nice places in spain for a family

[angela]

hi i have two small children age 16 months and 4 years i want to move to spain but am unsure of the best areas to raise my family i need to be close to all shops and towns etc and also close to nice schools i would consider anywhere does anyone have any suggestions

[Stravinsky]

Originally Posted by angela

hi i have two small children age 16 months and 4 years i want to move to spain but am unsure of the best areas to raise my family i need to be close to all shops and towns etc and also close to nice schools i would consider anywhere does anyone have any suggestions

Angela that just a huge question to answer. I guess everyone will recommend where they live themselves.

Depends what you want, but the Northern Costa Blanca around Denia / Gandia / Oliva / Javea ia a lovely area with Blue Flag beaches, reasonably close to Airports, good amenites, beautiful countryside and national parks, and cost of living seems to be less up here than the CDS

[angela]

thanks we were looking at trying to find somewhere that already has some english people as we dont want to be stuck in a new area not speaking spanish so really anywhere that is already popular with the english

[Stravinsky]

Originally Posted by angela

thanks we were looking at trying to find somewhere that already has some english people as we dont want to be stuck in a new area not speaking spanish so really anywhere that is already popular with the english

Benidorm, Torrievieja, Marbella .... but is that what you are coming to Spain for, to be with British?

[angela]

lol no course i know i will have to learn spanish but while my children are small it would be nice to at least know a few english people out there it will be a big enough change for them anyway

[Deepdiver47]

We are looking at Spain and France, and stuck with a similar dilemna. We dont want to move to 'Blackpool al la Espana' but feel an easy transition for the first year or two may not be a bad idea, get a reasonable grasp on culture and language then move forward. Its a hard call, I want to integrate and dont want to be the 'Pom abroad' but dont want to make it too hard straight away. Waiting for advice expectantly!!

[angela]

i know exactly what you mean its so hard to try and find somewhere because we also have the issue of work and until we speak fluent spanish everything is going to be a problem that is why we thought of somewhere that already has english would be a good place to start at least then we can get ideas from other people and make a few english friends

[Deepdiver47]

Hopefully we get some replies!

[Stravinsky]

I want to explode a myth!

You dont need to go to heavily populated Brit areas to make a start in Spain.

I'll use our experiences as an example.

We came here with very little Spanish, having been to night school for a few terms. We knew how to ask for something, we knew how to give our names, address, the basics.

We moved to an area just outside Oliva which I believed to be a very Spanish town, historically an agricultural area.

We find here that our immediate neighbour on one side is Spanish/French, and that there are a number of English, French, German, Dutch & Spanish families nearby.

When we arrived here our first problem was to get all the paperwork done. Looking back on it I wished we had employed a gestoria to do it all for us. We would have got it done quicly in that way, but instead it did drag on for a while. My point being, a gestoria will do it all for you relatively cheaply and take the hassle away.

Knowing the basics in Spanish, the Spaniards appreciated that we were trying and went out of their way to help. Quite a few have basic English.

We have Dutch, French, Spanish and German friends and get along well with them. We are still struggling with Spanish as there is so much to learn, but it is not the major concern WE thought it would be before we came here.

What I am trying to say is ....... dont let your lack of command of Spanish be the deciding factor in where you are going to live. You and your family can learn to speak spanish slowly, but selling a home and re locating if you dont like "little britain" can be a lot harder!

Good luck

[angela]

thanks i do understand what your saying i think because its such a big move i want to make sure its best for us all as far as work and schools are concerned because i dont want to miles away from the schools etc i have no intentions of being in the middle of a holiday resort as this would be pointless in moving i want a new life not a little britain as you put it lol