# Please suggest the driest and warmest city in England?



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

Hey everyone!

I'm originally from California, but for the past year and a half, I've been living in the Netherlands with my husband. I do like the Netherlands a lot, but I just haven't ever felt like it's where I belong if it makes sense. It's impossible for me to find a job here (Learning Dutch at the moment but it's taking a while since it's a difficult language), and I could never connect with the people here since they have a different personality than English speaking countries. I felt like Dutch people can be critical, judgmental, not very friendly, stubborn, and a bit closed minded. I'm not saying all Dutch people are like this, but I noticed it's the mindset of most Dutch people in general. Besides the obvious language barrier, I just never felt comfortable or connected here. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love the Netherlands and have met a lot of wonderful people. But I just feel trapped here and that I have no solid future.

I would love to move back to the U.S. in the future, but it won't be for a long time since there's a lot of expenses and preparation. I really wish I could move to a warm country in Europe like Spain, Portugal, Greece, or Italy since I'm the happiest in warm weather and absolutely late cold weather. But unfortunately the economy/job market isn't doing so well in those countries and the obvious language barrier. So I've been considering the thought of possibly moving to England. Me and my husband visited a few years ago and I absolutely loved it there. I thought it could be a better change for me since I could get a job and I feel like I connect with the people more. I know England isn't the warmest country, but I would love to move to the driest and warmest city in England (It being Sunny would be a extra Plus) since I don't like the cold very much. I absolutely hate cold winters, so I would love to live somewhere that had mild winters and possibly no snow or a lot of rain. I wonder is England a bit warmer than the Netherlands (partially Den-Haag)? Please let me know for your suggestions for the driest and warmest city in England would be and why you pick that city. I've done some research and found a lot of people said Devon, Cornwall, Essex, Cambridgeshire, Yorkshire, Bristol, Sussex, and Dorset. Do you think any of the cities above fit my criteria, or is there a better one? Thank you guys!


----------



## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

Dry and sunny in England is a relative thing. There are parts of the country that are comparatively-speaking drier and sunnier than other parts, on average, but no parts of England will be anything like Spain or Italy. Winter will be cold and damp, and summer will be changeable with fair amount of rain. I suppose the sunniest part is the most southerly, around the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall, but this is in comparison, say, to Manchester, and the real difference is quite small. Compared to the Netherlands, you will find winter less harsh in England, as Holland is subject to continental climate of hotter summer and colder winter with fair amount of snow, while England benefits from the warm Gulf Stream.


----------



## ALKB (Jan 20, 2012)

Gibraltar?


----------



## secretlobster (Mar 2, 2015)

jenniator said:


> people said Devon, Cornwall, Essex, Cambridgeshire, Yorkshire, Bristol, Sussex, and Dorset.


That pretty much covers England in its entirety! LOL at Yorkshire being on this list.

There is no particularly warm or dry city in England. England is characterised by its amount of rainfall. The Netherlands is actually slightly warmer, on average. England doesn't really have a wide variety in climates; maybe a couple of degrees C here and there, but not consistently. Certainly not near what we're used to in the US.

I do not think you are moving to the correct country if "warm" and "dry" are adjectives you wish to use about your home! I'd say don't choose a city because of its climate; there's not enough difference between them to really warrant the choice of one over the other. I'd instead urge you to move to the place with the best job prospects and where you feel most comfortable living in general.


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

Thank you guys so much for the help! I really appreciate it A little more information about me. I am a city person. I love having fun things in the area to do like going to the mall or movie theaters. I would prefer to be near a airport (1 hour away is okay). My husband works in IT. I do have an associate's Degree in Social & Behavioral Science, but I haven't found any careers here in the Netherlands for it. But I'm really happy doing other types of jobs. I really like England since I love the atmosphere, the people, the country, the culture, just a lot of things in general. England does remind me a lot of the U.S. which I appreciate since I miss home a lot. Really the biggest factors for me though are weather and language. It might sound silly that weather is such a huge factor, but I would rather be somewhere that is a bit warmer and drier since i know I will be so much happier. A lot of people are recommending Cornwall, London, Essex, and Sussex on the sites I was reading which is great since it helps me narrow down the search a bit. Someone said London is warmer in the summer than other places, but I was also wondering if anyone knew what the warmest city is in the winter? I'm glad to hear the winters in England will be a bit less harsh than in the Netherlands. Winter for me is the worst season. I do like the idea of living in London, but I'm worried all of London would be expensive and too crowded. What do you guys think? Also is it true you only need 5 or 10% down payment to buy a house?


