The one thing that he will find is that his British qualifications count for nothing so whilst he may be able to do basic book-keeping and prepare accounts these will have to then be submitted by a qualified Spanish accountant. 

As Jojo says, Barcelona is known as one of the most expensive cities in Europe and whilst it also one of my favourite cities, I think you will be lucky to get a 3/4 bedroomed apartment that is in a good/well-located are for 800 euros. 

I really think that you and your husband need to get over here asap to evaluate whether you can follow your dream. How realistic is that you will find accommodation below 1,000 euros in an area with any work prospects and good schooling? 


I have contacts there that I am sure will try to help you - Simon Harris has written the definitive guide to Catalonia - Going Native in Catalonia - which you must read if you are even thinking of coming to that part of Spain. He is Mr Catalonia and comes on here occasionally. Try to PM him. For accommodation you can try Anita Primett from Barcelona Flats | Barcelona Apartments | Apartments in Barcelona | Flats in Barcelona but you would need to make it clear that it is a long-term let you are looking for. I would spend the 700 GBP for a week in a central area. 

As always I wish you every success. Os deseo mucha suerte


----------



## SteveHall

A big thank you to Simon for NOT mentioning the drubbing that his beloved Barcelona handed out to my beloved Real Madrid yesterday 2-6 in the Santiago Bernabeú. Whilst theoretically Barcelona COULD lose all their remaining games, well, it just is not going to happen. Madrid are no mugs - they have one 17 and drawn one of the previous 18 games under Juande Ramos. Yesterday it was niños contra hombres!


----------



## fionadenen

I'm am surprised at your comment as you seem to presume that we have done little or know research, we have done exstensive research, However we live and come from england and we are not experts in spanish living and many other things that yourseflf and many other british expats in spain are living, experincing and that being the reason why we joyned this forum to harnes some of that experience which we truly and sincerely believe to be invaluable. Please don't worry about us we are not nieve and we are not without resouces.
What we could really do with is some posative and usefull info for when we go imminently for a visit we were thiking of places nearer to valencia but perhaps with access to barcelona,we are under no illusion that barcelona is affordable to most or us.

Your advise would be greatly apprieciated.


----------



## jojo

fionadenen said:


> I'm am surprised at your comment as you seem to presume that we have done little or know research, we have done exstensive research, However we live and come from england and we are not experts in spanish living and many other things that yourseflf and many other british expats in spain are living, experincing and that being the reason why we joyned this forum to harnes some of that experience which we truly and sincerely believe to be invaluable. Please don't worry about us we are not nieve and we are not without resouces.
> What we could really do with is some posative and usefull info for when we go imminently for a visit we were thiking of places nearer to valencia but perhaps with access to barcelona,we are under no illusion that barcelona is affordable to most or us.
> 
> Your advise would be greatly apprieciated.


I think from the questions you were asking Steve assumed that perhaps you hadnt looked into it very much! Until you get to know people, its difficult to get the full picture. The main advise on here is also to make sure you have a job with a contract before you come here as jobs are very hard to get, there is a far worse unemployment situation here than in the UK and theres no welfare here unless you´ve paid into the system. But if you´re happy that you´ve got that covered then thats the first big hurdle out of the way


My one word of warning that is my "stock phrase" to everyone is DONT BURN YOUR UK BRIDGES! If all fails and you need to go back, then make sure you have something to go back to.

Apart from that, you need to come over and have a good look around and see what suits you all. Take a look at the schools, the types of property, the areas etc. Remember if you come over after the middle of June all schools will be closed until September, so you wont be able to do anything about that until then! 

Coming on the forum will indeed help you, it did me when we were planning to come over. I learnt more from the forum than anywhere else cos the people on here are real and experiencing the real thing both good and bad! So have a look around.

Keep us posted and feel free to ask anything, we´ve all been there... apart from Steve, who landed here from the planet "grump" (only joking Stevie xxx) Seriously tho, he knows his stuff!

