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Love where we live in Whitstable, Kent.
10 minutes walk from the beach and 10 minutes ride from the doorstep to a pretty extensive network of trials in the woods between here and canterbury. The town is really nice with a high street full of independent shops, with good pubs and restaurants. Has a really nice buzz in the summer particulally around the oyster festival week. We have two kids and it’s a really family friendly place with good schools. Weather is great. Pretty dry and consistently get actual summers (I grew up in Liverpool and the weather is really noticeable for me). Good access to the continent. Not really bothered about London but it’s close enough if you want it. We don’t live in the centre of town so no traffic issues. Canterbury where we used to live was a bit of nightmare at peak times but it’s generally fine here. There’s really nothing I don’t like and have no desire at all to move.
I grew up in Ashford
Oh you poor thing.
i lived there until I was 12 until thankfully my parents moved to the countryside, I have the misfortune to pass through when visiting (as I did today) i sometimes think this (Ashford) is what the grimmer parts of the north are like but with less tanning salons and curry sauce.
its an artless place with no redeeming features which went rapidly downhill once the railway went and it was earmarked for rapid housing expansion yet no jobs or infrastructure to support it.
Ipswich on the outskirts. It must be ok as we've been here 23 years. The riding is ok and there's some really quiet bits miles from anywhere.
Yes, absolutely love it.
Love the city, Bristol, such a cool place, even the crappy areas aren’t *that* bad compared to some places I’ve been. Only real downside is the appalling traffic, but we walk pretty much everywhere so not too much of an issue.
Love the area, just over a mile from the city centre, so my wife and I walk to work, kids walk(ed) to school. Cars sit on the drive all week. Plenty of good pubs and places to eat within a 10 minute walk, we rarely bother going into town. And, possibly best of all, stacks of live music most nights of the week. Little boozer (rammed with 100 people) 10 mins walk away where i’ve seen Glen Tilbrook from Squeeze, Dr Feelgood, The Vibrators, as well as stacks of unheard of bands. Old jail 10 mins walk through the park the other way is much bigger - was there last week watching Jah Wobble and the Invaders of the Heart.
Love our house. Pretty big since we extended it, room for teenagers and partners without actually having to interact unless we want to. Garage for the motorbikes, cellar for the bicycles, drive for the cars. Garden plus balcony with far reaching views.
Nowhere I’d rather live. Happy as a pig in the proverbial
Whereabouts in Kent were you?
Started out in Dover (in the same block as Churchills Hotel on the beach) then Canterbury, Sittingbourne, Snodland and finally Walderslade.
To be fair, there was quite a lot of riding around on unofficial trails or cheeky footpaths but a distinct lack of official bridleways you could link up to make a decent ride. Used to be a great group to ride with called SketchyMTB but I don't know if they are still around.
The traffic was mental though. Often more than an hour to get from Dover to Canterbury. The north was worse though. I could cycle the 18 miles between Walderslade and Tonbridge faster than I could drive it and it's all NSL roads! And that's before any mention of Operation Stack!!
I found the attitude of people in the north and west of Kent to be proper crap. Around Sevenoaks, Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge and Maidstone were the worst. No one would give you the time of day and there was a distinct impression of being looked down upon. Pretty much everyone I worked with who moved to Kent felt the same.
To be honest though the closer you got to the south the better it got and I quite enjoyed the multi cultural mix of folks in Dover (although I did get assaulted twice by some BNP supporting ****s for having the temerity to have a conversation with "Slovaks" and "****s" in the Folkestone Road). In the early 2000's the smugglers having regular shootouts outside NuAge nightclub right opposite my flat was quite exciting too.
Lived in Harrogate all my life and feel very lucky to have lots of friends in the area doubt I’ll ever move.
I’ve seen a lot a change over my 38 years here but it is and always be ‘arrogut.
East Sussex here. Its OK but we moved here when I needed to be within a commute of London and this was a lot better than Surrey where we used to live. If you have to live within an hour or so of London its the best county I reckon - near the sea, not too built up and plenty of character (unlike Surrey). We live in a small market town with good schools etc and a reasonable amount of riding nearby plus sailing and kayak fishing which are my other pastimes.
We have a nice house in a nice area etc etc
However since I stopped working in town and the whole brexit bollocks blew up we have been thinking about moving.