----------



## nyclon (Apr 3, 2011)

No, it's not true that you only need 5-10% for a downpayment on a house. That's certainly not the case in London. You'll move to the UK with no credit history so it will likely be a couple of years before you can build up a history and you are more likely to need a higher downpayment.


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

nyclon said:


> No, it's not true that you only need 5-10% for a downpayment on a house. That's certainly not the case in London. You'll move to the UK with no credit history so it will likely be a couple of years before you can build up a history and you are more likely to need a higher downpayment.


Aww that would've been pretty awesome. Do you know how much percentage for a down payment someone would need if they have no credit? Also I didn't realize the UK also had "credit" like the U.S.! They don't really have that here in the Netherlands.


----------



## nyclon (Apr 3, 2011)

jenniator said:


> Aww that would've been pretty awesome. Do you know how much percentage for a down payment someone would need if they have no credit? Also I didn't realize the UK also had "credit" like the U.S.! They don't really have that here in the Netherlands.


You will probably have a very difficult time finding someone to give you a mortgage when you have no credit and even when you do a 40% downpayment isn't uncommon.


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

nyclon said:


> You will probably have a very difficult time finding someone to give you a mortgage when you have no credit and even when you do a 40% downpayment isn't uncommon.


That really is sad  How is it possible to have a high credit when you've never lived there! 40% down payment is pretty high  20% is more realistic, but even then that's pretty high.


----------



## Stevesolar (Dec 21, 2012)

Hi,
I really can't believe that your only two criteria for looking to live in a country are whether it is warm and whether it has English as the main language!
Most people look at a whole host of other things - like the economy, job prospects for their profession, wages, cost of living, schooling, housing, utilities, cars etc.
It is difficult enough for British people to afford houses (especially in London) and mortgage companies have really tightened up on their loan criteria - deposits are higher than in the past and credit history is more important than ever to secure a loan.
With your limited knowledge of geography and expat life abroad - you would be far safer going back to live in the USA.
Best of luck
Steve


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

Stevesolar said:


> Hi,
> I really can't believe that your only two criteria for looking to live in a country are whether it is warm and whether it has English as the main language!
> Most people look at a whole host of other things - like the economy, job prospects for their profession, wages, cost of living, schooling, housing, utilities, cars etc.
> It is difficult enough for British people to afford houses (especially in London) and mortgage companies have really tightened up on their loan criteria - deposits are higher than in the past and credit history is more important than ever to secure a loan.
> ...


Like I said in my previous post, weather and language IS NOT the only reason. It is a huge factor for me, but not the only thing. 

"I really like England since I love the atmosphere, the people, the country, the culture, just a lot of things in general. England does remind me a lot of the U.S. which I appreciate since I miss home a lot. Really the biggest factors for me though are weather and language. It might sound silly that weather is such a huge factor, but I would rather be somewhere that is a bit warmer and drier since i know I will be so much happier."

But not just the language, I love the culture, people, country, atmosphere of the UK. If my main concern was only weather, I would move to Spain, Portugal, Greece, ect. But unfortunately the economy and job market isn't doing so well. I heard it's pretty difficult to survive there, even knowing Spanish and Portuguese. 

I do care about economy, jobs, wages, cost of living, schooling, housing, ect. I've been checking more information about those and looking at different cities. But of course it's easier to search those types of things if you have only a few cities narrowed down. Which comes to the reason I'm mostly picking a few cities first and then going more in debt on other things. Just because I want to live in a place that's a bit warmer/drier, doesn't mean I don't care about other things.


