Moving to Spain with Teenagers - Page 2

I just wanted to add that concerning your teenage children, it would be very hard to I regrate here at this sort of age without speaking Spanish.  Any friends they might make would be British and so they would certainly not pick up the language moving in a limited social group.  The public transport to cities is very, very limited in this part of Spain too, so socializing off season would be grim for a lively, social young person.  There is a great unemployed problem which will be worse in the aftermath of Covid 19.  Many youngsters get into the wrong company in desperation to find their niche in the new society and will definitely be at a disadvantage if they don't understand what I'd going on around them.  Think very hard before you decide on bringing your family to Spain.

Juanida hit the nail on the head. Her excellent post stands alone.

Wow it sounds grim. No doubt my two very well behaved, well rounded teenagers (one with better Spanish than most) will soon become smackheads once they hit Almeria. Will most residents of Almeria be heading to the Elyssian Fields of England once lockdown is over?

Well Tim, You asked for advice. You got it in spades. I'm sorry you don't appreciate what people posted. But, you know your teenagers better than us. Drive on!

Tim, if they are learning Spanish, they’ll certainly fit in.  As I said, if they are still of school age when you arrive, there is an international school.  They will only need near fluency if they wish to attend university here.

Not sure what it’s like in Mojácar, but I have found the people of Vera - young and old alike VERY accepting if you just make the effort to speak Spanish.  They most certainly WON’T end up isolated or driven to a life of crime!!

Employment WILL be a big issue - but not impossible for a motivated youngster.  It might be bar work for low pay and long hours during a summer season, or with English AND Spanish skills they might land themselves something in one of the bigger cities.  It’s difficult, but not impossible.

Don’t give up on the dream, reach for it, tell the kids the information you’ve been given and let them decide what they want.  Spain will be difficult for them, but not impossible, but I would say don’t let anyone live their lives for them; they are the future, let them decide it

You've made your point. So as you say, drive on.

That's very helpful and the sort of reasoned response I was hoping for, thank you.

Sorry, but to be honest ........ moving to Spain, with teenage children,  in the next couple of years is really not the way to go, !!    I had children,  3 and 6 years when we went to live in North Morocco for 4 years, great for us as a family, as we self taught.

But at this time, whilst I agree that "taking the bull by the horns and doing it" is admirable I am not sure if the teenagers would appreciate  it.  

As others have said ....... rent ...... rent ...... rent ....... different  areas,  different times of the year and see which area you want to go to. ....... hope this helps. 

The younger the child, the easier it is to become bilingual.  Teenagers, even with basic Spanish find it incredibly hard.    However Matthew, as you suggested, you can't give advice to people who have already decided what they want to do, can you?

With respect, I think that is a little unfair - advice is just that, advice.  You can give it, but you need not be upset if your advice is not accepted wholesale.

We all here do not know these particular teenagers.  I have known a couple who have settled in very quickly, despite being older teens.  I believe it's all about attitude.  If they come with the intention of making a go of it, of TRYING to integrate, they are more likely to succeed.  The ones that will fail are those that will resent their parents taking them away from their lives, their friends, their comfort zone.  They will not want to settle and will instead just be sulky and difficult.  If however a young person sees this as a grand adventure, a wonderful opportunity and really throws themselves into it .... well, that's quite a different story.

The original poster, Tim, obviously knows his children well, and rather than telling him that his children are going to fail, we should instead be encouraging him to take counsel from them, find out how committed they are to the idea.  Just because someone is not yet out of their teens doesn't mean they don't have a brain in their head, or an idea of what they want to do with their lives.