Costa Daurada Uncovered: Where to Live, Buy, and Invest South of Barcelona

Speaker A: I'm Vanessa. Welcome back to the Selena Global Living podcast where we talk about real estate and the realities of life abroad. Now, most international buyers are familiar with Barcelona and the Costa Brava, but they might not be familiar with a whole nother stretch of Catalonia's coast. The Costa Dorada. This part of Catalonia offers a very different lifestyle, from chic Sidjas to historic Tarragona to more relaxed and practical towns like Cauliflower and Villanova. So today we're going to break down this part of Catalonia and who it's the right fit for. My guest today is Wame. He is my go to trusted real estate expert on this stretch of Catalonia's coast. And uh, he is a Catalan native who lived abroad and then came back home and now works with international buyers and sellers. So without further ado, let's learn about the Costa Dorada. Thank you so much for joining me today. You know, I love visiting the Costa Dorada, but I haven't spent enough time exploring many of the areas. I've been to Tarragona and Tus. So I'm looking forward to learning more about this part of Catalonia. But you, before we get started, can you just tell us a little bit more about your background and kind of give us some context about this part of Catalonia?

Speaker B: Well, thank you very much, Vanessa, uh, for inviting me. My name is Jauma Abieto and actually I'm Catalan Rising Barcelona. I've been living in the UK for several years and uh, that somehow naturally driven me to understand my land and internationally relating it as a bridge. So I became a sort of like bridge of cultures. And when I came back to my basically grandpa house, that was actually a, ah, summer house where I'm located right now in Calafe in the south of Catalonia. I was a sommelier and working in an international hotel, in a Marriott hotel. And you know, back then I realized that people love this area, Americans, international people alike. And I thought maybe this me now time to change, to transform my skills into telling people how is life in here. And it worked out quite well actually. I'm representing sellers and um, buyers, international and locals alike. And yeah, I would say I'm a kind of an ambassador of this area.

Speaker A: Really. Yeah, I think your social media really speaks to that. I think you do such a good job of helping people understand this area more. When somebody, when somebody is familiar with Catalonia, they've probably, uh, obviously know Barcelona. They might have heard of the Costa Brava, but they may be less familiar with the Costa Dorada. So how would you distinguish the difference between the Costa Brava and Costa Dorada.

Speaker B: So first of all, we have to place Barcelona in the very middle. And I would say to make things easy, Costa Dorada is the south of Catalonia and is one hour driving or so from the city of Barcelona. So still you have coast, a very peaceful lifestyle, and this sort of like convenience. Still you have to remember the airport, international airport of Catalonia, is located in the south of Barcelona. So that just for the sake of being south, makes the distance, the commuting time to the airport much, much shorter.

Speaker A: So what would you say are some of the misconceptions about this part of Catalonia?

Speaker B: Well, I would say that people think it's the cheapest alternative when reality, I mean, let's put it that way. Aesthetically it might be a more humble option, but the reality is that all these houses along the coast are being built for a reason, which is time with family spent on the weekends or on the summers. That was originally the idea of these towns. And of course the function of these houses were more, um, driven to be convenient and to be related to the coast. So, yeah, perhaps aesthetically it's not the most sophisticated area, but you need to spend some time and then you realize how life is in here, how friendly, how local, how tranquil is still in here.

Speaker A: And would you say that the area is now drawing more year round residents or does it still lean, um, heavily toward a summer destination?

Speaker B: So I have to say that the regions of these areas are summer houses. Um, of course there is a historic background, but for what it takes to us now, um, I have to say that around 40% is all year round people living here, and 60% are clearly summer or weekenders. This has changed after Covid, but reality is that we're still having this strong difference between winter and summer.

Speaker A: Right, okay. And so which towns would you say are best suited to people who want to live there year round and have, you know, amenities open in the winter as well?

Speaker B: So we have to say that Sigis, Villanova, Calafei, Tarragona, those four are the all year round enjoyable life.

Speaker A: I love that you named those four because, um, I think these lend themselves to international buyers who are looking for a landing pad, whether that be fully year round or they want to be able to come in the winter and go to their home country in the summer and rent it out in the summer. These towns, I think, offer the best flexibility for that type of buyer. So these are the ones I want to talk about. So let's start with Sitges. I'd Say that's the one that most people have heard of. It's the closest to Barcelona. You can get there by train from Barcelona. Right. And it has a very strong identity. You know, it's known as especially welcome, welcoming to the LGBTQIA community. But what else should people know about Sitges?