France, Netherlands and Scotland are all possibilities.
OP, what didn’t you like about Sheffield? I’ve lived here most of my life and love it. Granted I am very lucky to live in one of the last houses before you’re in the Peak District but I’d not live anywhere else just now.
OP, what didn’t you like about Sheffield? I’ve lived here most of my life and love it.
It just never felt like home, I ended up there by a series of misfortunate events and despite spending most of my youth partying there I realised it was a place I loved to visit but hated living in.
Don’t get me wrong I will always be thankful of the years I lived there, I found both my wife and who I really am in that city.
Nice honesty Pik n Mix, just goes to show that everyone sees the world through different eyes.
Started out in Dover (in the same block as Churchills Hotel on the beach)
God, takes me back many a grim trip to Churchills
Pretty happy really in Durham: affordable housing, 3 national parks within easy reach, riding from the door, beach 20 min away, international cricket up the road, decent airport not far away, and train to that London < 3 hours.
I’m actually moving house tomorrow. We are moving to an area just outside the city but still with tram access and a three minute walk to the beach of a lake for summer bathing. I’ll let you know if is the right decision next summer!
Kinlochleven. Miles from anywhere nothing rains a lot pubs are expensive. Love it!
Nah - North Devon over looking a beach...it’s horrible. I even have to drive 20/30 minutes to be in the middle of Exmoor, one hour thirty minutes to be in Dartmoor, an hour ish to Quantocks....might be a ferry service from nearby Ilfracombe to South Wales in the future....so could be even closer to Afan, BPW, Brechfa.....terrible!!!!
Lived in Harrogate all my life and feel very lucky to have lots of friends in the area doubt I’ll ever move.
I’ve seen a lot a change over my 38 years here but it is and always be ‘arrogut.
Harrowgate FFS we live in a bubble of poshness.
@johndoe - that's how it's spelt on the old direction stone at Bolton Abbey.
Garnant, Amman Valley, Carmarthenshire. It's pretty good tbh. There is no way on this great green Earth that we live upon that we could ever afford anything similar closer to the home counties where we both sort of come from. Every morning as I leave for work (45ish mins by car, on the coast near Pembrey) I look across the valley to the hills at the western end of the Brecon Beacons. It's good.
The biggy for us is the ability to be with the MiL in central France at the drop of a hat. Cardiff airport is close enough to allow this.
More selfishly we ride road or MTB from the door. National Park is less than a mile away. Loads of local trails to nip out onto, never bored. Less than 45 mins to Afan, Glyncorrwg, Brechfa, Cwmyrhaeadr, Llandovery, Pembrey. Gower is approx 50 mins away.
Can get to the M4 is less than 20 mins. Public transport is OK too, hourly services on weekdays, two hourly on Sundays.
Apart from a year in Coventry (could take it or leave it) and a year in Barnsley (shite and scarily white, but where my love of MTB was first kindled so can't complain too much), I've lived within 15 miles or so of Peterborough my entire life. At first on the edge of the fens, then in the city, and now in East Northants.
Not the greatest off-road riding round here in terms of hills, but I now live less than five minutes ride from Wakerley and Fineshade woods, which are probably the best wooded singletrack riding within an hour and a half's drive so am happy with that. Ten minutes from the A1 and 20 from the A14, so The Peak and Shropshire are a couple of hour's drive away for something more 'proper'.
Away from riding, it's actually a pretty nice area to be. We're in a decent, quiet village, but have reasonable towns/cities less than 30 minutes drive away for shopping, etc. Loads of local village (gastro)pubs within easy reach. Not much over an hour to get to the Norfolk coast and some amazing beaches.
Would love to live in The Peak or the Lakes, but with our jobs that's not likely to happen until we retire.
Moved from Salford (dump) to Rishton in Blackburn. Good transport links to work. Very quiet but with a good selection of shops. Live 50 yards from the canal which is great for a nice evening bike ride. Loads of countryside for bigger rides.
Ten minute walk to golf course and driving range.
Absolute bliss.
Another former Sheffielder here.
From South Yorkshire to South Australia a few years ago now.
Muss the place actually though very much landed on my feet here. Great house with a pool and 10m and a clear line of sight to one of Australia's top 10 beaches. 1000s of km of gravel, beach amd bbq life. Its clean and quiet and idyllic.