Jo xxxx


----------



## SteveHall

fionadenen said:


> I'm am surprised at your comment as you seem to presume that we have done little or know research, we have done exstensive research, However we live and come from england and we are not experts in spanish living and many other things that yourseflf and many other british expats in spain are living, experincing and that being the reason why we joyned this forum to harnes some of that experience which we truly and sincerely believe to be invaluable. Please don't worry about us we are not nieve and we are not without resouces.
> What we could really do with is some posative and usefull info for when we go imminently for a visit we were thiking of places nearer to valencia but perhaps with access to barcelona,we are under no illusion that barcelona is affordable to most or us.
> 
> Your advise would be greatly apprieciated.


We are delighted to give advice and I repeat that you need to get here to make me think you have done your homework. That said, we will all be pleased to help you all we can. Most of us made hideous mistakes first time around that we could have avoided with more homework. Your husband will know what due diligence is - now you both need to do this for your new life. 

I "presume" you have done little research because you do not seem to have education, employment or accommodation sorted and that you have said that you have not made time to come here. 

You do not answer my questions as to which language you want your children schooled in.

Valencia to Barcelona is a long trek (Manchester to London) and the only really suitable communication is directly along the E15 motorway/ train route. Valencia is another great city and we are lucky in having an expert there Graham Hunt. The reality is that you won't find Valencia (Spain's third city) much less expensive. Better weather maybe but still a relatively expensive city until you can live like a local. 

Jojo, Simon and I have all tried to help you but if you choose not to listen that is entirely your shout. I can be positive in that if you can sort out accommodation, education and employment then Spain is a GREAT country. We WANT to help but if you don't want to be helped that is fine too.


----------



## mags&woody

fionadenen said:


> Hi,
> me my husband and 3 kids are moving to spain in july not long i know, but the thing is we have not had the chance to go and see just where would be affordable and suitable for all of us, concidering schooling and all of that, my hubby is an accountant an we know he could possibly get work in barcelona. What i would like to know is can any one tell me where i could look for fairly cheap accomodation to rent near to barcelona an hour or so away, i have searched the web but everything is to much money we are looking at spending up to 700 pounds a month if poss please!!!!!


Hi Fionadenen I too move to Barcelona area last Oct with the thought of 700 euro per month. We moved to Sitges which is apprx 45 mins train journey to central Barcelona. Rentals here for a 2 bed apartment start at 800 euros per month but prices at the moment are dropping a little. Sitges is a beautiful area and there are 2 interrnational schools close to here. Other places further in land to try are San piere ribes, villanova el gertu, casteldefelds. Realisticaly though you will need to consider paying 1000 + euros per month for 3/4 bed apartment. but you may be lucky and get cheaper, but you will only get what you are willing to pay for. I wish you well and if you think I can help anymore please ask. try website: ewww. easysitges agents we used


----------



## SteveHall

Good local info, thanks Mags&woody. The reality is of course that until we know whether they want urban living, sol y playa or the countryside all these are just names. What I do know is that it is almost double the Costa Del Sol. 

Do you commute into Barcelona or are you based in Sitges? To me it would be a bit of a long day especially if there is a 3 hour siesta. I personally like being 10 mins from anywhere but that's my choice. Others will prefer the mountains or the deepest countryside.


----------



## fionadenen

Steve,

Sorry if you think i came accross like that! we do want your help but we just wanted some direction to go in, i have family in spain (murcia) so i am aware of spanish life and i know some spanish. we want our kids to go to a spanish school there ages are 11,4,1 may i add that we are not like alot of people when it comes to moving we have moved alot and we are not afraid of what lies ahead, we also have property that we currently rent out here so we will always have that to come back to if we have to. thanks for the advise so far it will be of great help.


