Decisions, decisions, where to live?

North coast from the western city limits of Santander all the way out to Coruna. For a moderate-sized place, Gijon is pretty good. Winters are a bit damp, but at sea level a moderate jacket every once in a while is fine. There's plenty of snow up in the Picos. Nobody speaks english, no tourists.

You might find this interesting http://www.aarp.org/home-garden/livable-communities/best_places_to_retire_abroad/ I was surprised at number one.

James, My wife is 5' 4" tall and weighs 112 pounds, I think she qualifies. If you have traveled outside of the Fatherland and would like to recommend places in Spain to visit please respond.

Jerry, You may want to take a look at this site. It is Transparency International, a research group that compiles data on which governments in the world are most corrupt. They say that Italy (however beautiful) is very corrupt. The results here: http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2010/results You may also wish to go to the website for the World Health Organization to check out what it has to say about different countries or regions: www.who.int/ Before you make your final decision, these are two good sources of information.

Im not a fan of the southern coasts...such a water problem there. Girona is very nice

What are you looking for? Do you want to be able to travel throughout Europe? Or are you looking for someplace affordable on a small retirement income? City, small town, rural? Quiet life, culture, scenery? What kind of climate? 4 seasons, mild year-round, humid ok? Near water, mountains?
Will you have a car? 15 years ago, I decided to relocate temporarily to the U.S. I made a list of the 5-6 things most important to me, and San Francisco was the only place that had them all. It became an easy decision.

Have you visited Sitges? It's a nice sized community down the coast from Barcelona (south). Nice SANDY beach (not pebbles), lots of restaurants, decent sized grocery store. If you feel like visiting Barcelona, the train is about 40 minutes. Check it out.

A link based on the emphasis of one of Samantha Brown's shows that featured Stiges: http://www.gaysitgesguide.com/

So glad to see you took my advice and have started looking into moving to Europe, Jerry. That study I mentioned must have been the deciding factor. Stick to Spain or France. Between the tapas and amuse bouche, they clearly enjoy small stuff over there.

What about Malta?

I couldn't put enough emphasis on how it is important to choose a place based on your intentions of travelling after moving. If you are planning on doing a lot of short-term trips (easy when you have a permanent home in Europe), I'd recommend that you stick with some area north(east) of Valencia, so that you will be within a good distance for Barcelona airport and, in the long term, high-speed rail connections with Paris, maybe even London, Bruxelles, Amsterdam, Frankfurt... However, as people travel seldom to that area on winter, they underestimate the wet winters and grey skies over there. If all-year-long weather is essential, then Andaluzia is a preferred area. TEmps in winter rarely go below 50 F, it is a place much warmer than Florida in that aspect. But Andaluzia is a much harder base to travel elsewhere in Europe during low season. You would always be a 3h high-speed train trip to Madrid + airport or 550 mile drive for anywhere outside Spain.

Jerry Oh, I would love to be able to live in Europe! Once you have made a decision on where you want to live in Europe, have you considered renting for a year to try out the new location and neighborhood? Maybe you were going to do that anyway. I read somewhere in the travel materials I gather, that renting is a terrific way to ensure your rosy travel experiences also make for a good home! I agree with other posters to live close to a major airport if you want to continue to travel. Bobbie

@ Ceidleh: I learned a long time ago, don't fight with Boston Irish unless you are prepared to take a few punches.

Jerry, you don't mention if you intend to rent or to buy. Buying costs are different depending on which country you decide to settle in. For instance in Britain the seller pays a substantial amount of the cost, whereas in Italy it is the buyer and this can amount to 10 - 15% of the purchase price of the property. Same goes for Spain I think. Rental agreements too are different. In Britain one months notice is usually required from either party, whereas in Germany it is at least 3 months. It would be useful to find out the potential pitfalls (in English if you don't speak the lingo) before deciding. One big problem many ex pats have had in Spain is being sold property that didn't have planning permission and which are subsequently condemned. In some parts of Europe when you buy a house you also inherit any debts there may be on the property, we found this especially so in Greece. For us, as Brits, buying in Germany was a relatively pain free experience. Don't want to rain on your parade, but be aware and get a good English speaking lawyer before buying or renting. And then you can enjoy your retirement.

Brava, Ceidleh! Jerry, you might check out Benidorm on the Mediterranean coast (Costa Blanca). Lots of apartments full of Brits on holiday; no Americans with feedbag purses. You don't even need to know any Spanish.

Re Andalucia where we live - it is a big region and temperatures can go well below 50 (10 celcius) in many parts. It is a bit of a myth that it is warm all year round as it most definately is not. As for it being a long way from the rest of Europe - yes it is but depending on how close you are to which airport puts you within 2.5 hours of most other European cities. Malaga airport is the second biggest hub in Spain, after Palma Mallorca. Given we were used to the agony of 22 hour flights from Australia, we are fine with this. Much of the coast in Andalucia is overdeveloped, and with many expats, mainly British. However, the climate is milder. Something no one else seems to have mentioned - do you already have the right to live in Europe or will you be applying for residency to your chosen country?