Being within about 1 year of retirement (almost OMY), one thing I think I want to try when we are retired is picking one city/location to spend a whole month; somewhere in Europe; e.g. southern Spain. I would like to get a sense of living like a local; embracing the culture, and getting a real sense of being a local.Has anyone tried this and if so what was your experience?
Spending a month at one location in Spain
- Thread starter habelsgtb
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Yes, we did this over several years, renting and staying at least a month in various cities. Great fun.
Teacher Terry
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We have stayed 2 weeks in one spot.
Major Tom
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
I was intending to do this when I first stopped work. For some reason though, I acquired 3 cats. I don't like to leave them for very long (yes, I know - I'm a weirdo that way), so that nixed the "vacationing for a month or two at a time" plan.
My youngest is 7 years old so, if I don't acquire any more cats in the interim, there might be a useful window of time in which I can still easily travel. On the other hand, I'm a sucker for an animal in need, so we'll see how that goes
My youngest is 7 years old so, if I don't acquire any more cats in the interim, there might be a useful window of time in which I can still easily travel. On the other hand, I'm a sucker for an animal in need, so we'll see how that goes
Crewer
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Done a month in Tokyo twice, in Poland once and am presently in western France for a month. It's my retirement while DH does his retirement thing of being a visiting scientist somewhere if they provide housing (and maybe airfare). So far the housing has included kitchen facilities. I have a bit of a problem being away that long (hey, I have a great life at home and I do get kind of out of touch especially with my book groups and volunteer jobs) but all the trips have been great and I feel I've really been able to get to know the places. I actually like scouring the farmers' markets and different food stores and then cooking. Of course we also do the major tourist sights. DH usually gets away from "work" some days and we may even travel to different cities on the weekends.
We lived in a small town in Tuscany, Italy on two separate occasions for 3 months at a time during 2017 and also this past spring. Really liked it. Our accommodation was nestled among vineyards and olive groves. In the distance we could see the hilltop town of San Gimignano.
We lived for 1-1/2 months in Morocco. Incredible culture and food. Very low COL, however, healthcare not so great.
The entirety of 2018 we lived in the Costa Ballena area of Costa Rica. Stunningly beautiful there. Costa Rica does not exactly live up to its reputation of being a low cost retirement location.
This past August and September, we lived in a small mountain town in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. After several visits to Oaxaca city, we liked it so much that we put a deposit down on an apartment there for next May through November.
Currently living in the Lake Atitlan area of Guatemala for a month.
Not only is it great fun settling in to a location for a while and being able to live like a local along with experiencing local culture, food, language, etc.; we've also ended up forming acquaintances and friendships in the process.
We lived for 1-1/2 months in Morocco. Incredible culture and food. Very low COL, however, healthcare not so great.
The entirety of 2018 we lived in the Costa Ballena area of Costa Rica. Stunningly beautiful there. Costa Rica does not exactly live up to its reputation of being a low cost retirement location.
This past August and September, we lived in a small mountain town in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. After several visits to Oaxaca city, we liked it so much that we put a deposit down on an apartment there for next May through November.
Currently living in the Lake Atitlan area of Guatemala for a month.
Not only is it great fun settling in to a location for a while and being able to live like a local along with experiencing local culture, food, language, etc.; we've also ended up forming acquaintances and friendships in the process.
We spent six weeks in Greece in 2018, although in several locations. Still since we rented apartments and had a rental car, it felt like we were locals. Loved it! Also six months after ER, we lived in the USVI on St. Thomas for 3 months. Definitely became locals then - we were getting local discounts on restaurants, diving, etc and really got to know the island and made some friends. Highly recommend this way of traveling!
For those who have done this, how did you go about housing? Short term extended rentals either seem very expensive or hard to find.
To the OP, I’m glad you asked this question. We’ve talked about doing this in the summer months when it’s hot in our area.
To the OP, I’m glad you asked this question. We’ve talked about doing this in the summer months when it’s hot in our area.
We've found that in LCOL countries (for us, Mexico and Morocco most recently) the cost of rentals are relatively inexpensive. We've also done house sitting as a way to offset the cost of accommodation. If a house sit involves looking after pets (they usually do) that is a limiting factor in terms of exploring surrounding areas beyond day trips. In those cases, what we've done, is to bookend independent travel prior to and after we finish the house sit.
YVRRocketSurgery
Full time employment: Posting here.
Thanks for asking this too. We're looking to travel in the rainy months. Trying to figure out the best options to eek out some savings from a monthly rental versus the shorter term stays we need to do now.
Can you suggest a few towns? We're looking for nice winter weather (fewer cloudy days), so we'll be looking at the middle and south Portugal.
SunBlueSky
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Stayed almost a month in a London suburb in the early summer using AirBnB (before I got my cat). The family and home was really nice, about a 10 minute walk to the village center with pubs, a pond with swans, cute shops and an old church with bells chiming on the hour.
All the places we stayed at for a month were furnished vacation rentals, found through various sites, mostly direct with the owner through VRBO or Rightmove but on 4 occasions through an agent.
Cities we have stayed in for at least a month are Salida, CO, Friday Harbor, WA, Vancouver, Canada, Canmore, Canada, Hobart, Tasmania, Downings, Ireland, and Guisborough, England where we ended up living.
I'm Italy focused (obsessed?). In retirement, I stayed for a month or more in Turin (2x), Lucca, Rome and Trieste. In each city, I used Airbnb. I love staying for a month in a city. You get to know it some and you are not constantly on the road, packing, unpacking, getting on and off trains, etc.
