Daily life in Alicante

Fruit and vegetables are relatively inexpensive and certainly no more expensive than in Belgium. One of those normal sized wedges of cheese costs around 3€ - depending on the variety.

Health care, if you are in work or if you are retired and receiving a state pension is free for Britons so I suppose it's the same for Belgians. In Valencia, that's in Alicante, you can buy into the state health scheme for 60€ per month and private health care is obviously available.

Electricity depends a bit on how big your supply is because the standing charges make up a good portion of the bill and if you have a 5.5kw supply it is much more expensive than our pathetic 2.2kw supply. In our situation, with standing charges included a single kw hour works out at around 17c.

Water costs vary from place to place too. Water and rubbish collection are usually charged together. In a small town in Murcia I was paying about 50€ every two months for the two services. here in the countryside we pay about 120€ per year.

After living in Belgium for 4 years just about everything is cheaper in Alicante than Belgium. And it's a considerable saving too.

Thanks a lot for all your information. My husband and myself are looking forward living 30 minutes away from Alicante and living outside most of the day.   Hope our belgian house will be quickly sold to start a new life in Spain. When I was a teen, I used to go on holidays near Malaga, too hot for me ! Since how long do you live in Spain ? What do you enjoy the most ? I speak spanish but I need some practice to be able to speak easily. Do you speak spanish too ?
Hope to hear from you soon.
Nathalie from Bastogne

Yes! The good part of Alicante is that it´s not too hot the temperature is mild all year round.

Hope that you move soon and enjoy the coast!

It's true - temperaturas are mild in Winter but the houses are built for the heat not for the cold. It can be perishing in inland Alicante in Winter.

Hello all,
This is Lakshay, 24 years old just moved to Alicante to work as a Software Engineer. I lived for one year in Madrid to pursue Master's and before that in India.

I am looking to meet people in Alicante as I don't have friends here.

WIth your surname, Carmen you must be spanish.  I speak some spanish pero me falta practicar. Vive Ud cerca de Alicante ? Necesito olvidar aguien serioso que puede Ud ayudar a olvidar una casa para nosotros. Pensamos venir en diciembre y buscar una casa. Puede Ud ayudar a nosotros ? Me siento para las fautas (mistakes).
Soy tan contenta de denuevo hablar y escribir en espanol. Gracias por todos.

@ nathalieguy > As we are on the Alicante anglophone forum, it would be best if everybody can speak in english here please.

Thanks,

Priscilla 

Hello everyone!
For the past three years I have been  renting in Paphos, Cyprus. However my original choice was to live in Alicante city, or just outside on coast towards Benidorm.
I speak reasonable amount of Italian and seem to be understood when I speak in shops and restaurants. many words are pretty similar so I do get by!
I'm a retired lady and I would like to join friendship groups, dancing classes and join in any charity work, which is how I maintain a healthy social live here in Paphos.
Reason for relocating is the airfares to Alicante are less expensive than to Cyprus which means that my family can afford to visit me more often.
Look forward to hearing from anyone who can give me some good advice on finding apartment to rent.
Maureen 😎

Hi Alassiolady, I was interested in your post, as I am also living in Paphos and considering re-locating to Alicante. I first came to Cyprus in 2007 and really liked it. My wife and I moved away to the Philippines for 5 years and returned here in 2013. I couldn't believe how much it had changed from what I remembered. I find Paphos 'tired' and 'rundown' and boring. The ridiculous hot July/August have been unbearable and last winter I was freezing (I'm in Peyia). Alicante appeals because it seems to have a nice mild climate all year.I have been looking at places in Albir and Valencia. Like you, I have family that I would like to visit me, but the flights from U.K. are expensive and 4 1/2 hours! I also like the idea of being able to travel to other places like Portugal etc. I feel that living in Cyprus is so restrictive and there are few places you can fly to directly. I would be really interested if you have any information to share, as I have never been to Alicante. I have just been researching on the internet and watching ''A Place in the Sun'' on T.V. lol I was planning a holiday there early next year for a bit of a fact-finding trip. My e-mail is ***

Hi Guy and Nathalie,

Alicante is cheaper than Belgium, that is beyond any doubt.Shopping in supermarkets is just a little cheaper, electronics are the same in price as in Belgium. Anything else costs less than in Belgium.
Let me know when you come to Alicante and maybe we could meet. You'll get plenty oppertunity to practice Spanish. My girlfriend is Spanish, so between us that is the only language we use. We both speak French too, so we could help you out with the parts you din't know in Spanish

Bonjour Oli ou Olivier,
Merci de nous répondre. Vos conseils sur la vie à Alicante sont intéressants. Nous envisageons dans les prochaines semaines de faire un petit trip dans la région d'Alicante pour trouver un avocat indépendant et commencer nos démarches pour l''achat d'une villa. Nous croyons aussi que rencontrer des gens comme vous qui vivez sur place pourraient nous guider dans notre projet de nous installer dans les prochains mois. Cà nous permettrait de faire connaissance et de ne pas nous retrouver seuls vu que nous aimons aller vers les autres.

Guy a été plusieurs fois à Alicante et il adore; moi je connais plus l'Andalouisie car mes parents y avaient un appart. Habitez-vous dans Alicante ou aux alentours ? On sait qu'administrativement ce ne sera pas simple mais quitter la morosité et l'humidité de la Belgique n'a pas de prix !

Déjà merci pour votre aide et au plaisir de s'entendre sur le blog.
Guy et Nathalie

@ nathalieguy > Please keep it in english on this english speaking forum.

Thanks,

Priscilla