Howevwr, i miss the uk still and really miss the ease of access to Europe. if the venture i am perusing comes off in nexr year then i can see us splitting time 50/50 between hsre and Sheffield again, perhaps Hathersage.
I dont know if there is one perfect place but that makes life interesting!
Another one in East Sussex.
We're in a hamlet on the outskirts of a village and love it. It's a short walk to the station for the commute into London every day (necessary evil unfortunately). The kids go to a decent school down the road, we've proper shops for the necessaries in the village, the coast is a short drive away, countryside on the doorstep for walking the dogs etc. It's quiet but if you want bustle it's not far away.
That said, once the kids are finished with school I think we'll be off - probably head west and find somewhere by the sea - at least that's the plan.
its an artless place with no redeeming features which went rapidly downhill once the railway went and it was earmarked for rapid housing expansion yet no jobs or infrastructure to support it.
I left there around ten years ago, and other than visiting my mum in Kennington, I've never been back into the town. The expansion is absolutely mind-boggling though, one overloaded hospital, no jobs or industry as such and a dead town centre. Despite all that, I still think of it as being "home".
I found the attitude of people in the north and west of Kent to be proper crap. Around Sevenoaks, Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge and Maidstone were the worst. No one would give you the time of day and there was a distinct impression of being looked down upon. Pretty much everyone I worked with who moved to Kent felt the same.
I worked around that area for some time and only really came across that in Tunbridge Wells. It's something that annoys me, because I always think that a lot of people, north of Birmingham say, tend to view anywhere south as all being London and snobby, cold southerners. But I do think you're right in saying the further south you get in Kent, the better it gets.
Other than no MTB on my doorstep (only 20 miles North of Keswick though) I really like where I live. I should try a fat bike as the coast is only a few miles away.
Detached house with no neighbours, views over to the Solway/Scotland one direction and the Cumbrian fells the other.
Having grew up on a council estate I thought I'd find it odd having no neighbours but it's brilliant!
Yeah, I like Scotton, that’s on my radar.
The road through it is crap though, (I commute that way from Boroughbridge to yon side of Killinghall)
We mustv'e crossed paths at some point Glenn, I get out & about on the HT between B/bridge & Knaresborough a fair bit.
I love where we live but I'll end up back with Northernsoul in Durham which is still 'home' for me.
I stay just north of Aberdeen and have done all of my 45 years if you count a spell in Aberdeen itself. I'd love to be further inland and would be forever smiling if I was in or around Aberlour like swavis. Would quite happily move but the kids are all settled in school and we have everything close by including our parents so all is well at the moment
As much as discovering the South Downs are ~30mins ride away in the last ~17 months have helped, by and large I'm beginning to loath Southampton, especially after visiting family in Wirral last weekend less than 10mins walk west of Birkenhead Park. I wouldn't want to live in Wirral either these days, but compared to down here, it feels far less congested with people and cars. Not to mention that realistically, we don't stand a hope in hell of getting on the housing ladder down here until the unpleasant prospect of inheritance in hopefully 20+ years time.
Practicalities aside, such as finding suitable accommodation/jobs/weather, of places I've lived or remember visiting in the UK... North Wales around Machynlleth or The Mendips. Somewhere hilly and sparsely populated.
The road through it is crap though, (I commute that way from Boroughbridge to yon side of Killinghall)
We mustv’e crossed paths at some point Glenn, I get out & about on the HT between B/bridge & Knaresborough a fair bit.
I love where we live but I’ll end up back with Northernsoul in Durham which is still ‘home’ for me.
Yeah, it can get busy and quite narrow in places so not ideal, but a nice village other than that - and the pub is good!
And yes, we must have crossed paths, I've noticed a few buses on that road recently and thought it might be you! And I always check for a badly parked bus in Morrisons car park whenever I stop by 😉
Northampton too due to job relocation. As mentioned the town is a bit of a pitbut other aspects it's ok. Recently now work mainly from home so move back to Europe soon.
Why not?
I think Harrogate is nice enough to visit but it's a carpark for 12hrs a day, the house prices are bonkers compared to what you pay for equally nice areas near by, the amount of houses being built with no obvious sign of infrastructure improvement will make things far worse, the roads are left to get in a appalling state, the shopping is poor and the nightlife not up to much. Worst of all though are some of the people as there's a large (and growing) group who think buying a Range Rover and drinking in the Fat Badger means your upper class and can treat the peasants like dirt. Speaking to my mate who has lived in Harrogate all his life he suggests that this bunch are usually all mouth and no trousers and the properly wealthy folk tend to be decent. From my 18 years working here I'd tend to agree.