Speaker B: Well, I have to say that Sidges attracts lifestyle. The people that uh, goes there is because it has this, I would say, necessity of being part of a bigger community. And one of the most impressive things Citjis has is that with English you can sort out your daily life. You don't even need to change your language. You can just come straight to CGS and life happens, community life happens in a click of your finger. So this is something unique to Citges that I would say is rare that other areas in Spain. Sitis is perhaps one of the only places in Spain that you can just straight going there, speak it in English and you will feel integrated next day. And it is a place for open mindedness, people, uh, it is a place for more like lifestyle than family. I would say that currently the population of sieges is um, 50% international and 50% local. It's really um, a uh, blend of Americans, Northern Europeans and French alike perhaps. So yeah, Syges is a very social place really. Life happens on the streets. And I don't know if you never heard about the carnival. Citrus Carnival is internationally recognized. And there is the Citrus International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia, well known for the Halloween terrorish movies. I have to say that citus from the 60s and the 70s became one of the, let's say more open minded areas of Spain, more tolerant to the LGBT community. And that attracted quite a lot of international people to this area. And that has, has an impact for sure in prices as well in real estate and the stability of the real estate market. So when other places in Spain having a big crisis in real estate cities maintains its stability due to being actually these international affairs residents.

Speaker A: You know, you said something interesting that I want to drill in on. You said that you can just land and speak English. You know, if a foreigner said that, I would get hate comments. So as, uh, someone from Catalonia who kind of recognizes that. Let's talk about that a little bit and unpack it. So how do, how do the locals feel about how international that city has become? And do foreigners still feel welcome there? Do the locals feel like they're being pushed out?

Speaker B: So that's a fair question. I could say that there's two types of locals, right? The ones that eventually will benefit out of this internationalization of cities. Because clearly one of the major benefits of cities has been its internalization overall financially. And of course all the people related to hospitality, all the people that have businesses and even people that are actually just selling the houses, that has been a major benefit. And you can see that how still, depending on the ages, let's say baby Boomers, Gen Xers and millennials are blending very much with these newcomers. So locals are socially blending with them as well. I mean this is a reality. Cities is uh, a very LGBT town. And um, you know, when cultures go together, they attract each other. There is this sense of interest and curiosity. And of course people that lives in Spain is because they have at least some sort of interest in what local life is and social life is. And of course there is people that they do not like the international people coming. And the reason being because one of the first impacts international community has is that they increasing the house prices. And there is a sense of reality that expats or international buyers are with their high incomes are increasing definitely the price of housing cities. So that's a reality as well. But again, you have to see the whole balance, how life plays and how the daily life in cities and you see harmony, you see beauty, you see cities is improving. And the reason why as well is because of you guys, of international people that has interest and um, look, economy matters and cities is benefiting from it as a reality socially, financially and uh, culturally as well. These people are becoming a patron. They, they actually buy art. Creativity in cities never stop. And actually it's living a, a beautiful moment. You see CGC striving culturally, artistically, creatively.

Speaker A: Yeah, the beauty of cultures blending together and people coming with intentionality to, to add value to the place that they move to. Right. We always have those people who are anti immigrant, anti change, anti woke as we would say in the States. But really what does that. I mean like if you're not growing, you're dying, right? So these towns that are welcoming people from all the world and do embrace it, continue to grow. So let's talk about housing prices because definitely Sigez is not a cheap place to live. Um, it's quite expensive. So what should somebody expect? Give us some uh, some examples of what you could expect to get for a two bed, two bath with an ocean view and then maybe a four bed villa.

Speaker B: Say Siches is one of the most expensive towns in Catalonia, full stop. And for a single villa facing of course C. Villas are gorgeous. They are like 1920s.

Speaker A: I mean you really need to be

Speaker B: a go in there because this, this sensational, the detail, the level of artisanal that we just forgot all these artisanal techniques really. We cannot do like plaster anymore the way they did it. We cannot do these arches anymore. I mean all this is lost. But anyways, so for these gorgeous villas, let's say 500 square meters, lovely lush gardens, very aged gardens, you could be easily talking between 10 to 14 million euros. Of course there is more humble examples. And still if you're in the promenade, in the first row of the siege, you're going to be paying easily between 7 to 9 million. There is actually the second line of the sea, let's call it in cities. There's these lovely residential areas called Al Vignet or Terramar. Not talking about the center of Siches, because the center of siches do not have single detached villas. Has what you call the town hall, sorry, the town house villas, fishermen houses. They are lovely. They are just into these narrow streets, all painted in lovely white wash and blue colors. By the way, blue color in cichus has a history in itself. Even there is a color palette where blue has its color called blue citrus, which is in a special twist of, let's call it may intensity of blue. So for a detached villa in the second line of the sea, let's call it in Tarramar or vignette, you're going to be paying between 4 to 6 million euros. I remember I sold a CJ's house three years ago from American couple. Bought it to uh, Sorry, they sold it to a Dutch couple. Uh, they sold it for 2.5 million. Asking price was 3 million. Negotiations went through. Actually that was the price they wanted, 2.5 million. That was a easy sale. Actually happened in less than two months.

