# Moving to the Costa De La Luz



## Il Buono (Oct 23, 2013)

Hello all, I'm a newbie trying to garner as much info as possible for a move to Spain, although currently, I'm not sure when exactly that will be.

We currently live in Thailand and have done so for over 6 years, but we want to sell up and move to Spain so we can be nearer to UK/family/friends.

We are though planning a reccy trip next year and that is what I want to concentrate on atm (naturally any other snippets of advice are gratefully received) and we want to search for an ideal location on the Costa De La Luz, somewhere between Sanlucar De Barrameda and as far South as Chiclana De La Frontera, it can be coastal or inland.
I'm particulalry interested in members sharing their love for a town/city/region so I can do some more research and also make a note of said place when we come over for our first reccy.

I've read that some beaches in the area allow dogs, is that so? We have 3 and that would be a big draw for us and them too.
We are keen golfers so 15-30 minutes to a golf course/s would be good.
We need to be near a gym and not too far from shops/r/rants and maybe a bar or two.

We'll come over for 2-3 weeks so any recommendations for a hotel/ appartments/car hire company would be great.

I look forward to hearing from you, TIA.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Hello and welcome!

I live a bit inland from the CdL, at the edge of the Alcornocales natural park. We look out over mountains and forests and can get to Playa La Barrosa in 45 minutes, so I guess we have the best of both worlds. 

If I were to recommend a city for you, it would be El Puerto de Santa Maria, on the mouth of the Guadalete river. It has all the facilities you could want, including an excellent modern hospital. It has good rail connections with Cadiz and Seville and ferries to Cadiz city, and Jerez airport is very close by. There is a gym and an indoor swimming pool which residents get cheap access to.

There are several beaches, all sandy, ranging from small coves on the northwest side to the family-friendly holiday resort of Valdelagrana the other side of the river. You can take dogs on all the beaches between October and May, and on the resort beaches before midday in the summer. I'm sure there are some others where there are no restrictions.

I don't play golf but I have friends who do, and there are various golf clubs in the area. Vistahermosa is quite good apparently.

There is a sizable English-speaking community, not as big as Chiclana but much more varied. 

Las Dunas is a great place to stay. https://plus.google.com/117310257926251127523/about?gl=es&hl=en


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## Il Buono (Oct 23, 2013)

Alcalaina, thank you for your reply, you gave me a lot of info there and I'm very grateful. 

Nothing like feedback from people who live in the area.

I'll make sure we spend some time in El Puerto de Santa Maria, it seems to be a good location as it's near to Jerez/Cadiz, plus the beaches and the golf.

Thanks again.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Here's a birds' eye view of EP, just to give you an idea!


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## davexf (Jan 26, 2009)

Hi

I live in the Chiclana area, and have done so for over ten years. I love the area; not everyone´s cup of tea though. If I didn´t live here I would maybe live in Sanlucar de Barrameda, further along the coast. It has a ferry across to the Doñana National Park. 

One thing about exercising dogs; I believe the Junta de Andalucia is trying to ban dogs from all beaches all the year round. 

Davexf


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## Il Buono (Oct 23, 2013)

Alcalaina

Fantastic picture, thanks. BTW, I had a look at the blog........very interesting.


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## Il Buono (Oct 23, 2013)

Davexf, thanks for the reply. What do you love about Chiclana and what do you think makes it not everbody's cup of tea?

Re the idea to ban dogs from beaches, I can understand that point of view. I see the region has several vast national parks, are those open for dog walkers?


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

You can walk dogs in the Parques Naturales provided you stick to the official paths and they are kept under control. Because of the wildlife you can't let them run loose.


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