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bearkeley
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We have spent a total of about 9 months in Australia over 4 visits, each staying about 4-6 weeks in Sydney, Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane. We were able to get free housing (one was a brand new townhome with views of the city, the other was a large home overlooking Brisbane waters) and use of a car in exchange for house/pet sitting. We’ve also enjoyed similar stays in the US. If housesitting isn’t for you, home exchanges could be worth a try. If not, consider finding rentals through local equivalents of Craigslist. https://www.tablondeanuncios.com might be worth a try for local housing in Spain. Of course, it won’t hurt to message owners of Airbnb’s or VRBOs to see if they will give you a discount for a month stay.
We love to travel, but realizing that we are really enjoying having a home base to really get to know an area and live like a local. With a month long stay, we were able to live like a local and make new friends. We were able to do cool things such as take sailing lessons and joining the local sailing club; ride our bikes through most of the trails around Brisbane; save money by eating out for lunch and cook dinner most nites; meet new friends (be sure to check out local meetup groups!).
We love to travel, but realizing that we are really enjoying having a home base to really get to know an area and live like a local. With a month long stay, we were able to live like a local and make new friends. We were able to do cool things such as take sailing lessons and joining the local sailing club; ride our bikes through most of the trails around Brisbane; save money by eating out for lunch and cook dinner most nites; meet new friends (be sure to check out local meetup groups!).
brett
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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We just came back from a month in Greece and two weeks in Cyprus.
One bedroom apts on the Ionian Islands are very common. Much more so than on the islands to the south. We had several five days stays in Greece and in Cyprus. Some of them in apt. like hotels.
Our ocean front condo on Zakynthos was 350E on booking.com. Found the owner on the web and booked direct for 250E cash.
We did five car rentals in Greece, one in Cyprus. You really do need to shop them as we found wide variations in pricing.
On a seven month trip we booked a condo for a month at one spot in Costa Rica. Rented a car and travelled about. Worked well.
One bedroom apts on the Ionian Islands are very common. Much more so than on the islands to the south. We had several five days stays in Greece and in Cyprus. Some of them in apt. like hotels.
Our ocean front condo on Zakynthos was 350E on booking.com. Found the owner on the web and booked direct for 250E cash.
We did five car rentals in Greece, one in Cyprus. You really do need to shop them as we found wide variations in pricing.
On a seven month trip we booked a condo for a month at one spot in Costa Rica. Rented a car and travelled about. Worked well.
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justlikebike
Recycles dryer sheets
Done this multiple times in multiple places.
Tips:
If you are renting a car. (Highly suggested) Ensure you Visa covers the insurance.
Stay in a bit busier, centrally located city. What I find is that if you can only head in one direction, you keep having to go further to see something new.
One month is a minimum. AirBnB etc., the price of the apartment drops quite a bit with a one month rent. Potentially with VRBO or other apartment rental places you can negotiate a bit. Ask the owner a question, mention you want to stay for a month and innocently ask the question of how much would they charge. Usually they will respond with a lower rate. If renting an apartment, go with a place with lots of reviews.
Go to a place that is walkable. Paris is the best walking city that I have ever been to. For Spain I would say Barcelona. Be careful about weather. Northern Europe is soggy in the winter but great in the summer. Southern Europe is Brutally hot in the summer, but great in the shoulder seasons. If you are driving, understand the driving rules! They are different from North America. (No right turn on red light, many restricted driving locations. Memorize the traffic signs and what they mean)
On month is not enough!
Take a basic language course before you go. If you want to get to know the natives, at least try to speak their language, they are much friendlier.
Oh, get a local SIM card for your phone, put your phone plan on hold if you can and get WhatsApp. All countries other than North America use WhatsApp for communication.
Have fun!
Tips:
If you are renting a car. (Highly suggested) Ensure you Visa covers the insurance.
Stay in a bit busier, centrally located city. What I find is that if you can only head in one direction, you keep having to go further to see something new.
One month is a minimum. AirBnB etc., the price of the apartment drops quite a bit with a one month rent. Potentially with VRBO or other apartment rental places you can negotiate a bit. Ask the owner a question, mention you want to stay for a month and innocently ask the question of how much would they charge. Usually they will respond with a lower rate. If renting an apartment, go with a place with lots of reviews.
Go to a place that is walkable. Paris is the best walking city that I have ever been to. For Spain I would say Barcelona. Be careful about weather. Northern Europe is soggy in the winter but great in the summer. Southern Europe is Brutally hot in the summer, but great in the shoulder seasons. If you are driving, understand the driving rules! They are different from North America. (No right turn on red light, many restricted driving locations. Memorize the traffic signs and what they mean)
On month is not enough!
Take a basic language course before you go. If you want to get to know the natives, at least try to speak their language, they are much friendlier.
Oh, get a local SIM card for your phone, put your phone plan on hold if you can and get WhatsApp. All countries other than North America use WhatsApp for communication.
Have fun!
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Bamaman
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I've been traveling Europe since 1970, and only got around to visiting Spain this past June. We stayed in an apartment in Granada just below the Alhambra, and it was off the beaten path--and real Spain. I was pleasantly surprised how affordable Spain is to live in and how absolutely beautiful the people there are. I had no idea that Granada was at the foot of a large mountain with local ski resorts, too.
I could certainly recommend Granada as a good, central location to work out of.
I could certainly recommend Granada as a good, central location to work out of.
HarveyS
Full time employment: Posting here.
Spent a month in Vienna. Walking distance to the opera. Found a furnished apt. on VRBO and got a nice discount for a monthly rental. Did not need a car, and enjoyed walking everywhere (or the occaisional train/subway).