----------



## SteveHall

No problems, Fiona. You would find Murcia MUCH cheaper! 11,4 and 1 are sensible ages too and they should all be fine in Spanish state schools I am sure. Remember that in Catalonia they will be taught in Catalán too! Let's hope we keep feeding you good info


----------



## mags&woody

SteveHall said:


> Good local info, thanks Mags&woody. The reality is of course that until we know whether they want urban living, sol y playa or the countryside all these are just names. What I do know is that it is almost double the Costa Del Sol.
> 
> Do you commute into Barcelona or are you based in Sitges? To me it would be a bit of a long day especially if there is a 3 hour siesta. I personally like being 10 mins from anywhere but that's my choice. Others will prefer the mountains or the deepest countryside.


Hi Steve I am based in Sitges but lucky for me I am retired, so no I do not commute, however I have friends who commute and they find commuting no problem. Sorry I should have said that the places I mentioned are suitable also for travel into Barcelona. Easy to find on a Catalunia map. And yes it is expensive here. Apparently Barcelona and near areas are 2nd most expensive in Spain


----------



## SteveHall

Thanks - as I always say Spain is a magnificent place to retire to if you have ample funds. The harsh reality of trying to squeeze a living in a country with such an underdeveloped welfare state (By UK/Eire standards) comes as a huge surprise to many.


----------



## jojo

I think everyone who can and is dissatisfied with the UK should retire to Spain! Its got everything you could possibly want and it isnt too far away from family and friends in the UK!!

Jo


----------



## Tallulah

fionadenen said:


> Steve,
> 
> Sorry if you think i came accross like that! we do want your help but we just wanted some direction to go in, i have family in spain (murcia) so i am aware of spanish life and i know some spanish. we want our kids to go to a spanish school there ages are 11,4,1 may i add that we are not like alot of people when it comes to moving we have moved alot and we are not afraid of what lies ahead, we also have property that we currently rent out here so we will always have that to come back to if we have to. thanks for the advise so far it will be of great help.


Are you definitely decided on Barcelona? If you have some family and knowledge of the area of Murcia, you may find that initial support/safety net invaluable. Regarding the state schools, not a problem imho at that age - our three settled really well and had to learn two languages here also : Castellano and Gallego. They were provided with a few one on one lessons at first to get them up to speed in the languages, but literally after a few months were completely fluent. Although the schools are shut down from towards the end of June to the beginning/middle September, the teachers/heads are not out for the entire holiday! You will want to do your school research asap and see if you can get a meeting with the director/a before term starts - although we were lucky in the fact that we had family members at the school, the director and a couple of their teachers were happy to meet with us during the holidays before the children started to go through their UK school reports, give us a tour of the place, explain all the bits and bobs, etc. I would say, reflecting upon what Steve said regarding the two languages in Barcelona, I must be honest in that my husband is a retornado from this area and in dealing with homework, it was a huge help as he speaks both languages, until I was up to speed myself with it; although he left here (Galicia) as a small child, was raised in the UK and so had some catching up to do himself. He is still very much English oriented and like any expat encounters difficulties with red tape and inadequate reporting systems, etc etc. But that's all part of the adventure!

Best of luck to you all,

Tallulah.x


----------



## ivorra

fionadenen said:


> Hi,
> me my husband and 3 kids are moving to spain in july not long i know, but the thing is we have not had the chance to go and see just where would be affordable and suitable for all of us, concidering schooling and all of that, my hubby is an accountant an we know he could possibly get work in barcelona. What i would like to know is can any one tell me where i could look for fairly cheap accomodation to rent near to barcelona an hour or so away, i have searched the web but everything is to much money we are looking at spending up to 700 pounds a month if poss please!!!!!


It would be better to try to find somewhere in the city of Barcelona around the port - Barcelonetta or Villa Olympica - or in the 'Zona Alta' which is the area on the high ground away from the sea. The air is cleaner and there is likely to be less noise and heavy traffic. Of course these areas will be the most expensive. Out of the city I would recommend looking at the towns along the route of the Line S1 of the Ferrocarril, the excellent railway run by the Generalitat (FGC). (This is assuming that you intend to commute to work/school in the city). The city authorities are in the process of further deterring motorists from driving their cars in to the city and there is talk of a congestion charge and of incentives for multi occupied vehicles. The first significant town along line S1 is San Cugat - quite pricey, very pleasant and popular with expats. At the end of the line is Terassa - also pleasant in parts and much less pricey.