Still, I'd much prefer to live in Harrogate than Ilkley!
Worst of all though are some of the people as there’s a large (and growing) group who think buying a Range Rover and drinking in the Fat Badger means your upper class and can treat the peasants like dirt. Speaking to my mate who has lived in Harrogate all his life he suggests that this bunch are usually all mouth and no trousers and the properly wealthy folk tend to be decent.
Exactly! The amount of Chelsea Tractors being driven round Harrogate by blonde bimbo's is unreal.
& yes, it is a car park most of the time!
Hertfordshire. Not so much these days as it increasingly turns into a suburb of London.
I'm thinking of making the move to Norwich, where I used to live. Otherwise I may do 6 months in UK and 6 months in Italy. Knee surgery first though, and if that is successful, I can get back to mucking around in the countryside.
Just outside Bromyard, on the Hereford/ Worcester border.
Rural enough to not have too many neighbours (except cows n sheep) but a two minute ride to town for essentials.
I really struggled when we moved here two years ago, I couldn't adjust to the house/lifestyle/ move away from friends, but now I'm settling in to it I wouldn't want to move.
Can see the Malverns from the bedroom window, good cycling pretty much from the door, plenty of scope for projects to keep me busy. The more we get finished on the house the more I love it.
nope but i guess it could be worse.. definitely an upgrade to where I was living in london however where I used to live is now gentrified.
I remember seeing this okace in a film and thinking it would be an awful grim place to live. I now live where the funeral took place in 4 weddings and a funeral.
San Sebastián, city centre, 5 mins walk from La Concha beach. Temps up in the 20s today. Pyrenees 2.5 to 3h away, you could ski in the morning and be on the beach in the afternoon.
In reality, i hate snow and beaches, food is crap, rainfall double that of Penrith and the guiris in summer are insufferable 😂 and being self employed I'm fed up of being shafted by the hacienda.
Aside from family, the cycling, proximity to cool places in spain and europe keeps me here , and the basques are pretty rad. Work is easy, minimal, and I down tools for two weeks at easter and xmas, and two months in summer. Couldn't move back to Dogshit Island , though I often terribly miss my old manor in north London, and my old local pub round the corner from my dad's in Ulverston. Always look forward to visiting.
Have always lived in Birmingham, live a mile from where myself and wife were both born, both of us desperate to move on and try something new, we know nothing else but a huge city, only thing keeping us here is our youngest son at the moment and we keep hinting at 24 he needs to move on and move out 🙂
Have looked at what we'd get for our house when we sell and hopefully one day move yorkshire way for quieter life and hopefully quieter roads as im a hgv driver 🙂 ....
Birmingham as a whole , is FULL , its so busy everywhere, even on the weekends the roads are horrible, so no we dont like where we live anymore, although neighbors etc are great so no complaints there
Sendling, Munich, Germany....
I've been in the Vaterland for nigh on 11 years, but I'm slowly getting tired of the place. Have been in Munich for 7 of those, prior to that I was drifting about working in the Alps.
Pros:
- the city is clean and safe.
- work. slipped into the event industry a fair few years ago. lots of exhibition and event chippying. have enough work close by to keep me busy, but saying that i don't need to be in town for most of it.
- friends. lots of good mates through work. despite being self-employed i usually end up working with the same groups of lads.
-proximity to the river and green spaces. we live about 300m from the river which is great for BBQs in summer, going for a run or ride. 15 mins on your bike going south and you are surrounded by greenery.
- proximity to the alps. 45 mins in the car and i'm in the hills. another 30mins and i'm in the high austrian alps. Lake Garda is a 3.5h drive.
-getting away is relatively easy. we live on the south side of town and can be on the Autobahn within minutes.
Cons:
-the cost of living in Munich is high. rents are silly and getting sillier. house prices are ridiculous; no chance of being able to buy anything within commuting distance of town. meals out are rarely under 45€ for two of us.
-lack of any decent riding without getting in the van. there are the trails along the river to the south, but they are a bit meh. short descents that don't offer much and heavily eroded.