Speaker A: So let's, let's bring it down to more normal people prices. So two bed, two bath condo, maybe within walking distance of the center of um, Stitches, but not in the center. What could you expect to get in that range?

Speaker B: M. So clearly if you want to come straight in and do not make any renovations, you're going to be paying between half a million to €700,000. Yes.

Speaker A: Okay. And so are there any communities? I understand that there's a community that's being built up on the hill just above Sitjas a little bit. You wouldn't be able to walk into Sitges, but they're building out some areas in the hills that are maybe a little bit more accessible. Are you familiar with those areas?

Speaker B: Yes, of course. Sitges pressure is Actually overtaking the mountains surrounding Sitges. Those are Levantina, Mongarina, hint Mar, and Valpineda. Valpineda is the oldest one and very close to Sitches. Valpineda is the most expensive of those, let's call it exterior sedges areas. So for a single detached villa built between the 70s and early 2000s, you're going to be paying between 1 to 2 million. Of course all these areas are higher, so you're going to get for sure sea views. That's one of the advantages. You want more distance from the sea, you're going to have to take your car most likely, but you're going to have these gorgeous sea views over Sieges and of course the whole town of sieges. I would say. I don't know if I would call Sieges a town or a city, but certainly it's feels much more urban, much more citizen. Like for instance, if you compare with Villanova, Villanova is much bigger in amount of uh, the population of it. But Villanova feels much more town, but citrus. Even though it's smaller, it really feels more like a city. At least has the vibe of more like a urban, uh, feel.

Speaker A: Okay, good. So let's, that's a great segue. So let's talk about Villanova. What distinguishes it from sigism? And who would consider Villanova as a good place to land over Sitges?

Speaker B: So Villa Lova is like Sitges was 25 years ago actually. I like to call it the Little Barcelona. And uh, mainly because of the structure of the town, it has these Ramblas, you know, ramblas for the people that might not know what it means is this long promenade, it's this long paseo where people normally go to walk. And it's a much more family oriented, much more quiet, full of more traditional attire and shops. So definitely Villanova. It feels more like a Catalan place, less international, even though the international community is clearly growing. But it's not that related to the sea, it's not that of a beach town. It has more kind of life per se, more of a city life, if I may say that. And yeah, it feels more, it's clearly more, more Catalan in a way. More of the a family environment.

Speaker A: Does it have international schools and private schools?

Speaker B: Well, because physically cities is so close by and uh, because cities has this wide offer of international schools like French, English, then Villanova benefits from that. Villanova is 10 minutes drive from Sittis. So yes, you still have to take your car, but you have a wider range of English schools, at least more Than four different styles, of course, depending on the way you want to. You are, uh, driven to, sorry, the way you want to have, the way you care about pedagogy. So it has different styles and then at least it has two French schools as well. Yes.

Speaker A: Okay. Yeah. So thank you for pointing that out. So it's only a 10 minute drive from Citjez. I think somebody coming from Los Angeles or really anywhere in the United States, it would almost feel like it was the same place. So different personality, just different part of town. Right. So how do the prices in Villanova compare to Sigs?

Speaker B: Citges is again the most, one of the most expensive, uh, areas of Catalonia. Everything, if you compare with citrus, is going to be affordable. And I would say Villanova is very much of a, uh, flat and a detached, semi detached house. So of course prices cannot compare with other locations because it offers coastal life, but mainly has to be in flat on semi detached houses. So terrace houses. It doesn't have much of a detached, uh, vil, even though there's an area called the Aragay, which is uh, locals know it as the tennis area, which is a bit detached from Villanova really. You kind of have to walk between 20 to 30 minutes to the center of Villanova from that more of a single detached villa area. So of course for these flats and these apartments and semi detached houses, you're going to be paying between 300 to €500,000. It really depends on proximity to the center and of course, uh, maintenance of the buildings. Because Villanova, let's remember Villanova is a bit older. So the portfolio of properties in Villanova tends to be from the 60s, 70s. Many of them require renovations. If you want to go for these villas in this area instead of Villanova, the Aragay, you're going to be paying between good from half a million to 1 million. But it's very rare. Rotation of these big properties for 1 million is rare in Vianova. They take quite long to really take off. Really.

Speaker A: Yeah, I would imagine. Right. So could somebody live in Villanova without a car or is it a place that requires owning a car?

