Hiya Thinking about moving at some point in the future from the crowded south…to? Scotland/Wales are high on the list for biking but just a small thing called the weather to think about! Would really like to be somewhere far away from it all (towns/crowds) but thinking of doing holiday lettings so that to consider as well. NZ, Oz etc would be ideal but we do not have job skills etc that they are looking for, france was also an idea but we think we would struggle too much with language and general french “stuff” so are focusing on the UK. I have been looking at the West Coast of Scotland, the highlands in particular. Not sure about the midge situation either, I haven’t been to that area yet so don’t know what it’s like for summer or winter living? Would be interested in any ideas or if anyone has done the same?

Not Rugby……. Never go there…. never live there. any where else will do.

I moved to Scotland from Northern England. Have lived in Stoke-on-Trent, Wales, Switzerland and Germany before too. If my only choice is UK, I wouldn’t live anywhere else. I’m in Stirling, midges aren’t really a problem. Summer is May and September, the bits inbetween are not always very dependable.

Further north… I would definitely live near Aviemore (which DOES have a lot of midges in summer).

I love Scotland. Had to go to Englandshire this wknd and I only started feeling better when I saw the Scotland sign (weather brightened up too!!)

The midges are ferocious and can strip a man to the bone in 30 minutes.

They never tell you about the cleggs though. Oh no.

Yorkshire or Derbyshire for biking.

Cleggs OMG! They are horrific beasties. And you wonder why so few people live up in the Highlands.

No seriously, it’s a great place.

I just want to know what French “stuff” is?

If you are really interested in Scotland I’d suggest a visit first to see if you can tolerate the weather, midges and people before making your mind up 😉

Yorkshire or Derbyshire for biking

yes they piss on the lakes, wales or scotland for mountain biking

Glais – end of arguement!

I love Scotland. Had to go to Englandshire this wknd and I only started feeling better when I saw the Scotland sign

Flyingfox – I feel exactly the same – my visits down south get fewer

Yes I have been to Scotland HB but not to the West Coast, it looks nice tho. Difficult to get an idea of living there from holidays too.

Bristol seems like a good location – south Wales and places like FOD are all in easy reach, plus a bit further south are Tavistock etc.

Don’t go to Wales, it’s full of “phlegm-spitters” which is what we call the folks who can’t (be arsed to) pronounce the local lingo. There are some wild parts in Wales, but I think for outright solitude Scotland would be the place, some great places on the west coast.

>Yes I have been to Scotland HB but not to the West Coast, it looks nice tho<

It sure is purty… As I say, I’d spend some time there first.

I moved south a couple of years back from Stirling to the Lakes… I do miss Scotland, but now I am acclimatising I am feeling less sorry about the move.

Anyway, if you are looking at a holiday business I would be considering:

* Where are your clients going to come from? The north and north west of Scotland are some of my favourite places on Earth – but they are also a long way from anywhere so there is the issue of transport links to consider.

* Lots of people go to Scotland on holiday, and vow never to return purely because of the midges. This may have an impact on repeat business so you may have to spend a lot of time and effort publisicing the venture.

* But it is a lot cheaper to set up in Scotland than the other honeypots that would make sense!

If you could afford the Lakes then it would be a very solid business (and the riding is pretty good!). Yorkshire and the Peaks would offer a cheaper alternative, but perhaps with a less developed tourist industry to fall back on. The South West I have only just “discovered” myself, but looks to offer a fair bit of potential.

Wales though – if you went to the right bit it could offer everything you want for a reasonable cost (compared to the Lakes)

Scotland is now full, move along now.

FWIW I have experienced the worst midge fests of my life here in Wales. And that includes a 6 week camping stay on the shores of Loch Torridon.

If I were to do what you are planning I’d start by looking around the Machynlleth area in Mid Wales. Bear in mind that there are a whole range of micro-climates and that aspect is often more important than altitude if you want good weather for your clients. What I’d give to live in Cwm Einion (Artist’s Valley.

The Mach area has such a widespread network of official trails many properties will be close to one of the Mach trails, and you are very close to wonderful beaches on Cardigan Bay.

Whatever you decide, good luck. I wish I had the confidence and guts to do it.

Lol – Artists Valley would not be on my list of places to set up a business Ambrose, the road is just a bit on the mental side 😉

That said one of the greatest parties I have ever been to EVER was up there. There are some very, very interesting locals!

If I could afford it I’d head back to Fife, somewhere near the Lomonds.
Borders is also very nice.

If I had to go to southern England bits of the New Forrest look rather pleasent.

Lots of great places-thanks, it will be tricky one to decide at least where to start looking. Andrew H the new forest is lovely but have you seen the traffic jams. Well if it does happen you are all invited!

well, I moved from the South (Sussex – lots of trees, North and South downs within 20 mins by car) up to the Peak District about 3 years ago and have never regretted it. Ok, the weather isnt quite as warm, but the biking – road and offroad is just amazing, and N Wales and the Lakes are soo close. I do love Scotland and its go anywhere biking and wish I could spend a few months a year up in the Highlands.

Capt Kronos makes some good points.

Obviously the “ideal” might be to combine your holiday cottage plans and biking aspirations in one location. But it might be that commercial reasons will mean your cottages need to be more accessible (relatively closer to the main ‘arterial’ routes / population centres) than you might chose otherwise. However wherever you end up in Scotland you would be a lot closer to the Highland West Coast for your own leisure time…

I think a lot of people visit rural Scotland (and other places like it) with rose tinted glasses on and think how wonderful it would be to live in some tranquil little spot. Some things to think about: how far away is the nearest supermarket (you might have hopes of escaping that side of life and going back to the good old days – but the choice in the local shop will be dire and the prices higher than you are used to) – e.g. can you face an hour and half round trip? If that is every week – you’d be basically wasting a day a month just travelling to the supermarket! Now the same applies to other shops and services you might use. E.g. the dentist, the doctor, the bike shop, the car garage. If this is a “semi-retirement” plan then doctors and hospitals will be important; if you are much younger then maternity facilities, nurseries and schools may be relevant… …a long school bus commute is not uncommon at Secondary age in the highlands, and in some places they will be away Mon-Fri in a hostel. Now if you are the sort of person who likes to go out for a fancy meal or a trip to the cinema or theatre then you might find yourself travelling even further. If you’ve got grown up kids (or they will soon fledge the nest then in not too long you may be looking at grand kids, it could be a very long trip to visit them (although of course they might emigrate or travel to the other end of the country anyway).

Now those are some of the main reasons why so many Scots love rural Scotland but cluster round the central belt (in today’s internet world many more of us could live and work rurally if we chose to).

The weather is the other one. The further north you go the darker winter becomes which can make it rather depressing. If you head west you also get wetter windier weather. And whilst some snow is normal across all of Scotland – snow causing disruption is much more common further north (there is a different attitude to it, and better preparation, but it still closes schools and roads – although everyone just gets on with life).

So I wouldn’t want to discourage you – but you need to look at it from the perspective of living there not holidaying there. You should be able to get good prices to go “now” (but not the week after this one which is a school holiday week) which should give you an idea of how it is winter. Probably repeat a few times in different areas and see what you think.

Wow Poly. Thats a really good summary! we moved to Scotland 15 years ago from Ireland and my summary is that’s it’s always a balancing act.

For us on balance it’s great. For my sister in law (hates the outdoors etc its rubbish).

IME – it what you put in to it – I know that’s a cliche.

Where you end up depends on work. Simple as. We started in Stirling – moved to the Capital as we spent 20 hours a week less travelling.

Either way – you’ll earn less. Maybe enjoy more. The latter part is up to you.