Medicine is better here, true, but then they are paying through the nose by coming here.
why are they people who went to live in Portugual coming to France
for their operations ....I wonder.
Yep Brian - Portugal offers fantastic pension income incentives for retirees. They actively encourage folks to come to their country and spend their dosh.
Actually a few are also going to Portugal which was really our original first choice having lived there already but we settled on France for mainly practical reasons. There has certainly been a movement to Spain and Portugal from this region, some to Italy as well. That includes French folk given our main social environment is French. Whilst I don't agree entirely, some of what Simon says goes. French friends have said they are sick to death of paying around 60% of all income as some kind of tax or social charges and then the rest of the bills going up fast. France is also not cheap.
Good question Tim....:-).... I live pretty close to the France / Spain border so have strong experience of both countries - so in a nutshell....
Weather (don't underestimate the impact if that's important to you), cheaper (just about everything and significantly so!), taxation (significant national and provincial advantages in Spain), food (French food boring and bland), mentality (! nuf said), customer service (another world), business environment (pro rather than anti success).....family, new experiences / adventures, bucket list....
I'll leave it there :-) Possibly not the best person to ask but I'm being honest!
Tim we are located near to Libourne and St Emilion and I am happy to help....
If I can but we closed in winter and engage in a lot of improvement jobs and
re open for Easter.I know most of the properties around here, b and bs etc
and one or 2 of the agents.You can google us if you wish Clos des Saveurs...
We are in Gensac.
Good spot with several areas with waterside properties.
Darcy Bussel has a wedding chateau venue just near by and her sister has bought another.
So those are the basics. Get in touch!
Right. Be aware the winter here can be hard. This year it is silly, we have butterflies and still a few meadow flowers, plus umpteen other out of time things but plenty of winter left. We have experienced -12°C but it has been down closer to -20° in the past. Then in the summer it has been over 40°, the last two years officially and very clearly drought. Barbara is in a more open area than this which I have been very reliably been told can beat our extremes (her place is very special, so that is not aimed at getting at her). However, as I said before, some people do well and there she hits the nail on the head about being special. There is a note of caution though. There are already quite a few special places, restaurants particularly but also hotels and other hospitality not doing well like her. They are not finding life necessarily easy even with several Michelin stars. That includes really very established places who it is usually hard to climb over to get their places, also taking note of what you were saying about Spain, unless you are French it is hard to get anybody but expats in. The French in this region are very used to foreigners but are weak in their languages and not enthusiastic about eating in their places in case the food is different. Since you do not want a small French village your range is narrow, certainly at present Bergerac as a place on the river is not exactly thriving in any sense. The area is great, do not swallow any of the old guff about Dordogneshire with cricket and cups of tea around every corner, but it is one of France's poorer departments and seems to be getting poorer at present. That has an impact on hospitality too.
Just to say that I would not be interested, personally to move from France to Spain.
Simon .
I am very interested to know why people are moving from France to Spain
Where are you Barbara I would like to wander by, by the way I am Tim.
The restaurant game is hard. With all due respect my little bistro in Jersey had a few chefs and the majority were very difficult, its a tough job.
We got Egon Ronay and Good Food then by the time the guides came out my fabulous Austrian chef had left to open his own place,but thats catering.
My best one was Salisbury students a rmy officers and CID the money flowed over the bar AND NO FOOD. We didn't need to provide it as we were mobbed withstudents andthey got wrecked in our place had a burger outside then hit the clubs
The great things about Spain are the weather the last four days it has been brilliant sunshine 21 degrees.
the prices great, supermarket and market food at low prices. Menu del dia very reasonable.
Houses are not expensive now and lots of choice.
I think I am thoroughly spoiled I remember Spain when it was Spain in the Franco era, nowrench one for that matter.
the Costas are basically the retirement home of northern Europeans,all areas on the coasts are full of tacky flats, flats and villas,if you want to live inland fine but I don't want to live in a Spanish village or a small French one for that matter.
The whole of the economy is geared towards a manic August of tourism and retirement flats etc its okay if you want to play golf which is expensive now or bridge or walking or lawn bowls its so bloody Old!! Bournemouth with sun.There are a lot of rough brits living here as well.
I want a more cosmopolitan atmosphere whether that exists outside the South Coast of France I don't know but I certainly could not handle South Coast Prices.
Its very frustrating
I suppose that we are in the same boat Simon!
I had was chef and owner of a 3AA rosette restaurant in London
for a number of years and pretty good with interiors.....so our clients say.
Yes you have a good product and you have to be able to sell it.
Taken me a few years to find the formular!
Just out of nosey interest Tim - why the move from Spain to France?
No probs if you'd rather not share.
I am special Barbara it stems from my childhood spent in hospitality places flying for 15 years having a restaurant and a pub sailing for 15 years and travelling for the rest so I have a fairly unique amount of experience plus I am good at interiors.
its the old story you may have a good product but you have to sell it.
So were will you stay and how will you go about finding your ideal place?
As I mentioned I my region has rivers near by.
There is a b and b for sale by the river.....
There really are so many places to stay which are 'adequate' clean and all dressed in the
same clothes.The proof of the pudding is in the eating. You need to be just a little special....
if not, really special.
We are serious packing up in Spain as we speak Will be in UK til end of January then we head for France
How serious are you about your move?
And when do you want to move?
Thanks Brian
We live in the Dordogne and very close to the Dordogne with the confluence of the Vézère a stone's throw away. This is absolutely the prime tourist area of the department with several UNESCO sites including Lascaux with the various villages. There are two tales to tell here. Either people do extremely well or they dismally fail. If it is sailing, then you need to be further downriver, after Bergerac before you have the year round depth. Any higher than a repeat of this year seeing ankle depth being the average in places and 'riverbed' that people had never seen dry before exposed long enough to grow luxurious grass would make your boat an ornament for the bank. It is though where you have the river depth for your sailing that there are apparently too many people in hospitality, quite a few putting their places on the market. A recent newspaper report, back in the early autumn, said there are too many gîtes with the profligate use of second homes and parts of large houses as a means of earning income. It is a very short season for gîtes so they need to have something special and bookings a year ahead to survive. My OH is selling property and has begun to advise people selling gîtes, French folk especially who tend to listen to that advice, not say that it is that. Let viewers find out and then think about it. So, if you are looking it is not certain that there are not already potentially ready gîtes and other hospitality such as chambre d'hote, b and b or guest houses on offer.
Thanks Simon lots of roads seem to lead to Homps either for barging or the guest house
Tim