-traffic. i tend to cycle just about everywhere and never use the motor for getting around town. for a few clients i need to drive and getting into or out of town around rush hour or back into town on a weekend can be a nightmare. even sundays see long queues and tailbacks.
- traffic. just too many cars. think Munich has one of the highest car ownership amongst German cities.
-cycling through town. the bike paths are there but are not always well thought out. had a quite a few near misses as both cyclist and driver due to the infrastructure.
-the oppressiveness of the city. Munich is just too clean and ****y. lots of snobs/snooty folks. too many people earning too much. the number of Porsches and big loud BMWs is sickening.
-the police are ****s. they've no crime to fight as such so spend their time penalising people for petty offences.
-lack of pubs and bars. obviously there are loads of bars and biergartens, but i really miss a nice cozy pub.
-the german way of life can be a bit much at times. everyone conforms. people don't say thank you. the language is awful (despite me speaking it very well - when I'm up north in Hamburg or Berlin people think i'm a Bavarian) and at times i just can't be arsed to speak it.
not going to be here much longer. next year will be time to change. GF's job is coming to an end and we want a new challenge. have been looking at property in Italy for a while.
San Sebastián, city centre, 5 mins walk from La Concha beach.
Sounds rubbish. You want to be near Zurriola for the surf (😭)
Love where I live?
Ramsbottom. I’m a simple creature. If I turn left out of my front door I can walk down for a pint at the microbrewery at the bottom of the road, if I turn right I’ve got mile after mile of hills and open moorland
What do you think?
#smug****! 😃
No. I have just moved to south west Scotland. Struggling to understand what that move was all about. The house is one big massive botched job too. Happy days these are not. Thinking about moving already, got the dog to think about at the moment but when she goes (not that I'm looking forward to that day, I am in fact dreading it, but she is 13 so got to think about a future without her) I'm thinking Spain...
Sounds rubbish. You want to be near Zurriola for the surf (😭)
I hate surfing too 😥
Another one in Durham here.
The city itself is nice enough and the location is fantastic. The Durham Dales provide arguably the best road cycling in the country and we're 30 minutes from Hamsterley.
Loads of lovely areas within striking distance, Northumberland, N York moors, Lakes etc. The Durham coastline itself is pretty nice if you avoid the towns!
Being brought up in the Lakes though I will always hanker after being back there even though it wouldn't be practical for us to live there at the moment.
Another one from Northumberland here and it ticks all the boxes for me. Quiet, good facilities, work and schools. I can see the Cheviot Hills from my window, Kielder is an hour away in the car, I can be in Glentress in less than two hours and can be on the local trails in less than 30 seconds from my door. The only time I would consider moving elsewhere is if it was abroad where it's a bit (read a lot) drier and warmer.
Baildon, about 5 miles north of Bradford. The village is lovely, trails on my doorstep, open countryside to the north, yet only fifteen minutes from town if I want to go to the shops/theatre. Gigs tend to be Leeds or Manchester, Leeds is only half an hour away, Manchester is an hour. LeedsBradford airport is a £15 taxi ride if I want to ge out of the country.
but, and it’s a big but, getting to anywhere south of Bradford e.g M62 is a PITA during rush hour. Current job is in Normanton so M62 is essential; precious job was in Aylesbury so was an early start on a Monday, getting to m62 wasn’t a problem. Job before that was in Ripon so Harrogate was the big problem for my commute then.
but overall, yeah , I love where I live
Yes. North Wiltshire, Chippenham has grown a lot since I was a kid, up from roughly 19,000 to close on 50,000, but despite that it’s dead easy to get into the countryside from anywhere in town, it’s got several nice parks, one has a Sustrans route right through it alongside the River Avon, the main London - Bristol railway runs through it and its the confluence of a bunch of major roads; A4, A420, A350, with the M4 about three miles north, so getting anywhere is easy. Bath, Bristol, Swindon, Cardiff and Salisbury are easy to get to as a result. Then there’s places like Avebury, and Castle Combe with loads of walking and cycling paths for miles around. Lots of decent pubs and restaurants scattered around too.
I used to walk to work for eleven years, but I now have to drive fifteen miles to Westbury, but I can do it in 20-25 minutes, so it’s not too bad. I walk into town as well. It’s just handy for just about everything, really.