Speaker B: Well, Villanova is clearly a walkable city. Villanova has layers of constructions. They've been adding up over the years. And Villanova has centered this idea of walkability. And so they still have um, age population living in a good, let's say 1km from the center, but still walkable. Why? Because Villanova is very flat and Villanova has shops everywhere. So Vilnova has grown very much spread over all the territory. And you find services, doctors, hospitals, shops alike in all the spread of the land, not just in the center. This is one of the most, I would say, positive things Villanova has that is so spread in the territory. So all the citizens have same services everywhere.

Speaker A: And is there train access to Barcelona?

Speaker B: Yeah, of course. Yes, it does. It takes around 40 minutes to commute. Actually, Villanova is a big commuter city when you're taking the train from Barcelona to all this southern Catalonia, uh, I like to call it zone four, zone five, zone six, because of the commute in minutes. Right. So you keep adding 50, 60 minutes. You can tell in cities. And Villanova is where good 80% of the train lives. So people lives in these cities. And, uh, then, yeah, you can tell that there is clearly, uh, a, uh, big commuting cities. Such an easy place to be commuted.

Speaker A: That's really good to keep in mind. You know, a lot of the people that I talk to have this dream of living car free, or mostly car free after living in America and having to drive to the grocery store and, you know, just everywhere. So the idea of being on the train line, being able to walk to the grocery store, in the doctor's office, maybe have a car that you use when you want to go explore on the weekends, it's a really attractive offer. And these kind of towns offer that kind of small city life with those kind of amenities, um, and even the ability to be in a house with a yard. Right. So I think that's something really worth keeping, um, you know, pointing out. Let's switch gears and talk about cauliflower and those surrounding areas. I don't feel like this area gets a lot of the glamour headlines, but it does seem very livable. So what do people miss about it?

Speaker B: Calafel, first of all, it doesn't try to impress you. Calafel, again, is very convenient. Calafel's origin is to be close to the city of Barcelona and to have a relaxed, family friendly lifestyle. So as, uh, per now, Calafel has grown a lot. And again, there is a, uh, blend of internationals, locals alike, but still being very local. And I would say calef after Villanova, if you go from Barcelona south all the way, Calafel takes you around 50 minutes to get to the city of Barcelona. And again, 40 minutes, 35 minutes to the airport of Barcelona. Calafel is, after Villanova, one town that you still have year 365 days a year. And this is something that happens, uh, only in Calafe and then Tarragona, the Big city of Tarragona. So Calafel was built by my grandparents, the baby boomers, right? So they rise this area, this is where my house is currently I live in here. And that's where my market generally is in this part of the south of Catalonia. It's all composed by mainly detached villas. Of course, the closer you go into the beach, the more pressure, demographic pressure it is. So you start seeing apartments, semi detached houses. Calafel is an all year round area, very close to Barcelona, uh, very close to the airport and still having this Mediterranean, this coastal feel, this very relaxed lifestyle. So Calafel is perfect for families and for retirees. So one important thing is that uh, in this area of Catalonia there are hospitals every 20 kilometers. And this is just the way Catalan people set their own structure of life. So it's such a convenient area that you have supermarkets and big shopping centers every 10 kilometers. There is train lines, there is train lines commuting to Barcelona. There is easy access to Barcelona and the coast alike, uh, by two highways, the C32 and the C31 and uh, the AP7 big roads that connects you with the rest of Spain easily is a very flat area. If I want to say that like I want to make, I want to reinforce this message because all Catalan coast tends to be very hilly, it tends to be very climbing and the south of Catalonia, so the coastal rather it tends to be a much more flat surface. So it goes inland between good 2km. And that matters when you have to, if you don't want to have a car, carry your groceries or actually just, you know, go for a walk. That's important. Of course, the higher you are in the hill, um, the better the beers. But convenience matters and especially for retirees these areas are very convenient because of all this spread of services along the coast. And again, all the social life, all the bus is very close by, it happens to be always in the coast. This is important. And again, it's a big difference between Costa Dorada and Costa Brava.

Speaker A: Hmm, that's really interesting. So in Calafal, how does that compare to Villanova, uh, in terms of getting a single family home or a two bed, two bath condo?

