Moving soon to Los Dolses

Shamil65 wrote on Sun May 15, 2022 2:10pm:

Hi Forum(ers)

Trust you all are well.  We are in the final stages of our impending move to Los Dolses.  We are fulfilling our dream.  We have a pet dog, so we have decided to take the decision to drive with our pet.  We are driving through France, so if there is any wisdoms people can share...

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..., that will be very much appreciated.  

The process has taken a long time (thanks to Brexit and bureaucracy) however, we are hoping it is going to be time well spent (oh yeah, it has also cost a bit).  I am happy to share our experience of application process and cost.  For starters, if anyone from the UK would like to go through the non lucrative visa, I would suggest to speak to Chris Goodacre (Upstick.es) - he has been extremely helpful.

Finally, hoping that you share your pearls of wisdom which would make our journey easier.  

Many thanks in advance

Shamil

Cheryl wrote on Sun May 15, 2022 2:59pm:

Hello Shamil65 and congratulations.
Use https://www.viamichelin.com/ to plot your journey. We've only driven down twice and found sticking to the E15 route the whole way and hang the expense of tolls suited us ...

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...best. We booked dog friendly hotels via booking.com as we went. If you take this route Paris can be a nightmare but as we passed it at 3 am it was fine but this is why some prefer to avoid Paris altogether. Most motorway service stations have exercise areas for your dog. Be very careful at service stations for distraction thefts. If you are on the motorway and the occupant of a passing car indicates there is something wrong with the car, take photos of them and drive on. Beware of anyone approaching you, hold on to your valuables and ignore them.

If you have sold a UK property this year, speak to a tax advisor re Spanish Capital Gains tax which you could become liable for if you spend 183 days or more here in 2022. 

Make sure you get your dog vaccinated against Mediterranean diseases including Leishmania and be aware of https://www.healthplanspain.com/blog/expat-tips/1027-pine-processionary-caterpillars-spain.html#:~:text=Where%20in%20Spain%20Do%20You,course%20or%20by%20the%20roadside.
Your dog will be welcome on most restaurant terraces but will not be allowed inside and there are few beaches where dogs are allowed.

If you are keeping your UK car here in Spain speak to Leigh at https://www.spanish-number-plates.com/ and make sure you have your UK sticker until imported and on Spanish plates. For anything to do with driving there is https://n332.es/

As it stands your UK driving licence will only be valid for 6 months so it may be an idea to contact a driving school here to start the process off and get some lessons booked as I imagine they are very busy at the moment due to the announcement at the very end of April.

Rob60 wrote on Sun May 15, 2022 4:05pm:

Great advice from Cheryl, and my one additional piece of advice to add is -  AVOID PARIS!!!!!!

Golandrina wrote on Mon May 16, 2022 6:00am:

Apart from the N332 website for anything to do with driving in Spain, I would suggest that you look at the Citizens Advice Bureau Spain website for bureaucratic stuff.   The N332 website is run in conjunction with officers of the Guardia Civil for English speaking people.