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Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 9:40am
RichT wrote on Thu May 13, 2021 1:00pm:
We're driving over with all our wordly goods (one way van hire)! We leave next Wednesday and plan to arrive Friday evening.
Very excited! I believe we have all the paperwork in order. I'll update when we arrive with our experiences and any tips from the journey.
Hi Rich
Did you manage to get there ok ? Looking forward to hearing about the journey !!
Hope all is well and you are loving life !!
Ang
Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 10:06am
Vic L wrote on Thu May 13, 2021 3:36pm:
Forget the motor home. Buy a tank to live in.! Covered for everything then
Hi Ang
My update is that after 5 weeks and 2 visits, the GP eventually verified the signature and all Docs came back from MK but when I asked for another appointment at the Consulate, the first they could offer was 18th June and that was too close to my 180 day limit on 30th. Also I noticed that the Health letter was datecd 13th March so it was past the 90 day limit. So - start all over again and try in October. I am flying out on 2nd June to check on the House and sort my Bank, WiFi, solicitors etc. and maybe at least get the Padron done. Such fun. How are things going with you?
Vic
Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 10:27am
Vic L wrote on Mon May 31, 2021 10:06am:
Hi Ang
My update is that after 5 weeks and 2 visits, the GP eventually verified the signature and all Docs came back from MK but when I asked for another appointment at the Consulate, the first they could offer was 18th June and that was too close to my 180 day limit on 30th. Also I noticed that the Hea...
Read more...
...lth letter was datecd 13th March so it was past the 90 day limit. So - start all over again and try in October. I am flying out on 2nd June to check on the House and sort my Bank, WiFi, solicitors etc. and maybe at least get the Padron done. Such fun. How are things going with you?
Vic
Hi Vic
My doctors are still holding us up on the medical certificate saying its a private issue and they have not been doing any private work since March 2020, they say it is not an urgent issue, I have replied and they said they will look into it but here I am still waiting after 2 weeks for their reply. I can't even go into the surgery as it i appt only and they say I don't need an appointment.
We need to move out from my daughters as she is expecting and we are in what would be the nursery ! So finding somewhere to live for a short period of time with 2 dogs is proving impossible, she is due any time now and what should have been 1 month maximum has turned into 4 we feel like such a burden !!
The dogs are well behaved and we try to keep out of the way but it is the space we are taking up ! I am losing the will a bit now as it feels like one step forward 2 steps back.
Also because we sold the house this year we may end up paying capital gains tax on it in Spain which can equate to thousands almost enough to buy another property out there.
Its all very frustrating.
We are booked for the ferry again in June but may have to move the date forward again.
One day !!!!
Best wishes
Ang
LittleGran wrote on Mon May 31, 2021 9:40am:
Hi Rich
Did you manage to get there ok ? Looking forward to hearing about the journey !!
Read more...
Hope all is well and you are loving life !!
Ang
Hi
Yes, we're here - and, as promised, please see below for an account of our journey. It goes on a bit, but hopefully would be useful for anyone planning similarly. I've broken it up for ease of reading (and my typing!).
Part 1:
One Way Van Hire - is almost impossible to find! There are a few companies that we found on the internet, but when I visited their sites they are actually removal companies that spend several pages telling you why you shouldn't try a one way van hire and then want to provide quotations for removal services. Anyway, we eventually found www.Way2gohire.com and then also found that they had been recommended on another forum, so we used them. The cost was approx. €1,000 inc. IVA for a 3.5 tonne Luton van - which was left-hand drive and Spanish-registered.
The catch for us, as we were living in Glasgow, is that they are based in Swanley, Kent (and Alicante) and it would have been an additional £150 + cost of fuel (say, £80) + cost of train fare from Glasgow to Swanley (approx. £120) for them to deliver the van to Glasgow, so our journey begins...
We stayed in a hotel at Edinburgh airport (an Ibis for £28 for the night!) as that meant we could have an extra hour's sleep prior to a 6.05am flight from Edinburgh to London Stansted. The flight was fine and, in fact, landed 30 mins early. My friend who lives in Essex picked us up from the airport and drove us to Swanley to collect the van. On arrival, the van was there, but no-one from the company. It turns out the company hadn't told the guy about our booking, but he was ale to get there in 20 ins, so no major issue. So Monday was then a 500 mile drive back to Glasgow (via Edinburgh to collect my partner's company vehicle from Edinburgh airport).
