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Following! We've just arrived in Cadiz Province and we're looking around for many of the same qualities!

You can think of Girona and his environment.

Girona… hmmm, that might be a possibility. Thank you!

@ABQAce

Carmel-on-the-Med with artists, museums and galleries... and a population of 150k and up... is a tough ask. I can't think of anything that fits the bill! :-)

On the other hand, Sitges is a very nice place to live, even though it does NOT meet that spec. Barcelona is wildly expensive, and Sitges is nearby and very desirable so it's expensive too.

Taking Sitges as our guide, I reckon there are lots of nice towns on/near the coast, but within easy distance of a larger city. Hopefully, many are more affordable than Sitges.

Barcelona is probably too expensive, so anything close will be pricey. But maybe there are interesting options inland around Terrasa/Sabadell/Sant Cugat.

The Costa Brava coast north of Barcelona is lovely, and I loved Catalonia. There are many fab options including Mataro, Pineda, Blanes, Lloret de Mar. With Figueres and Girona slightly inland.

South of Barcelona is the Costa Dorado, also very acceptable. :-) Tarragona is a great city, and there are some excellent options nearby (Calafat, Cambrils, etc.).

Then you get the Costa Blanca. This is our current Costa, and it's also super! There are a ton of desirable options in the region of Valencia and Alicante in that 200-odd km of coastline (with more options if you'll go inland around Murcia and Elche).

We live in UNESCO-listed Elche. What a great find! It has a lovely, historic downtown, and with 200k population it's large enough to have all amenities. But it's very close to Alicante city, Alicante-Elche Airport, and some delightful beaches. Best of all, our large apartment here cost a mere fraction of what it would cost on ritzy Playa San Juan in Alicante.

There's also potential further south on the Costa del Sol, in the region of Marbella and Malaga. But Marbella is also desirable/expensive. You could also head inland to Granada or Seville or up into the mountains.

Maybe Costa Verde (other side) is cooler and worth looking at around Bilbao and Santander.

In general, Spain is rather hot in summer. You need to start taking siestas, do your walks at dawn or dusk, and make sure you have great AC. :-)

Bit of info on all the Costas...

Gwenj- Thank you for all the suggestions! Yes Barcelona is beyond my budget but I’m ok with living in a smaller town that’s not far from a large city. My main concerns about the city I settle in is availability of services, like medical care and things like car repair garages, and easy access to a variety of stores. If those are in a nearby city that’s fine. Even with the recent floods, I’m still interested in Valencia. It seems like it may be a possibility because it has a strong LGBT community and is home to a number of arts venues. Bilbao or Vitoria-Gasteiz are on my list too. Thanks for your thoughts- if you have other suggestions please let me know.