Hello Travel Bugs!
We are Dianne and Guillermo, we retired from the U.S. early in 2018 to pursue the dream of financial independence.
We travel all over the world in search of our little paradise to call our forever home.
In this video we visit Málaga, considered one of the best cities to live in Spain and sought after by many expats.
As one of Europe’s safest cities, Málaga offers 300 days of sunshine, beautiful Mediterranean beaches, amazing cuisine and accommodates almost every lifestyle.
Explore this historic city with us, cost of living, rent/buy prices, medical care, safety, neighborhoods, attractions and much more.
Could Málaga be our paradise to call home? Let´s find out.
Chapter List:
00:00 Start Intro
01:34 Our Paradise Home Requirement Checklist
03:39 Airport Distance
04:21 Walkability
06:56 Public Transport
08:00 Things To Do
23:44 Average Weather
24:32 Distance to Beach
26:01 Cost of Living
28:02 Medical Care
29:31 Safety/Security
30:45 Real Estate Prices (Rent/Purchase)
34:58 Final Thoughts
Our Forever Home Requirement Checklist:
□ Distance to International Airport: Less than 45 minute by car, train, subway or bus
□ Public Transportation: Reliable metro and bus systems, trains, rideshare services and bike/scooter friendly
□ Walkability: Markets/restaurants/shops within a 15 minute walk, parks and outdoor recreation within a 30 minute drive
□ Things to Do: International restaurants, parks/outdoor activities, live music and art scene. Beaches, nearby city attractions and dog friendly activities
□ Average Weather: Ideally between 60F – 80 degrees year round. 300 days or more of sun, exposure to no or few natural disasters
□ Access to beaches: Walking distance preferred or 3-hour drive max. Wide, quiet beaches with plenty of water sports
□ Cost of living: Low cost utilities, fresh foods, energy efficient alternatives
□ Good medical care: Major hospital within 10 miles, high quality care, low health insurance premiums and prompt emergency services
□ Safety and Security: Low crime rates, able to walk around safely at night and active police presence
□ Price/Style of Homes: Up to 0,000usd purchase price or ,800 a month for rent -2 Bedroom/2 Bath minimum, yard space, high speed internet, approximately 200sq meters finished space. Detached home preferred, views, pool access and a gated community is a plus.
Car Rental Online Broker: https://www.discovercars.com/
Málaga Airport (AGP): https://www.aena.es/en/malaga-costa-del-sol.html
Average Weaher in Málaga:
12ºC (53ºF) Winter
30ºC (86ºF) Summer
December to February water is too cold to swim.
Daylight Hours:
15 hr/summer
10 hr/winter
Rainfall days: 44 days
Dog Beaches in Málaga:
Castillo Sohail beach in Fuengirola.
Canine beach of Torre del Mar
Canine beach of Torrox
Best Guide for Things to Do for the Southern Region of Andalucía and the Costa del Sol:
https://www.andalucia.org/
Cost of Living Data and City Comparison:
https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Malaga
Useful Málaga Expat Facebook Groups:
Expats in Málaga City
Expats in Málaga
International People in Málaga
Málaga neighborhoods that we find interesting:
La Merced: 7min drive to city center
Rent: 2-3 Bed/2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 0 – ,985
Buy: 2-3 Bed/ 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 8k – 2k
El Perchel: 20min walk to city center
Rent: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 5 – ,600
Buy: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 0k – 0k
La Malagueta: 11min walk to city center
Rent: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from ,450 – ,750
Buy: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 0,000 – .5mil
Old town: 20min drive to airport
Rent: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from ,350 – ,000
Buy: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 5,000 – .5mil
Huelin: 8min drive to city center
Buy: Rent: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from ,075 – ,100
Buy: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 5,000 – 5,000
El Palo and Pedregalejo: 10 to 15 min drive to el centro respectively.
Rent: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 5 – ,900
Buy: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 0,000 – .4mil
Rincon de la Victoria: 7.5 miles east of Malaga
Rent: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 5 – ,150
Buy: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 0,000 – 0,000
Marbella: It’s a 45min drive to the airport
Rent: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from ,075 – 43,000
Buy: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 7,000 – mil
Fuengirola: 25mins from the Airport.