Tuesday we spent loading the van. We lived in a large 4-bed house, however, as we already had some furniture in our villa in Spain, we had sold quite a bit of furniture. However it still took all day and a lot of luck & skill to load everything into the van (which was absolutely packed to the roof). The benefit was that nothing could fall or slide around, as it was so full. A big downside was that it was torrential rain (and even hail) all day, but I'd fortunately bought a 'pop up' gazebo, so we could shelter our belongings as we moved them from the storage unit to the van.
Break for now (as I've been told to get off the laptop and I don't know if I can save posts and add to them later...
RichT wrote on Mon May 31, 2021 7:48pm:
Hi
Yes, we're here - and, as promised, please see below for an account of our journey. It goes on a bit, but hopefully would be useful for anyone planning similarly. I've broken it up for ease of reading (and my typing!).
Read more...
Part 1:
One Way Van Hire - is almost impossible to find! There are a few companies that we found on the internet, but when I visited their sites they are actually removal companies that spend several pages telling you why you shouldn't try a one way van hire and then want to provide quotations for removal services. Anyway, we eventually found www.Way2gohire.com and then also found that they had been recommended on another forum, so we used them. The cost was approx. €1,000 inc. IVA for a 3.5 tonne Luton van - which was left-hand drive and Spanish-registered.
The catch for us, as we were living in Glasgow, is that they are based in Swanley, Kent (and Alicante) and it would have been an additional £150 + cost of fuel (say, £80) + cost of train fare from Glasgow to Swanley (approx. £120) for them to deliver the van to Glasgow, so our journey begins...
We stayed in a hotel at Edinburgh airport (an Ibis for £28 for the night!) as that meant we could have an extra hour's sleep prior to a 6.05am flight from Edinburgh to London Stansted. The flight was fine and, in fact, landed 30 mins early. My friend who lives in Essex picked us up from the airport and drove us to Swanley to collect the van. On arrival, the van was there, but no-one from the company. It turns out the company hadn't told the guy about our booking, but he was ale to get there in 20 ins, so no major issue. So Monday was then a 500 mile drive back to Glasgow (via Edinburgh to collect my partner's company vehicle from Edinburgh airport).
Tuesday we spent loading the van. We lived in a large 4-bed house, however, as we already had some furniture in our villa in Spain, we had sold quite a bit of furniture. However it still took all day and a lot of luck & skill to load everything into the van (which was absolutely packed to the roof). The benefit was that nothing could fall or slide around, as it was so full. A big downside was that it was torrential rain (and even hail) all day, but I'd fortunately bought a 'pop up' gazebo, so we could shelter our belongings as we moved them from the storage unit to the van.
Break for now (as I've been told to get off the laptop and I don't know if I can save posts and add to them later...
Part 2:
We had also had to carefully plan when to get our PCR tests - so we had enough time to get the results before entering France, but also that they would still be valid (i.e. within 72 hours) for when we entered Spain. We had the tests at about 8.30am on the Tuesday morning (at Glasgow airport - drive-in centre - cost £80 each); and we received the results that evening.
Wednesday was Glasgow to Folkestone - uneventful 500 mile drive in about 10 hours. The only issue was that we realised that the fully-laden van was only getting about 22 mpg, whereas I had budgeted for 25 mpg. Also, the tank only held 62 litres, which was very small for this length of journey.
Our Eurotunnel ticket (£160) was booked for 8.20pm, but I had received an email about a week before saying that we had been moved back to the 9.20pm train. However, when we arrived at 7pm, I asked if we could catch an earlier train and the lady very kindly said that she would put us on the 7.20pm train - so that saved us 2 hours of waiting. I'd created 3 packs of documents - one each in English, French & Spanish for use at each border. At that date we still needed a form with a reason to leave the UK, which I had with us, but we weren't asked for this. The Eurotunnel lady asked to see our summary form (that Eurotunnel provide to be downloaded - basically a checklist of what we needed). The UK border just checked our passports and we were through. Next came the French border control and the guy checked our passports, our PCR results and than asked why were were travelling to France. We said we were transiting on our way to live in Spain and he joked "why would you want to live in Spain?" and then waved us through - so although I'd prepared the 'attestation' with our reason for entering France and the customs import tax exemption form and a list of the van contents in French, he did not ask for any of these.
