An Ex-pat Monthly Experience of Moving to Gandia, Spain - Part 32

13th January 2025
Home > News > An Ex-pat Monthly Experience of Moving to Gandia, Spain - Part 32

New beginnings ...

New beginnings…….

It was about this time of the year back in 2020, when my wife and I sat at our kitchen table back in the United Kingdom and switched on the laptop to distract us from the grey, wet misery outside and the equally grey misery on the TV and radio. We had been looking at properties in Spain for some time, having made the plan to retire that Christmas and had a short list of villas that we liked the look of. Nothing up to that point in time, had actually jumped off the page at us, so to speak, so we just opened up a random search. A company called ¨For Sale by Sally in Spain¨ appeared on the screen, and being a somewhat unusual name, we clicked to see what they had. Long story shortened greatly, the villa that appeared on the screen is where we have been happily living for almost four years now. I wonder how many of you are sitting there right now considering the same move.

So many questions. So many ifs, what’s and maybe’s, right?

For us at that time, Covid was rife, and we had already had to postpone a booking to stay in Denia for a couple of weeks to physically suss out the area. No, we had no idea where Gandia was. I was only aware of Denia from when I worked on Mallorca some years back.

Would I recommend copying what we did in order to move out of the UK? Absolutely not! When we look back on it, we cannot believe that we acted in the way that we did. In our defence, it was driven by the desperation to get out of the UK! Not that Spain is without its issues and problems, good gracious, no! But we were both of the opinion that England was not the country that we were born into and grew up in, and it was only going to get worse at an increasing ever pace. Having holidayed in Spain and I had lived on Mallorca for some time too, we were aware of the better weather, cheaper cost of living, better value for money properties, better health care and overall higher quality of life for retired people. Thus, we went temporarily crazy ……!

During a lull in the Covid restrictions, we sold our home, bought a left-hand drive car online, booked a ferry ticket to Bilbao and activated our booking to the hotel in Denia. Oh yes, and we had already bought the villa after a thorough video tour by the Agency ¨For Sale By Sally in Spain¨ No, I’m not joking!

Two days before departure, the ferry company notified us that due to abnormally low booking levels, the Bilbao ferry was cancelled, but if we would be prepared to go to Santander instead, we could have free upgrade to Captains Lounge during our three-day crossing. Yes, you’ve got it, we agreed! After all, we had no where to live, out furniture was already on its way to Spain, and we had no idea when the next Covid clampdown would hit!

We duly rolled up at the ferry terminal to find it almost deserted! However just when we were beginning to think that we had been sent on a wild goose chase, other cars started arriving and the reception kiosks opened and in short shrift we were all on board and set to sail. The crossing was smooth and enjoyable with complimentary drinks of all sorts and a selection of foods in the Captains Lounge constantly on offer. Huge windows by our table gave on to a constantly changing picture as we made our way south, then along the coast to Santander.

We loaded back down to the car under the instruction of the ferry staff as we approached the port. Handed in our ‘destination confirmation’ and within minutes were driving off the ramp and back on to terra firma. Following the queue of vehicles in front of us, we made our way through the main port area in our full to the gunnels car until we reached the final checkpoint where we could see some cars being pulled to one side and emptied for inspection. We were pulled to a stop by the Guardia Civil and handed over our passports, which we casually glanced at by one of them and handed back with a wave of the arm and “enjoy your stay!” That was it. We were through! Almost giggling with released tension, we reset the Satnav and off we went on to the smoothest motorways we had seen in years!

Within a couple of days staying in the delightful hotel in Denia, we had tracked down our new home and despite not taking the handover for a further couple of days, marvelled at the twenty-five-foot wall around it and the wrought iron gates under the twin arches that formed roadside car parking. Cutting a long story short, the shock of the bushes and overgrowth that grew through the rock ‘drive’ up to the villa and the green mosquito central, that was the pool, the general run-down appearance of the building that had not been lived in for a year or so, was soon corrected. There have been jolts of reality along the way, what with the guest apartment that leaked like a sieve (no exaggeration) whenever it rained and the unconnected wood burner that just emptied smoke above the ceiling void, but within a couple of years all the big work was completed with assistance from a friendly local builder and now, almost four years later, we have a beautiful home with a sparkling pool, fully stone paved drive, a lovely terraced garden, where Mrs Lovely is busying away tending her garden as we speak, complete with the essential Lemon Tree, Mandarin Tree, Fig, Cherry and Apple Trees, all at different levels. All in all, we have a gorgeous house with a playroom big enough to take a pool table (now installed) and party area. Three terraces, not to mention a balcony that was once the steel work for an outside lift, bedrooms and bathrooms for the whole family to visit at the same time and a view up the valley that never fails to impress. All for the price of our three-bedroom house in the UK.

I’m going to leave it there for now, because there is much more to tell and so much that we have learned since arriving during Covid in 2021.

But let’s just finish this letter by asking the question,

What are you thinking about doing this year?

Nos vemos, y Feliz Anos Nuevo!


Share this article

Related News

07/12/2023
An Ex-pat Monthly Experience of Moving to Gandia, Spain - Part 20

Christmas 2023 ......... Good grief, it doesn’t seem five minutes since I sat at this same keyboard (I have washed the keyboard membrane since …. Twice) looking at a blank sheet of paper with the heading, “Christmas 2022, staring back at me! But here we are and what a year it has been here in the wonderful Gandia locale. From the highs o...

Read More
28/08/2024
An Ex-pat Monthly Experience of Moving to Gandia, Spain - Part 28

The Spanish Lifestyle 2024 .... So, you are seriously thinking about, even looking forward, to moving to Spain? That’s great, because despite the sometimes highly questionable and often utterly misleading articles on the likes of Facebook et al, it’s a great life over here! But! Yes, there’s always a but, isn’t there? You do need to...

Read More
22/04/2024
An Ex-pat Monthly Experience of Moving to Gandia, Spain - Part 24

RETIRE TO SPAIN ……..Really? Is it an age thing? I cannot believe that we are already a third of the way through 2024 ….. when I haven’t yet got used to typing 2024 for Heaven’s sake! Anyway, I digress from what I was going to start with already. The trouble now being I’ve forgotten how I was going to start because I s...

Read More
11/04/2022
An Ex-pat Monthly Experience of Moving to Gandia, Spain, Post Brexit! - Part 5

Part 5: So, what’s it like to retire to Gandia Spain?Hello again! So, from a pair of Retirees to all of you considering making Spain your retirement destination, you may be interested in our findings since we arrived here post Brexit. First, you really do need an effective, efficient local Lawyer. Once more, the 'For Sale By Sally in Spain' team can...

Read More