Portugal or Spain

***

I had been to Valencia a few times and love the city and what it has to offer. But I had only been in the Spring. So in 2021 I went to Valencia for several weeks in September.

The heat and humidity there was unbearable for me.

The next Spring, after a trip to northern Spain that is where I decided to settle. It is called Green Spain as it is cooler and has more rain, thus more vegetation.

I know we each have our own likes/dislikes and you may be coming from a climate where it doesn't bother you to have both high temperature and high humidity. But my body was not accustomed to that. I'd walk outside and before I had gone a block I was drenched in sweat and could barely breathe. I felt like I was swimming in the air, and that there was a force pushing on me.

Today, here in northern Spain, it is 18 C and sunny and I just came back from an incredible bike ride. In August, half of Spain comes up here to get away from the heat. I just choose to live here year round. It is the right place for me for this and other reasons.

Take a look at the recent climate conditions: https://weatherspark.com/h/y/42614/2023/Historical-Weather-during-2023-in-Valencia-Spain#Figures-Temperature

The link will open to 2023 but you can change it to past years by clicking on the number. You can drill down to season, month, even day.

You can also compare up to four cities on WeatherSpark, so look at a city you are very familiar with and compare it to Valencia.

I cannot recommend strongly enough that you do not buy a property until you have lived in the area for a year or more. There are so many things you can't know about until you live there. Rent long-term and learn as much as you can before you purchase.

I wish you well in your search for the right place for you.

@tomwins

Thanks for your assessment of Valencia. Not fond of heat and humidity. Currently in Florida, USA and want to escape the high heat.

I relocated to Valencia earlier this year and while I think it is one of the best cities in Spain, I concur with @tomwins regarding the heat (I'm Australian and still struggled!)  If you do end up renting somewhere I found Spot-a-Home really useful, they do mid term rentals so you aren't locked into a long term lease plus they are generally cheaper than Airbnb.

Good luck!

@bianca14

Thanks for your help.

If you want cooler and can take rain, look at Bilboa or Gijon and other northern cities. I am in a smaller town that doesn't have too many expats.

The temperature in the winter is mild, though damp. It can be windy, especially as the seasons change with storms from Norway shooting down cold, damp air. Again, check out WeatherSpark for recent weather: https://weatherspark.com/compare/y/39040~42614/Comparison-of-the-Average-Weather-in-Bilbao-and-Valencia

You'll notice that November is the rainiest month for Northern Spain. And until May we'll get more than 10 days a month. But it rarely rains all day and usually is not heavy rain and winds. I came from San Diego and have enjoyed the weather here. Since I'm retired, I don't have to go out when I don't want to.

@BeachBaby

Thanks for your help.

@BeachBaby

Welcome to the expat.com forum and good luck with your property search!

Personally, I like both Spain and Portugal, I'd be happy in either. And they both have good residence options for retirees/those with passive income (NLV and D7). There are plenty of nice neighbourhoods in multiple towns/cities of both countries. I recommend Idealista for some property research so you can see what's available for your budget.

I agree that the heat can be an issue in many European locations now, especially on the coast. Our place is in Elche, just outside Alicante, on the Costa Blanca. We were there this week, and it was 27 degrees and sunny, and plenty of tourists still sunbathing. Absolutely delightful, actually. :-) But summer is an oven, I avoid it.

We have a holiday studio in Bansko, Bulgaria's top mountain and ski resort. It's a very charming spot, and we like it a lot. It's a few degrees cooler in summer, but that's still pretty hot.

If you find a nice home, the weather's manageable. You need a little heating for a couple of months of winter... and a LOT of cooling for 3 months in summer. Our place is an older Spanish block, so there's no insulation. This means big electric bills for the heating and cooling. I recommend a more modern building with good insulation as it keeps your electricity bills under control. In the summer, I get up very early (5am ish) and do my dog-walking, exercising, sea swimming activities before it gets too hot, and before the sun's too strong.

Thanks for the welcome and your great info