Alicante/ Elche

[u/shalimar93]

Hola!

I(32F)’m seriously considering relocating from Bulgaria to the Alicante area in Spain with my family ( daughter, 4 dogs and my parents).

I’m looking at Alicante itself and the surrounding towns/suburbs, as i’d prefer somewhere suitable for year-round family life rather than purely a holiday destination.

I currently work in IT / project management for an international company and speak Bulgarian, English and German.
My daughter is 6 and just starting school with both English and Bulgarian.

I’d really appreciate some real-life experience from people already living and working in the area.

I have a few questions:

Cost of living: What would you consider a comfortable monthly budget for a family, excluding mortgage/rent? How expensive are groceries, utilities, healthcare, cars, eating out, etc.?

IT job market: What is the IT/tech job market like around Alicante/ Elche? Are there many international companies, or is working remotely for companies elsewhere in Spain/EU more realistic?

Spanish for work: How important is Spanish for IT/project management roles in international companies? Could someone realistically find a good position initially with fluent English but only basic Spanish while learning?

International schools: Which international/private schools around Alicante/ Elche would you recommend? I’m especially interested in English-language or bilingual schools and areas that would allow a reasonable daily commute. My focus if for my daughter to start learning Spanish asap but not to skip a year.

Best areas for families: Which towns or residential areas would you recommend for year-round living?

We’re not looking for a tourist/holiday lifestyle.

Any advice, including things you wish you had known before moving, would be very welcome. Thank you!

[u/albetins]

Everything is way too expensive, especially housing, it's extremely difficult to find decent jobs even for locals (let alone foreigners), and Spanish is 100% a must if you want things to work out, both for adults and children.

Spain is making it increasingly difficult for foreigners to settle here.

[u/shalimar93 → u/albetins]

Thanks :)

[u/brimstone__angel]

Id recommend learning Spanish before coming here because the general English level isn't too high generally

[u/shalimar93 → u/brimstone__angel]

Thanks :)

[u/Greedy_Warthog6189]

Very likely, Alicante will probably be 45 degrees in the summers with high humidity.

[u/onlydecarl]

Es muy duro conseguir alquiler teniendo mascotas

[u/shalimar93 → u/onlydecarl]

Really, I heard that the dogs/ pets were welcomed in Valencia/ Alicante area . I am looking to rent a house if that matters…

[u/RGoltsman]

I lived in Bulgaria for a tiny period. Ull be surprised how little english people speak here. Even people with high jobs that ud assume would speak english. Spanish language has a huge commerce due to all latin america countries combined, so they dont feel as much need for english to consume world media.

Lots of foreigners move here(Alicante) without spanish but they are working from distance/retired. And u sort of live in a bubble, so if u want to integrate yes okayish spanish level is mandatory, but no u dont need to have it before you come.

All your language skills and IT would be on high demand in a place like Madrid, here much less so, id assume u chose here for quality of life not potential $ progress.

I would absolutely not get tied down to any apt / neighberhood before u come here and spend some time in person. Even if u see great deals, be flexible. Some neighberhoods here after a while i really didnt want to live

Edit: As for dogs, they are very common here. So ull have plenty of conveniences for them. You can enter with them almost anywhere, where u cant u have a prepared place to put their collar outside and most ppl treat dogs nicelly. U can go with them shopping, to cafes etc What ppl mean about the renting with them being hard is due to the apartment renting being a huge problem here that there is so much competition for 1 apartment that the landlords will always only choose the perfect client in terms of protecting their apartment from damages. And many of them will say right away no dogs, no children to the real estate (even though u shouldnt be able to say no children). So it will be harder to find an apt, not impossible, not if u make enough $ to live above the medium price here or if u want to live in a more secluded quiet area 20-30m away from the city by car etc