----------



## Stevesolar (Dec 21, 2012)

Hi,
For warmer and drier - you really need to be on the South coast - Brighton, Portsmouth, Bournemouth, Eastbourne, Chichester, Hastings etc.
These are cities that are much smaller than London - so will have less job opportunities but housing will be generally less expensive.
The South West (Devon and Cornwall) used to get the best weather - but climate change has seen some pretty damp and cool summers in that region in the last few years.
Cheers
Steve


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

Stevesolar said:


> Hi,
> For warmer and drier - you really need to be on the South coast - Brighton, Portsmouth, Bournemouth, Eastbourne, Chichester, Hastings etc.
> These are cities that are much smaller than London - so will have less job opportunities but housing will be generally less expensive.
> The South West (Devon and Cornwall) used to get the best weather - but climate change has seen some pretty damp and cool summers in that region in the last few years.
> ...


Hello Stevesolar,

Thank you for letting me know! So far I've been looking at Essex, Kent, Cambridge, suffolk ,Sussex, Dorset, and London. I haven't heard of the other cities, but it is unfortunate that they are smaller cities since there is less opportunities. Thank you for letting me know about Devon and Cornwall! That is a shame since those areas are so beautiful! Do you know if Dorset is also very rainy since it's near by?


----------



## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

jenniator said:


> Hello Stevesolar,
> 
> Thank you for letting me know! So far I've been looking at Essex, Kent, Cambridge, suffolk ,Sussex, Dorset, and London. I haven't heard of the other cities, but it is unfortunate that they are smaller cities since there is less opportunities. Thank you for letting me know about Devon and Cornwall! That is a shame since those areas are so beautiful! Do you know if Dorset is also very rainy since it's near by?


Are you eligible to move to the UK? You are from the USA.

......... and since you live in the Netherlands why don't you just get on a plane and go to the UK and see for yourself? You are not more than an hour away. The weather in the Netherlands is not unlike the UK. 

How can you not have heard of some of the cities and counties mentioned?


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

Crawford said:


> Are you eligible to move to the UK? You are from the USA.
> 
> ......... and since you live in the Netherlands why don't you just get on a plane and go to the UK and see for yourself? You are not more than an hour away. The weather in the Netherlands is not unlike the UK.
> 
> How can you not have heard of some of the cities and counties mentioned?


Yes I'm currently living in the Netherlands.  We have visited the UK and I loved it! Although we mostly visited only London. I would love to pick a few cities in England and visit them in the future, so I could see if I enjoy them. But I'm narrowing the list down so far so we could know which ones to visit. Also how do you expect me to know every single city in the England? Especially if I don't live there. When I was looking up information, I didn't come across any of those cities either. I mean heck, my Dutch husband probably doesn't know nearly as many UK cities as I do! ha ah


----------



## ALKB (Jan 20, 2012)

jenniator said:


> Hello Stevesolar,
> 
> Thank you for letting me know! So far I've been looking at Essex, Kent, Cambridge, suffolk ,Sussex, Dorset, and London. I haven't heard of the other cities, but it is unfortunate that they are smaller cities since there is less opportunities. Thank you for letting me know about Devon and Cornwall! That is a shame since those areas are so beautiful! Do you know if Dorset is also very rainy since it's near by?


Do you realise that most of the places you mention are not cities but counties? If you are a city person then Cornwall might not be for you. Anything in Cornwall I would personally categorise as "small town" at best.

If you want it warm and English-speaking, seriously, look into Gibraltar or Malta.

EDIT: The Channel Islands would also be worth a look, although the city aspect is also quite limited there.

Is your spouse an EEA national?


----------



## secretlobster (Mar 2, 2015)

Yes, Cornwall may have generally the best weather (though it's still highly variable) but Cornwall is also the poorest part of England and is really unsuitable for "city folk".


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

ALKB said:


> Do you realise that most of the places you mention are not cities but counties? If you are a city person then Cornwall might not be for you. Anything in Cornwall I would personally categorise as "small town" at best.
> 
> If you want it warm and English-speaking, seriously, look into Gibraltar or Malta.
> 
> ...


What do you mean? All the places I listed in England are cities? Gibraltar and Malta are nice, but we rather not be isolated just on a island. 

Also yes, my husband is a EEA national


----------



## ALKB (Jan 20, 2012)

jenniator said:


> What do you mean? All the places I listed in England are cities? Gibraltar and Malta are nice, but we rather not be isolated just on a island.
> 
> Also yes, my husband is a EEA national


"Essex, Kent, Cambridge, suffolk ,Sussex, Dorset, and London"

Out of that, only Cambridge and London are cities, the rest are counties. Have you had a look at a map?