Rent: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 0 – ,050
Buy: 2-3 Bed, 2+ Bath Apt/House 100+ m2 from 7,000 – mil
Neighborhoods least safe for expats:
La Palma
Cruz Verde Street
Trinidad
Real Estate Listings:
www. idealista.com
www.thinkspain.com
www.spotahome.com
Soundtracks:
https://www.epidemicsound.com/
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Video Rating: / 5
Great video!!! The clean streets comments made me laugh though. My neighborhood, just around the corner from Plaza Merced and Picasso's house is not clean at all 🤣. It seriously needs a good hosing down.
The tourist areas are very clean, however.
One thing I would mention about the public health care as a non EU retiree is that after you are registered ( on the padron) living here for a year you can apply for Convenio Especial, in which you pay a monthly fee for public healthcare. (60 euros for under 65 years old and goes up to 157 at age 65) It does not include medicines and a few other things. If you are working, then you get public health included with your job.
Hey there! I subscribed to your channel. I am currently living in Fairfax County, VA and going to Lisbon next month to check if it's good retirement place for me. I'm just 40 but started to look for countries where to retire. Wish me luck hahaha
Have you tried Stockholm? It would be great to hear your thoughts.
Love this video! We have a place close by, Fuengirola. Our plan was to move directly from, yes, Virginia, we lived in East Beach, Norfolk, to Spain. Instead we moved back to Norway and just waiting for our second home, in Fuengirola, to be done.
great and thorough video , guys. Thank you very much!
Great Video!! I am bilingual (English, Spanish) and would like to visit Málaga and nearby beach towns soon before retirement. A Spanish or English speaking area that is warm, safe, inexpensive and clean is important to me. Thanks for sharing
Yes I'm heading to Malaga in November already booked my tour. Can't wait to walk el Camino del Rey
FERIA MALAGA: CENTRO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MT2fMoOwyVY
FERIA MALAGA: EL REAL
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcgyK6iNyNk&t=1161s
FERIA MALAGA: FUEGOS Y DRONES
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pls45FoaWCg
Lovely couple enjoy your travel
A big thanks. Your are a lovely couple who motivated be to move to Malaga
I’ll be traveling to Malaga in October with friends who’s travel purpose is to relocate to Malaga. For all the research I’ve been doing, your video is by far the best I’ve ever come across! So good, I decided to subscribe!
Question: What was the criteria used to determined the three “least safe for expats” neighborhoods?
Excellent video! We spent 4 days there and were enchanted. We drove to frigliana and a few other little towns driving towards Valencia. I hope you try the Balearic islands – Menorca, Mallorca and Ibiza! We loved them all for different reasons. We liked Menorca because it was small and quiet and the beaches are insanely beautiful. Mallorca is the most beautiful and diverse of the islands, but bigger and more touristy. And Ibiza is where we left our heart. We thought it was going to be all young clubbing people (we are in our mid 50’s) but we were off season so none of that was going on and it really is a nice green island with great beaches. Ibiza just felt right. Also, We are also plant based and we don’t particularly want to live somewhere where bullfighting is still around and popular. Understand it’s cultural but it makes us too sad.
First time on your vlog loved it for the content , details, and history. Subscribed! Was a pleasant surprise to hear you guys are from Fairfax Va. Me not too far from you in Ashburn, work in Herndon, Fairfax county!!! Visited Spain in 2020 covering Barcelona, Valencia, Alicante and as far south as Murcia and stayed at a fine Golf Resort called Roda Golf Resorts. our goal was to visit Malaga but time was not on our side. Spain was great, but Portugal seems to be even more attractive from residency, cost of living, Tax rules etc. Portugal is one place i am seriously looking at and plan on visiting later this year. Since we started travelling to Europe we fell in love and every country and city has something new and a new vibe, history and experience. will be binge watching your channel next few days to see the places through your eyes and Vlog. Thanks for the great job you guys do and Good Luck! By the way the scary walk thru the canyon was awesome and definitely want to do it. There is one similar to that in Switzerland too dont recall the name. Adios Amigos from Hot Va. Today was 92F here
Malaga seems amazing. Thanks for sharing your experience in Spain.
We really enjoyed the video, to two. Lots of great information. Helping us, expand our search. 👍🏽
Great content and spectacular shots of beautiful views! Thanks for sharing your journey.
Travel channel who!?
Really enjoyed this video. Thank you for all the useful information presented in such an entertaining way!
So from your heart, Valencia or Malaga? Which one is more scenic, better beaches, better place to live?
Fantastic & informative video!
How are you doing with the heatwave in Lisbon? I read that it was over 110 F. I think the heat is here to stay. Perhaps look a little further north for your forever home.