Spain now more expensive to live than the UK?

[peteroldracer]

Taking things to the limit, you should, perhaps, factor in burial/cremation costs, as statistically you are nearly twice as likely to be killed in a road traffic crash in Spain as you would be in the UK! (UK; 5 deaths/100k population, Spain 8.4/100k).

[katy]

I find that I don't get those few second heart stopping moments as much in the UK. Traffic is heavy on M25/3/4 but it is mainly sensible drivers. Here I only have to take a bend on a Lane and someone is coming towards me (usually on the movil!) on my side of the road. Any comparison costs on funerals here and the UK

[redsoxbrit]

Any comparison costs on funerals here and the UK

Could be the deciding factor

[spanish_lad]

the cremation of the forums members mother cost approximatly 3000€. that was the cremation and transport from the hospital to the crematorium... no service, no flowers, no friends...just her husband, the two daughters and i attended, in my own car.


katy the fuel in myramar (petrol station by iceland) is 96.9c for sin plomo 95. very cheap, i filled up 2 weeks ago and haven´t put any more in yet!

[katy]

Had a decent lunch today in a chiringuito. Ensalladilla rusa to share, 1 lasagne and one fish and patatas with fresh veg. 1 bottle of house rioja, 26 euros. Not cheap as a menú but good considering the setting and slightly more substantial.

[Lavanda]

It's 8 euros to get in the Prado. The National Gallery is free. (It mounts up for us Art Lovers.)

[Wicksey]

Having just come back from a week in the UK I think the most expensive thing there (as a visitor), compared to here, is eating out. (I haven't lived there for years so really don't know much about the costs of anything else, except I expect the council tax is generally a lot more than IBI here.)
We had a pint and a half of real ale in a pub and it was 4.40 GPB, when we have bought bottles of the same thing here that has worked out to be 5€ (4GBP) for a litre (1.75 pints). Sandwiches at pubs were 4.25 GPB just for one tuna mayo (which we didn't buy!).

We still have a very good menu del dia here for 9€ for 3 courses including a pitcher of very drinkable wine. We have noticed that some places here are now charging much more for the drinks. We were quite taken aback to be charged 2.50€ for a glass of red house wine recently at a menu del dia restaurant that we have been to many times before. It was supposed to be a cheap lunch out at 8€ pp but the wine bumped it up quite a bit. Even Las Chinas at Frigiliana still does one of its menus for under 9€ (it did the other week when we were there anyway!) which is always excellent quality.

[Julie]

In the Greater Manchester area of the UK, there are lots of cheap meals, the bars are doing meals from 2.50 up. we went for a excellent buffet carvery a few weeks ago in Ramsbottom, coudn't believe it was only 3.50 each, we didn't know before we went in, so nice surprise, the larger was 2.20 a pint, that wasn't included.

The pubs that do meals, appear to be fallen overthem selves to provide cheap meals in that area, but I'm not complaining, Manchester city, like most cities is more like tenner for pie & chip, burger, meals, but the menu del dia in the chineses in china town are very cheap, excellent value for money.

[Mowser]

Anybody else noticed, that whilst food and drink have gone up in Britain too, that it seems to cost more to live here day to day than in the UK?

olive

No.

[Mowser]

If it is and you're moaning about it - go back to the UK.

Menu del dia in Chinese restaurants is €5.95

The cheapest English breakfast I've seen (2 eggs, sausages, bacon, beans, toast, coffee, orange juice) is €3.80 in café bar Jamaica in Nerja.

I can get coffee and a toasted roll for breakfast for €1.50

It's the lousy exchange rate that makes things more expensive than a few years ago.

[rymanskid]

recently I had a week in Austria apart from have a coffee or beer in a cafe being dearer most items in the local supermarkets were cheeper or the same as here ,,fuel was about the same per litre , cigs aswell and Austria has the euro aswell.in fact cost of living was probably cheeper and better quality,

[katy]

The Hague and Paris are less expensive than Spain too. About five years ago prices used to be way higher in Holland than Spain. It is so easy to do a direct comparison when both countries are in Europe. I agree on quality too.

Still there is always menú del día down at the transport caff in the industrial estate Much better than all those transport caffs in the UK

[Lavanda]

In both Austria and The Netherlands the rise of the political far right is a continuing trend. Of course, this thread is about the monetary cost of living. Or is it? Define expensive. If it is simply money then there will always be places more or less expensive that the one in which we currently live.

[tjtops]

Still there is always menú del día down at the transport caff in the industrial estate Much better than all those transport caffs in the UK

Don't you find sitting down a tad uncomfortable, Katy.....???

[costagirl]

Guys,

try living in Dublin and then you will know all about expensive !!!

I have just bought a toy for my 2 year old nephew. it cost 39.99 euro here and the EXACT same toy in argos in dublin costs 69.99 euro.

[spanish_lad]

i hear going out for the evening can be expensive in dublin too ?

[spanish_lad]

if the exchange rate goes down alot more, then people coming here with uk money will think everythings expensive ..

[Lavanda]

Yes. The only consolation is that when the pound and euro reach parity the U.K. will join the euro and paying for money transfers and worrying about exchange rates will be the things of the past.

[El Cid]

Yes. The only consolation is that when the pound and euro reach parity the U.K. will join the euro and paying for money transfers and worrying about exchange rates will be the things of the past.

I wish!

The truth is that the UK will never join the Eurozone whatever the exchange rate is. The majority is strictly against monetary union on the basis of not wanting UK fiscal policy to be controlled by the ECB.

Of course some might argue that they would not now be so deep in the sh*t if they had joined ages ago!

Sid

[Devils Advocate]

Sticking purely to the facts the Eurozone countries have gone into "official recession" before the UK so being in the sh*t as you put it is not the sole property of the UK.

DA