Gibraltar is not an Island.

The internet tells me that Bristol is the warmest city in England, which is not much warmer than everywhere else, it seems.

Also, careful about the term "city". England appears to have 51 "cities" of which quite a few have less than 20k inhabitants (which in my book is still a small town):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_in_the_United_Kingdom#Map_of_the_cities


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

ALKB said:


> "Essex, Kent, Cambridge, suffolk ,Sussex, Dorset, and London"
> 
> Out of that, only Cambridge and London are cities, the rest are counties. Have you had a look at a map?
> 
> ...


Sorry about that, I looked it up and you call your cities "countries" like how in the U.S., we would refer to them as "states". A bit confusing, but I kinda get it.  I thought it would just be city since I didn't know what else to call it and that's what it is in the Netherlands!


----------



## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

jenniator said:


> Sorry about that, I looked it up and you call your cities "countries" like how in the U.S., we would refer to them as "states". A bit confusing, but I kinda get it.  I thought it would just be city since I didn't know what else to call it and that's what it is in the Netherlands!


Sheesh...... what part of California are you from?

The UK does not call its cities 'countries' - it calls them cities

Countries are nothing like what the US would call 'states'.

Devon, Cornwall, Surrey, Sussex etc are COUNTIES; areas within the COUNTRY of England.


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

Crawford said:


> Sheesh...... what part of California are you from?
> 
> The UK does not call its cities 'countries' - it calls them cities
> 
> ...


No need to be rude because there was a slight misunderstanding and I'm from San Diego. When I was searching some of the "countries" on google, that's what it said. So you can't really blame me for misunderstanding incorrect information.


----------



## Crawford (Jan 23, 2011)

jenniator said:


> No need to be rude because there was a slight misunderstanding and I'm from San Diego. When I was searching some of the "countries" on google, that's what it said. So you can't really blame me for misunderstanding incorrect information.


You've mistaken rudeness for utter astonishment.

For one who has apparently married, moved from SD to the Netherlands and is asking questions on a forum regarding the UK's weather, (when a one hour trip would give hands on experience of such), has not heard of several well know cities/towns or areas and does not know her country from her county, the lack of geography and knowledge of another (nearby) country is breathaking.

.. or maybe just someone wasting everyone else's time; however, its cool and cloudy here, so am whiling away my afternoon until the sundowner hour .....


----------



## nyclon (Apr 3, 2011)

Let's dial it down a notch and keep things friendly, shall we?


----------



## jenniator (Feb 6, 2013)

Crawford said:


> You've mistaken rudeness for utter astonishment.
> 
> For one who has apparently married, moved from SD to the Netherlands and is asking questions on a forum regarding the UK's weather, (when a one hour trip would give hands on experience of such), has not heard of several well know cities/towns or areas and does not know her country from her county, the lack of geography and knowledge of another (nearby) country is breathaking.
> 
> .. or maybe just someone wasting everyone else's time; however, its cool and cloudy here, so am whiling away my afternoon until the sundowner hour .....


There's a difference between being astonished and being a absolutely jerk. 

Like I said in my previous post, I would like to narrow down which cities I like and then visit them or did you forget that? That way I would know where to visit. You can't just go to a country without knowing where to go if you want to explore potential places to live. Also Brighton, Portsmouth, Bournemouth, Eastbourne, Chichester, and Hastings are not exactly "well known towns." Especially to people that don't live in England. I would say most known are obvious ones like London, Manchester, Yorkshire, Bath, Devon, Cornwall, Suffolk, Essex, ect. Heck, many people here haven't even heard of Yorkshire or Manchester. I mean I've only been in the Netherlands for 1 in a half years and you suddenly expect me to be a expect on every single thing here I guess? I'm obviously asking for advice because I don't know about the country and wanted to know more. Why would I be asking if I automatically knew every answer. I mean heck, you even chew me out about some misunderstanding that I heard someone talking about when I searched google?! Pretty pathetic and you really shouldn't put people down, especially when you know nothing about them or their circumstances.


----------



## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

I will have to close this thread as of little use to anyone.


----------