I would avoid the towns along the coast simply because the nice ones are very pricey and commuting in to the city will be a nightmare - the motorways are frequently gridlocked and the RENFE rail network is very unreliable and very over crowded

Finally, I hope you have better luck with property agents than we did eight years ago. Many simply ignored our enquiries, others just showed us the rubbish on their books. In the end a friend, long term resident of the city, helped us find a suitable place through the small ads. Possibly the fincas have sharpened up their act with the collapse of the national property market - but I doubt it!


----------



## fionadenen

Hi Tallulah 


Thanks for the advise it will be of great help to us , we are sure our kids will do well especially as 2 of them are very young as for family in Murcia we have thought of going there but it's not for us that's why we looked else where, we are well aware of how expensive Barcelona is that's why we have no intentions of living in the city we would be looking at areas with plenty of space, as we have three young kids they love the out door life as do we , we like change and a challenge!!. Barcelona was suggested to us by a friend whom spent allot of time out there but mainly within the city area itself and not outside it, I have looked on google earth before at the various areas around Barcelona but obviously i still don't know if they are suitable for families that's the main thing really i want to know which areas are best in terms of things to do i mean we don't want to go to an area that is full of retirees no offence to any one retired ! we would like our kids to make friends with kids that live nearby. As we are going for a visit very soon i would like to know a few places we could go and see outside barcelona. so as i said any info is very welcome.


----------



## SunnySpain

May I ask, why was Murcia not for you ?
If I knew the answer to that then maybe I can help further.

Barcelona is a wonderful city, by far the best in Spain (in our opinion)

Sitges is also a fantastically beautiful town with a very village like atmosphere and very popular with expats as well as certain other people - lol

If you want to live near expats then Sitges is about your best bet, but you don't give a lot of info about what you want in your original post.

La Garriga is quite nice, inland going North and rents start from 600 a month,
the coast is obviously more expensive, as is the centre of Barcelona.

Manresa is ok and cheaper, lots of Duplex's to rent.

Hope that helps, Dave


----------



## fionadenen

Thanks for the info Dave yes Murcia is nice but been there to many times my family have lived there over 10 years so we have seen most of it, we want something different. we are not moving to Spain because we want to be closer to family we are moving because we want a different lifestyle than the one we have now oh and warmer climate! anyway we are now considering Valencia which was originally our first choice so if you know any thing about that then please be my guest! we have looked into it before we started looking into barcelona so one thing is we know we can get property to rent but its more about the best areas and schooling for our kids.


----------



## SunnySpain

fionadenen said:


> Thanks for the info Dave yes Murcia is nice but been there to many times my family have lived there over 10 years so we have seen most of it, we want something different. we are not moving to Spain because we want to be closer to family we are moving because we want a different lifestyle than the one we have now oh and warmer climate! anyway we are now considering Valencia



Warm CLIMATE you say. Sounds as if anywhere South of Barcelona could well suit you then, apart from Murcia that is - lol

Strav knows about the coastal areas near to Valencia, but I believe a lot of people like Denia, Oliva or Gandia. Schooling is not really an issue as there are plenty of schools in all expat zones.

The Valencia region is generally much cheaper than Catalunya.


----------



## Irishgirl

Hi there,
I am living in Sitges which is 40 mins on the train from Barcelona and its about a 30 min drive, Sitges is expensive for rent and it costs €5.30 to go one way on the toll, but it is lovely here! I would also recommend Casteldefells, Gava or Villacans, these are south of Barcelona and are near the beach and have good shops and schools and you dont have to use the toll bridge and have trains in to the city.
I hope that this helps you and good luck with your move.

Irish Girl

Ps. Weather lovely here at the moment )


----------

