Is Santa Pola too quiet to live on a full-time basis? - Page 2

The best thing to do is come over in say Jan/Feb and look round so you can see what it is like out of season,

Thank you. That is exactly what I had in mind as was thinking of buying then. It is important I get it right so a few more months beyond that won't matter. I don't want to move into a ghost town in the winter.

Thank you, Kate. I will look at all these places in Jan/Feb. The town size matters to me as I don't want anything too villagy. I have looked up La Marina, it has a population of just over 2,000.  When I looked at the satelitte map, I could see Urbanizacion La Marina a little inland. Do people use these names interchangeably. Is the second of these larger? I have looked up Urb. La Marina but I cannot find a population size for it. Which of the two would you recommend? Others have also said that property is more affordable in La Marina but there does not seem to be that much up for sale, at least online. Is this because they are only advertising La Marina and not Urb. La Marina. Lots of questions I know but I need to get it right as it will quite possible be my last resting place and I want to make it home, make friends and become part of the fabric of my place of choice.

the population of 2000 would probably be la marina village,la marina urbanization is massive with 4 different areas with bars /restaurants etc.and there is always lots of properties for sale............search Barclays properties and Smart properties to name just a couple. we bought through barclays and although i wouldnt reccomend their building side i do reccomend estate agent side we had fantastic service with them.

Guadamars a nice place .id move there if i were u .i live there .lovely .not far from santa pola 

I will check this out as I see it has a considerable population, more than a couple of thousand but not immense.  I want to get a feel for the town before I decide where to buy. While I don't want somewhere densly populated I don't want tumbleweed to be the only other thing  I see moving as I walk down the road.

Will probably check it out in Jan/Feb.

Thank you for your reply; I really appreciate it.

S

Yes, I took another look and can see that La Marina is quite big, a now size town. Thank you for advice. All the replies have served to help me draw up a short-list of towns to look at (three or four) and will visit them all. Having said that, because Santa Pola, Gran Alacant, La Marina, Guardamar and Quesada are all so close to each other I guess that when it comes to making friends, I can reach out beyond the town where I decide to settle. What is important to me is that it has some life or sense of community and so far it seems like they all have this to some extent.

Thank you, again, Kate.

S

Ok & no probs

I think people have been very helpful but with a fair amount of assumptions.

To get an answer that relates to your needs, you need to state what those are.

> Is Santa Pola a town on the quiet side, perhaps for someone living there full time. 

The answer depends on  what you want to do.

What would you want to do on a daily basis in a typical week?

BTW, the main town of SP is not the easiest place to live if you do not speak reasonable Spanish. Ut does not have an ex pat community though a handful live there. Gran Alicant is easier in both regards. I chose the main town of SP for exactly those reasons. I did not want to be in an ex pat community and I wanted to be pushed in regard to my Spanish. If you rent you can always move. I did a few longish trips first. Rentals are pretty cheap out of season - if you know the score. If you sit on the Internet in the UK you will get higher prices.

There is a regular bus service to Alicante from both, where you would find everything you would expect in a city of that size. You might consider living there and visiting places like SP. Alicante is a lovely place and very handy as it has good rail and bus links.

Hello Brian,

Thank you for your full and considered reply. It was very, very helpful not in making me choose but in making me pleased with my choice. At first I could not decide between Costa del Sol and Costa Blanca. Property prices soon made me settle on Costa Blanca. Then,  I had to decide somewhere along the coast. I know it might be only fractional but I wanted the south of the province of Alicante for its better climate. My father lives in Santa Pola but it did seem a bit ¨"sleepy"  for me to move there for that reason alone.  I think your point about what I want to do once I am there is a very important one. I have left the business of Central London (lived and worked there) behind me and want  to  live a quieter, peaceful life.  I hope to take very long strolls of one hour at least, two hours at most along the beach front as a daily routine. I will then dedicate most of my time to doing online courses and indulging in interests I never had time for before. Lastly, I would like to be a small network of friends (four is a prividge, six is richness) with whom I can talk and exchange ideas. Now, I can pretty much do this in any town. I settled for Santa Pola because I know it has a long sea front. It has a good bus network to many places. You are right in that it does not have an expat community  but I can get that in the surrounding town, should I want that. Mmmmm, my father "convincing" me to choose SP might have had something to do with it, too. I bought a property very, very near my father´s and will be moving there shortly after Christmas, Spring at the latest. My English and Spanish are on a parr so the language will not be a problem. I might even  try to learn some Valencian. Your reply, though, reassures me in my choice because you have touched on important criteria. Many, many thanks once again because your reply certainly put some cheer into my day.