Smooth journey on the Eurotunnel and then we were staying the night in an Ibis Hotel about 2 mins from the French side of the tunnel. I had specifically chosen this hotel as it offered secure parking (as all our worldly possessions were in the van) - however, on arrival, we found that there were approx. 40 minibuses full of French riot police (CRS) also staying at the hotel - I assume on an exercise somewhere, so we were comfortable that the hotel and car park was safe!
We were up early and on the road by 7am on Thursday for the longest drive - 700 miles from Calais to Narbonne. We went Calais>Rouen>Tours>LeMans>Clermont Ferand>Narbonne, to avoid traffic around Paris. The journey was fine and we took a slight detour to see and drive over the world's highest road bridge - the Millau Viaduct - which was featured on Top Gear and was designed by the British architect, Lord Rogers. Fuel consumption was down to 20 mpg and on some long hills we were down to 30-50 mph and being passed by HGVs, due to the weight of the van! We arrived in Narbonne at 9pm, so a 14 hour drive, and just as curfew came into effect, so the streets were deserted. Tolls had cost us nearly €200 - I had budgeted for €100, but had forgotten that they are higher for a large van than a car.
Friday we were up early again, as we knew we had to be at the border before 8.30am to ensure our PCR tests were still valid. However, there were no border controls, so we drove straight through to Spain. I had prepared our visas (obviously), PCR tests, copy of house deeds and a homemade import duty exemption form (basically the French form translated into Spanish), but none were needed. The rest of the journey - a total of 600 miles from Narbonne to our villa near Lorca, Murcia, was fine, following the coast along to Barcelona, then Valencia, Benidorm, Alicante, etc. We arrived at about 5pm, so 10 hours driving.
We unloaded the van on Saturday and returned it to Javea (via Alicante airport to collect a hire car for our first month here), which was a 5 hour return journey.
The driving was tiring, but not too bad. We didn't get lost (!). The total cost of van hire, fuel, tolls, Eurotunnel, hotels, PCR tests was £2,100 - which was a big saving versus the £4,500 average removal company costs we had been quoted (which would have been higher including flights and PCR tests for ourselves). We saw some lovely scenery, especially the second half of France and the Spain section.
And now we're here! We have registered on the padron and have our appointment to have our fingerprints taken on Thursday this week and then we will subsequently be issued with our TIE or equivalent. This week has been spend unpacking and also, trying to get used to the fact that we have a) retired and b) live in Spain! I think it will take a while!
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Posted: Tue Jun 1, 2021 7:01pm
RichT wrote on Tue Jun 1, 2021 6:16pm:
Part 2:
We had also had to carefully plan when to get our PCR tests - so we had enough time to get the results before entering France, but also that they would still be valid (i.e. within 72 hours) for when we entered Spain. We had the tests at about 8.30am on the Tuesday morning (at Glasgow airport - dr...
Read more...
...ive-in centre - cost £80 each); and we received the results that evening.
Wednesday was Glasgow to Folkestone - uneventful 500 mile drive in about 10 hours. The only issue was that we realised that the fully-laden van was only getting about 22 mpg, whereas I had budgeted for 25 mpg. Also, the tank only held 62 litres, which was very small for this length of journey.
Our Eurotunnel ticket (£160) was booked for 8.20pm, but I had received an email about a week before saying that we had been moved back to the 9.20pm train. However, when we arrived at 7pm, I asked if we could catch an earlier train and the lady very kindly said that she would put us on the 7.20pm train - so that saved us 2 hours of waiting. I'd created 3 packs of documents - one each in English, French & Spanish for use at each border. At that date we still needed a form with a reason to leave the UK, which I had with us, but we weren't asked for this. The Eurotunnel lady asked to see our summary form (that Eurotunnel provide to be downloaded - basically a checklist of what we needed). The UK border just checked our passports and we were through. Next came the French border control and the guy checked our passports, our PCR results and than asked why were were travelling to France. We said we were transiting on our way to live in Spain and he joked "why would you want to live in Spain?" and then waved us through - so although I'd prepared the 'attestation' with our reason for entering France and the customs import tax exemption form and a list of the van contents in French, he did not ask for any of these.