Speaker B: Sure. It is interesting because every time you live in Barcelona, sphere, powwow, sphere, the prices goes down, uh, but you still have cities so close. And this is uh, a short video I made for my socials, uh, for a housing Calafel, let's call it a detached villa, let's call it 400 square meters, lovely garden, no need of renovations. Four bedrooms, swimming pool, closed door services is an average between half a million to €550,000. So for the same villa, for the same, let's call it distance to the beach and distance to the services in sieges, this villa would cost 2 million. And between Calafell and Citges there's only 15 minutes driving. So twice when you know 15 minutes drive worth or not. And Calafell again offers a more perhaps humble or not as sophisticated and glamorous lifestyle in cities. But truly to me is a hidden gem on price right now. I know it won't be hidden gem for too long but I think right now Calafel Cunit, Segur de Calafel, Bendrel and a few more, several towns are really, really hidden. Nobody knows about this place. And um, this is surprising.

Speaker A: I mean, yeah, I love that you brought this up because a 15 minute drive into Sitges to buy something for a quarter of the price, I mean sounds like good time to buy because the pressure in Sitges is not going to end anytime soon. Spain is, is actively encouraging immigration and tends to be more high net worth immigration and the prices aren't going down anytime soon as far as we can tell, you know, so very interesting little nugget. Thank you for sharing that. So let's continue down the coast and talk about Tarragona. So Tarragona is a really interesting city. How would you describe Tarragona to somebody who's never been there before?

Speaker B: Tarragona, uh, Tarraco actually back in Roman times was one of the most important cities on Imperial uh, Rome. So this fills through and through really but clearly is a capital of province. So it really feels a much more developed, much more all year round city with its own activity, economical activity. Still looking at the sea is coastal city, still connected to this sense of relaxed and um, family lifestyle. But truly it is a city, a major city.

Speaker A: So one of the things that I've noticed when I guide people through Spain is everyone has a different tolerance for grit. So, so how lived in a city feels, the texture of it, the noise, how well maintained it is. How would you describe Tarragona in terms of its level of grit? And maybe you want to contrast that to sages or pick another town that we've talked about and kind of compare how you would describe the grit feel in those cities.

Speaker B: So I would say Tarragona is a much more real place compared to Sidges. CTC feels a bit more like uh, I would say even like a theater really. It is a place where lifestyle flows Internationally, Tarragona is a daily working people place. It's middle class, it has its own Catalan texture. So it has so many of these uh, little shops. People clearly lives on the streets. So there is very often all these local fiestas, uh, local parties, which are again more than 2000 years old tradition events. So the city feels very much of knitted experience. So still it has this international touch. But clearly if you've never been to Tarragona, you will experience what Barcelona was good 40 years ago. Still this level of. One of the interesting things is you don't see that much of a, uh, globalized shops and services. So you have local cafes, you have local restaurants, you have local shops. You don't see much of a, uh, globalized like Barcelona is, right. You see more like Starbucks chains and so on. So it still is owned by Catalan people. Um, it has this lovely Rambla again, this Barcelona Ramblas, right, where everybody is there on Sundays, on Saturdays and, and you feel again this very family, this middle class, this very tranquil lifestyle. Again we are in Mediterranean lifestyle. And these things are said in a way that sounds like a pigeonhole. But until you're not here, you uh, are here for a longer time than a weekend, then you understand what it means to go to a restaurant and have an after dinner or after lunch for two hours. You don't have this sense of, I don't know, I would say the stress of being alive, you, you shift the perspective of what actually life matters.

Speaker A: Yeah, I love that. So it sounds like Tarragona is a really good place for people who want to feel like they're really going to have a chance to integrate where, you know, they, they want to learn Catalan, they want to feel part of the local, of the fabric of the community. They don't want to be pigeonholed in uh, sort of an international or expat enclave. Tarragona could possibly be a good fit for them if they really want to live in with society and integrate. Is that a fair assessment?

Speaker B: 100%. Because when you have a community that keeps increasing, uh, you start creating your own communities, right, rather than mingling with the locals. And as you mentioned, this is very interesting. I don't know if we should go into the topic of like Catalan or Spanish language because this is a hot topic really. And it will be as long as Catalans we exist. And I have to say that um, as a Catalan, I'm very, very glad when I see an international person coming to Catalonia and choosing to learn the Catalan language because fair to Say Catalan language is the one I feel emotional with. It's my language, it's my maternal vernacular language. But it's never been seen as the practical language because Spanish has been seen a, uh, much more powerful, much more dynamic language. And this is Catalonia in a way. You know, this is our language and we can help by speak our language. And I think Tarragona is still the place where people will talk to you in a way that wants to make you feel part of a community. So yeah, to make you feel part of a community is to speak you in Catalan. Because this is the way I speak to my beloved ones. Right. So, yes, I think, I know I mix a bit the subject here, but I wanted to say this, this is emotionally is important. So yeah, I think Tarragon is still.

