Hello, please introduce yourself and let us know a little about you and the area of Spain that you have moved to,

- Nickname or Name
- Country of Origin/Destination
- Why you came to Spain ie retired, better lifestyle for family, work etc.

We are a friendly and supportive member group, and enjoy providing a valuable experience while we participate in this online Expat community.

Introductions also give the Staff and Moderators a chance to know a bit about what has brought you here, and therefore how we may be of the most assistance possible.

We enjoy sharing information or just to debate on a wide range of topics. You are also welcome to join in and raise different issues for debate.

David.
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Advice is free, learning by experience can be costly.

European Swaps A place to Swap or Exchange your home on a permanent basis. 

My name is Tracy. Looking to move to Spain but concerned as I said about treatment of pets.
Have not really decided which area is best yet. Any suggestions
Best areas, and areas to avoid?

Thanks
Tracy  

Welcome tracyjames, to the Spanish forums, I posted a reply to your post and I think that you will be very happy in whatever area you decide to move to. It is a difficult thing picking an area of Spain as with any country its up to the individual of where they want to move to.

I can advise that you should first rent a place for a week or two and have a look round the area before you make any commitment, as to where you might settle. Use this time to think as a resident and not as a tourist.

You might want to work, or just retire to, so there is difference's in the areas that you might want to be in. Spain is a very large country and has a lot of different areas that might suit some but not others, so its really up to you and whoever you want to bring with you.

Perhaps if you made a post in the general section of this forum letting the other members know what you want and where you might consider then you might get some idea of the areas that you might want to move to.

Good luck.
David.
_________________
Advice is free, learning by experience can be costly.

European Swaps A place to Swap or Exchange your home on a permanent basis. 

Hi
We are in the process of trying to get ourselves and our young family out to Spain and I'm struggling to find information and advice and then I found this site!
We have 3 young children (6,5 and 3) and many sites seem to provide info for those who are retiring to Spain, so I'm feeling at a bit of a loss for help!
I'm half Spanish (my family are from Jerez) so Spanish and the culture are not the issue BUT I have no clue how to assess schools or decide on an area in which to live. I know in England to check Offsted and I know the clues to tell whether an area is upmarket / family friendly etc but I really don't know where to start in Spain. We want to be somewhere for the skiing of the Sierra Nevada but somewhere which offers our children a young family Spanish community and good schools....any help would be estupendo....thank you very much and looking forward to learning from all of you!
Sonia  

A warm welcome to you joaosinspain, I am sure that once you post in the main Spanish forum you will be suprised at how many expats will respond to your questions.

Here is a little information about Expat Focus Eduication in Spain Also here Education In Spain. And I am sure you will find out much more once you know where you are going to settle down.

Good Luck.
David
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Advice is free, learning by experience can be costly.

European Swaps A place to Swap or Exchange your home on a permanent basis. 

Hello Countryboy
Thankyou for the welcome. I am sure I will have lots of questions to ask.
TJ  

Hi

I am Brenda and I moved permanently to Spain in December 2001 with my husband Ian. Prior to making the permanent move we had owned property in Spain since 1988 - 11 years in Majorca then 2 in Nerja. Much as we loved our house in Nerja, we knew pretty soon after moving over that we needed to be in a country rather than coastal location. Here at Lake Vinuela we feel that we have the best of both - a stunning country/mountain setting yet less than 20 minutes drive from the coast of the eastern Costa del Sol and motorway network. Prior to moving here my husband was an Accountant and I was the Matron of a Private Hospital.

We moved to Spain for several reasons - not least being the weather, slower pace of life and, at that time, the low cost of living.

When we first decided on the Lake Vinuela area we bought a plot from a developer and had a house built - a traumatic experience to say the least and one that I would not want to repeat. I quickly got a job on the coast - remember when you move here that you probably won´t be able to continue in your UK type of work OR earn the same money - to bring my Spanish up to speed but had to give this up 2 years later after a serious car accident; do watch out when travelling through the tunnel from Malaga city towards the airport!! As I got better I was bored/needed an interest and, as we had 2 en suite rooms below our property that were doing nothing, we decided to start offering Bed + Breakfast. Have now been doing this for 4 years and have met some fascinating people from all over the world.

Things have been good on the whole apart from the fact that my husband has had very serious health issues since 2006 - all I can say is thank goodness for private Health Insurance.

If I can answer any questions for anyone on this Forum I would be delighted to help.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Best Wishes,

Brenda
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Bed and Breakfast in the Axarquia - www.bandblakevinuela.com