Smooth journey on the Eurotunnel and then we were staying the night in an Ibis Hotel about 2 mins from the French side of the tunnel. I had specifically chosen this hotel as it offered secure parking (as all our worldly possessions were in the van) - however, on arrival, we found that there were approx. 40 minibuses full of French riot police (CRS) also staying at the hotel - I assume on an exercise somewhere, so we were comfortable that the hotel and car park was safe!
We were up early and on the road by 7am on Thursday for the longest drive - 700 miles from Calais to Narbonne. We went Calais>Rouen>Tours>LeMans>Clermont Ferand>Narbonne, to avoid traffic around Paris. The journey was fine and we took a slight detour to see and drive over the world's highest road bridge - the Millau Viaduct - which was featured on Top Gear and was designed by the British architect, Lord Rogers. Fuel consumption was down to 20 mpg and on some long hills we were down to 30-50 mph and being passed by HGVs, due to the weight of the van! We arrived in Narbonne at 9pm, so a 14 hour drive, and just as curfew came into effect, so the streets were deserted. Tolls had cost us nearly €200 - I had budgeted for €100, but had forgotten that they are higher for a large van than a car.
Friday we were up early again, as we knew we had to be at the border before 8.30am to ensure our PCR tests were still valid. However, there were no border controls, so we drove straight through to Spain. I had prepared our visas (obviously), PCR tests, copy of house deeds and a homemade import duty exemption form (basically the French form translated into Spanish), but none were needed. The rest of the journey - a total of 600 miles from Narbonne to our villa near Lorca, Murcia, was fine, following the coast along to Barcelona, then Valencia, Benidorm, Alicante, etc. We arrived at about 5pm, so 10 hours driving.
We unloaded the van on Saturday and returned it to Javea (via Alicante airport to collect a hire car for our first month here), which was a 5 hour return journey.
The driving was tiring, but not too bad. We didn't get lost (!). The total cost of van hire, fuel, tolls, Eurotunnel, hotels, PCR tests was £2,100 - which was a big saving versus the £4,500 average removal company costs we had been quoted (which would have been higher including flights and PCR tests for ourselves). We saw some lovely scenery, especially the second half of France and the Spain section.
And now we're here! We have registered on the padron and have our appointment to have our fingerprints taken on Thursday this week and then we will subsequently be issued with our TIE or equivalent. This week has been spend unpacking and also, trying to get used to the fact that we have a) retired and b) live in Spain! I think it will take a while!
Wow Congratulations !!!
What a journey ! But you made it !
Thank you so much for sharing the journey with us and taking the time to update.
Now you can relax and Enjoy
All the best
Ang x
Posted: Tue Jun 1, 2021 7:10pm
Very helpful member
RichT wrote on Tue Jun 1, 2021 6:16pm:
Part 2:
We had also had to carefully plan when to get our PCR tests - so we had enough time to get the results before entering France, but also that they would still be valid (i.e. within 72 hours) for when we entered Spain. We had the tests at about 8.30am on the Tuesday morning (at Glasgow airport - dr...
Read more...
...ive-in centre - cost £80 each); and we received the results that evening.
Wednesday was Glasgow to Folkestone - uneventful 500 mile drive in about 10 hours. The only issue was that we realised that the fully-laden van was only getting about 22 mpg, whereas I had budgeted for 25 mpg. Also, the tank only held 62 litres, which was very small for this length of journey.