Speaker A: I appreciate you bringing that up. And that is always a topic of conversation. So a lot of people say, so I'm moving to Catalonia, do I learn Catalan or Spanish? And it is a hard decision for someone who doesn't speak either of those languages. Right. You really, at the end you need to speak both because, you know, if you're going to travel outside of Catalonia, it is helpful to speak Spanish. Right. There are reasons to learn Spanish, but it is to be part of the community. Especially if you have kids in school, not speaking Padillon definitely puts you on the outside. My husband and I have learned many times that my son can swear in many languages that we don't know. And a parent will say, do you know what your son just said? You know? Yeah. Um, so let's talk about housing prices. How does Tarragona compare to the other cities we've talked about?

Speaker B: So again, Tarragona has its own dynamic. Um, right, so it is a city. So then we should be fair to compare Tarragona with Barcelona prices. And again, they are playing a different league. Tarragona for, let's call it a four bedroom apartment. Because I will be talking about apartments. Tarragona, a portfolio of detached properties and semi detached is much, let's call it's um, about more of an outsider layer of a city really. Doesn't happen unless you own a palace, you know, 15th century. So yeah, for a good four bedroom apartment, renovated, well, connected to the terrace and being located centrally, you'll be paying between 300 to €600,000. The €600,000 being a mint spot, um, property really with of course a parking, elevator, even perhaps a community pool. But yeah, this is in average.

Speaker A: Okay, that's great. So definitely, as we move farther from Barcelona, we get A lot more bang for our buck, for sure. Right. In a big way. Now, Tarragona does draw a lot of tourists. It has a big amusement park and it has a history of tourism. How does that type of tourism impact daily life? I mean, we see for example on the, on the Costa Brava, the difference in tourism between Lorette de Mar and Pajadaro and Boguer. Right. They just attract different people. Alicante is a great example too. So what kind of tourism could you expect to interact with if you lived there full time?

Speaker B: Well, for sure, tourism is clear. And the impact in your daily life, it is, I would say, in the areas where Tarragona accumulates a history and where Tarragona shines historically mainly, then you will see that the population has increased around 30 to 40%. But again, those areas in Tarragona, for instance, the Colosseum, uh, which is very close to the sea, or the medieval or the Roman, um, quarry streets, well, those are not centrally located anymore. The city has somehow grown out of these areas because geographically those areas tend to be like in a hill area, so that, you know, invasions were kind of good place for invasions and so on. So yes, tourists are discovering these areas and you can see that there's an impact in this very, not pigeonhole, but located in these very old areas. The rest of the city feels like a city and it feels like a non touristic area. Daily life happens the same, traffic jams happens the same people going to school to drive the kids to school and people going to work as it was any other city in Spain which doesn't have any impact of tourism. So I would say answering your question, it feels that there's more tourists around, but they are centrally located into these very touristic areas which are not literally located close to the more of a, ah, daily Tarragona area.

Speaker A: That's really interesting. Thanks for sharing that. All right, and so in our last section, I want to talk about Salou, and I don't know if I'm even pronouncing that properly, but that sort of resort town area, there's some luxury golf resorts in that area. So help us understand how that that section of the Costa Dorado fits into everything else we've talked about.

Speaker B: So Salo is still very much driven by tourism. Clearly it hasn't changed. It's been like that since good 70s and 80s. And you can tell how Salo breathes differently from summer to winter. And I would say that if you're interested in investing in a property that you can rent out or you Can Airbnb it? Go for it. It's a good place to invest. So I wouldn't say it's the place for retirees or families with kids. I think it's more of a summer driven. I don't know if you ever heard about this theme park, Portaventura. Portaventura was one decision of the Catalan government to drive even more tourists to this area of Salo and Tarragona. And so it worked very well. The numbers of tourists keep increasing every year. There's plenty hotels but yeah, again it's not of a lifestyle for a person living all year round.

Speaker A: Mhm. Yeah but there, I mean if you want a golf resort lifestyle, it is a wonderful place to consider if you want to come in and out. Maybe you're doing the 90 days on, 90 days off your retirement retired. The Cambriels Marina is nearby. You know, if you love to sail or into water sports. I mean the area has a lot of things to recommend for it. I think if you have children in school or you need easy access to Barcelona and you're living there year round, it probably doesn't offer the amenities. That's my sense. And uh, you've spent much more time there than I have.