Our Eurotunnel ticket (£160) was booked for 8.20pm, but I had received an email about a week before saying that we had been moved back to the 9.20pm train. However, when we arrived at 7pm, I asked if we could catch an earlier train and the lady very kindly said that she would put us on the 7.20pm train - so that saved us 2 hours of waiting. I'd created 3 packs of documents - one each in English, French & Spanish for use at each border. At that date we still needed a form with a reason to leave the UK, which I had with us, but we weren't asked for this. The Eurotunnel lady asked to see our summary form (that Eurotunnel provide to be downloaded - basically a checklist of what we needed). The UK border just checked our passports and we were through. Next came the French border control and the guy checked our passports, our PCR results and than asked why were were travelling to France. We said we were transiting on our way to live in Spain and he joked "why would you want to live in Spain?" and then waved us through - so although I'd prepared the 'attestation' with our reason for entering France and the customs import tax exemption form and a list of the van contents in French, he did not ask for any of these.
Smooth journey on the Eurotunnel and then we were staying the night in an Ibis Hotel about 2 mins from the French side of the tunnel. I had specifically chosen this hotel as it offered secure parking (as all our worldly possessions were in the van) - however, on arrival, we found that there were approx. 40 minibuses full of French riot police (CRS) also staying at the hotel - I assume on an exercise somewhere, so we were comfortable that the hotel and car park was safe!
We were up early and on the road by 7am on Thursday for the longest drive - 700 miles from Calais to Narbonne. We went Calais>Rouen>Tours>LeMans>Clermont Ferand>Narbonne, to avoid traffic around Paris. The journey was fine and we took a slight detour to see and drive over the world's highest road bridge - the Millau Viaduct - which was featured on Top Gear and was designed by the British architect, Lord Rogers. Fuel consumption was down to 20 mpg and on some long hills we were down to 30-50 mph and being passed by HGVs, due to the weight of the van! We arrived in Narbonne at 9pm, so a 14 hour drive, and just as curfew came into effect, so the streets were deserted. Tolls had cost us nearly €200 - I had budgeted for €100, but had forgotten that they are higher for a large van than a car.
Friday we were up early again, as we knew we had to be at the border before 8.30am to ensure our PCR tests were still valid. However, there were no border controls, so we drove straight through to Spain. I had prepared our visas (obviously), PCR tests, copy of house deeds and a homemade import duty exemption form (basically the French form translated into Spanish), but none were needed. The rest of the journey - a total of 600 miles from Narbonne to our villa near Lorca, Murcia, was fine, following the coast along to Barcelona, then Valencia, Benidorm, Alicante, etc. We arrived at about 5pm, so 10 hours driving.
We unloaded the van on Saturday and returned it to Javea (via Alicante airport to collect a hire car for our first month here), which was a 5 hour return journey.
The driving was tiring, but not too bad. We didn't get lost (!). The total cost of van hire, fuel, tolls, Eurotunnel, hotels, PCR tests was £2,100 - which was a big saving versus the £4,500 average removal company costs we had been quoted (which would have been higher including flights and PCR tests for ourselves). We saw some lovely scenery, especially the second half of France and the Spain section.
And now we're here! We have registered on the padron and have our appointment to have our fingerprints taken on Thursday this week and then we will subsequently be issued with our TIE or equivalent. This week has been spend unpacking and also, trying to get used to the fact that we have a) retired and b) live in Spain! I think it will take a while!
Wow Rich, that's a really great breakdown of your journey to your new home! Now you can relax and start to enjoy your "new life in the sun", even though today's been cloudy and rainy, with thunderstorms and hailstones the size of marbles.
Posted: Wed Jun 2, 2021 10:24am
Hi Rich,
Thanks for taking the time for the update and sharing your whole experience.
You give a lot of hope and encouragement to likeminded people, like me, who want to relocate.
Congratulations!
Posted: Mon Aug 9, 2021 10:58am
Hi there.
I hope this is a simple ( and probably stupid) question.
We’re just embarking on the NLV process (we’re UK citizens) and will be submitting our application through the Manchester consulate. Do you need proof of a Spanish address e.g a long term rental agreement when submitting the EX01 form?
Cheers TracyS
TracyS wrote on Mon Aug 9, 2021 10:58am:
Hi there.
I hope this is a simple ( and probably stupid) question.
Read more...
We’re just embarking on the NLV process (we’re UK citizens) and will be submitting our application through the Manchester consulate. Do you need proof of a Spanish address e.g a long term rental agreement when submitting the EX01 form?
Cheers TracyS
Quite simply - Yes.
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