Speaker B: You are right, you are right. And you, you just hit the nail when you say about this 90 days feeling. I think you just, I mean again it's been cuttered so much to international base. Like it has this more of a. You just leave after the three months, you lock your key and you forget about flat and it's still. You're going to come back after you know a year and your photo is going to be the same basically as you left it has this feeling of like you know, free worries. And clearly I would say that Cambrios um, is different from Salo Cambrios M. It feels more like a self contained living town all year round. Salo was determined to be of a much more of a package like a product to cater these uh, people, this crowd. I think Cambrios which is physically just next door really there's a house, one is Salo and the next house is Cambrill's. It just divides one simple street but Cambrill's has a much more again gritty, much more real Catalan vibe I think. Yeah, if you going for lifestyle I think Cambrios has this edge. This is a much more softer uh, realistic. I know my words are a bit sharp but I would say yeah, I would define like that. Cambrios is a much more realistic Catchalan. If that's what you're actually looking for. Because if you're just looking for this feeling of like, you know, summer, uh, disconnection, then they are different.

Speaker A: Yeah, they are. I would say Salou feels more of like a bubble. It's if you want to just land, have everything turnkey, really clean, manicured services, that's great. And then Cabrill's feels a bit like, has a bit more grit to it, a bit more lived in feel. But great restaurant, beautiful promenade, lots, lots of, you know, bars, restaurants, places to go. So I think it really does add a benefit to Salu because it, because it can feel like a bubble. It's nice to be able to go to lots of different types of restaurants and have a little bit more of a lively atmosphere and you're right down the street from it. So at least kind of have that in that area. Yeah. So I'm so glad that we were able to break down all of these different areas. And of course there are other towns and villages that you know, we don't have time to touch on. But when you, when you have somebody come to you, an international buyer or renter buyer come to you and you know, they would know they want to be on that part of the coast but they're not exactly sure where to land. What are some of the things that you ask them or help them self discover to point them in the right direction.

Speaker B: So most likely you're going to come from the airport and I strongly recommend you to take a uh, car and drive around a lot. This is number one, you need to take your car and I will tell you where is the places you need to drive because and this is something I've been doing, I'm taking my phone in my car and I'm doing content for my socials and my YouTube and I'm driving with my car, just recording the areas and I'm posting this app and it's working so well. You need to see with your eyes what is this place like. The challenge will be that because you come from such a different way of seeing life, from different culture, you will take a time to really ingrain yourself into what's the areas, why it's a good area, why it's not a good area really. I think you need to get in touch with somebody that can be giving you valuable and quality information. And uh, because we're talking about quite a big area really. We're talking about from south of Barcelona. It's good 50km all the way down. So you need to Know the bits and bobs of each of these areas. And again, communication is key. You really need to engage with an agent which an agent is the bridge somehow of these areas. Yeah. What better than an agent really? An honest agent to tell you what the difference is. Another thing you need to know is you need to do some study beforehand. I mean what is your priorities? Ah, you want to remote work, you want to have easy access to Barcelona. Are you a commuter? Are you a person that come here with a family? You want to live all year round. Is this just a summer area? You just want to spend your summers in here or even your winters? Because by the way, weather, you need to know as well how the weather is in here. The average, I would say this is in grades Centigrade, uh, I don't know, in Fahrenheit in winter is around 8 to 12 degrees Celsius. And in summer it's not as hot as the south of Spain. It reaches between 28 to 35 Celsius. So these things need ah, to be taken into consideration. Do you study, um, contact with a good agent that can honestly drive you to the areas and yeah, get a car and drive alone. And go to restaurants.

Speaker A: Yes, go to restaurants. And the thing that I always tell people is you have to slow down and you need to come back at night because I feel like a lot of people who are on scouting trips drive through towns in the afternoon, which is a terrible time to get a sense of other than a big city. Everything is going to be closed, it's going to looked at. You need to go back on the weekends and in the evenings, like late evenings, 9pm, 10pm and then you'll get a much better sense of what is this area really like. Right. And absolutely. I think having an agent on your side to guide you. I say this all the time and I'll just repeat it again. Whatever you do, don't just contact random listing agents because you see a pretty listing online. Find your own agent, find your own buyer specialist who will guide you. And um, you may end up buying one of their properties, but they can also help you identify other properties and be your advocate on your side of the transaction, which is really important. So just, just because somebody has a listing out there doesn't mean they're qualified to help you navigate the process. So it's so important to have the right agent on your side.

Speaker B: If I may say, you need to be house centered. I get that, uh, it's very important, but I think you should be more lifestyle and location centered because you don't know the area. The house is somehow easy to see, right? Just physically observe walls, software, hardware, as I like to call it, kitchens, size of the plot. That's kind of easy to see. But why it's not easy to see, which is going to take you much longer. And as you pointed out very correctly, you need to come different times of the day really, where the sun orientation is and so on and people, how demographics are. Those are not coming into a half an hour viewing. Those are not coming into because again house centered. You saw the house and that's your house. Your house is 50% of the game. The other 50% is location, lifestyle, uh, and that you need to get information is crucial. And that's not coming from a house, that's coming from an agent that honestly works in your benefit. Again, this is important I want to say this through because in Spain, agents, they don't work as uh, in the US or in the UK there is no such a thing as a buyer agent and seller agent, which there is, fair enough. But most of the times you're going to find agents that are working for both. And you might be thinking, well that's a conflict of interest, that's not ethical. Well, this is so ingrained in Spanish culture and it's so ingrained in own real estate business in this country, even though it's getting transformed and um, more and more buyer agents are appearing traditionally in Spain, the agents are seller's agents. And so look, I've been doing this business for a while now and I'm still in business. And that means that the way I get my listings and the way I get my business is through referrals. That means I'm doing things well. That means. Sorry to repeat that many times, but what I want to say with this is that in a negotiation or in the purchasing of a property, both parties has to leave that room, um, as I like to call it, slightly unsatisfied, both of them. And you have to work with respect and balancing out finding this equilibrium between both parties, which is sellers unbiased. And there is no secret recipe, there is no secret formula. The price of a house is conditioned by the seller. The agent might be able to push their opinion and their point of view in many cases is the case, happily enough, but not always is the case. So to know if the price of a house is correct or not, or you're overpaying or you're underpaying is something that has to be fight through. And owners in this country generally baby boomers which is all this area of south of Catalonia, are basically owned by baby boomers. They really have uh, emotional ties to their houses and it becomes very hard to be opinionated correctly into what the price of a house is really. Again, the agent will tell you if this house is correctly priced or not. Regardless of this agent works for the seller or not. Because again, uh, in Spain, agents works for both parties. Inexpensive, trying to be fair manner. At least many of us were going to do that honestly, because that's the way we are going to be good people and we want to do our business properly.

Speaker A: I appreciate you sharing that and sharing that perspective because I think it is such an a, uh, reeducation for people when they come abroad from abroad. And you know, the whole process is new, the culture around it is new. And so that's why we're here to, to guide people so that they, they pay a fair price, that they feel protected that. You know. One of the uh, examples that I like to share about the importance of having an agent who is used to working with international buyers is the tax bill. So I've had two examples of this. I have a friend here who went through the listing agent, a local agent, and he just never bothered to mention that, hey, by the way, the Castrol value on this house, you're going to be taxed on 850,000. But I know you negotiated the price down to 450,000. I'm not going to tell you that, uh, the tax that's coming is going to be based on 850,000. So you can imagine you close a month later you get the bill and it was a lot higher than she was expecting. It's happened to another friend, a million dollar property, they never mentioned that there was going to be a tax bill. She got 100. They weren't in Canada. It's 10%. She got a hundred thousand euro bill a month after closing this property. Yes. And so it is so important that you work with an agent who knows to mention these things and is ethical and is looking out for your best interests too. Yeah, so that's, that's my pedestal that I, that I, that from. But these are good examples of why it matters who you work with.

Speaker B: Yeah, well that's clearly neglecting such a crucial thing that you may just completely ignore because it's your daily, daily bread. Right. So you don't think about it. But reality is that people don't know these things.

Speaker A: So I'm so glad that we've had this conversation and had a chance to Dive into towns on the coast of Dorada. I'm going to include a link to, uh, contact Shawame in the uh, in the comments below so you can reach out to him if you'd like help looking for a home in this part of beautiful Catalonia. Up. Thank you so much.

Speaker B: My pleasure. Vanessa, it's been a pleasure talking to you and I hope this was very helpful for your fan base.

Speaker A: I hope this conversation answered some of your questions about the Costa Dorada and helped give you a little bit more direction on which parts of this stretch of Catalonia's coast might be right for you. If you are interested in exploring the Costa Dorada, make sure to reach out to Ruami using the form I've included below. And hey, if we haven't met before, I'm so glad that you're here and that you found this content. I help people find their place abroad by connecting them to my very carefully vetted network of, uh, real estate professionals. So whether you're looking on the coast of Dorada or in Sevilla or up on the green coast of Spain, I likely have a trusted, uh, agent that I can refer you to. But before you find an agent, you need to start the visa and immigration process and find your way to Spain and I can help you navigate that whole process. This, uh, a great place to start is with a one hour move abroad. Consult with me and I'll include more details below so that you can connect with me. Also want to mention that I am leading five scouting trips through Spain this year and again I'll include the details below. But if you want to see many parts of Spain and get a, uh, feel for what your life could look like here in Spain, these group scouting trips are a really fantastic way to, to do that. Check the link in the description. Love for you to join me. Until next time, keep traveling, keep exploring and keep building the life you dream about.