Retiring by the sea

I used to, on the Cleveland coast, and I do miss it desperately. Just being able to walk along the sand or paddle along the seashore at a moment's notice, just the sound of the waves crashing, and strolling along a pier with the sun setting. I can't go back as I'd be too far from the DC and DGS, and unfortunately we are bang in the middle of the country now, as far away as we could be from the coast! I'm lucky in that my sister lives there and we go back regularly, and we have plenty of other seaside trips throughout the year, but it's not the same as being there on the spot.

Ooh ...

i was born and raised on the east coast of Southern Africa, and this would be my dream too.

Yes we live near the East Coast, just a 10 minute drive. Would hate to live far from the sea. Love sitting in one of our two favorite cafes watch the boats and wild life.

The sea is literally across the road from our house. I was born in this town (Kent coast) so grew up swimming in the sea. We can't bloody see it even from upstairs windows though due to the sea defences. H walks the prom every day to get his paper. I like knowing it's there and I do like taking a book to the beach on a sunny day.
I would love to move a couple of miles up the road as the houses there are on the cliff top.

We live about half an hour walk from the sea, but it also easily accessible by car and bus. We enjoy the walks along the front in the winter time, especially if it is fine day, and the sun just glistens on the water. Personally, I love the wind too, but that is getting a bit of a struggle now. We moved from a New Town, and where we live is not particularly luxurious, but it is very friendly, and we thoroughly enjoy it.
When my daughter visits, she always says how clear the air feels, which is quite true. Incidentally I love the thoughts of romantic walks along a moon lit front - oh!if only. Never mind, we have been there, and they were indeed lovely.

Bridgit for me it is a very romantic notion but on a more practical level when you do retire please think about shops and transport and how you would get from A to B without a car a few years down the line. As a child I lived about 5 miles from the sea and it was great walking along the sand in the evenings after my parents had finished working. Now I am afraid it is shops, transport and hospital! The romantic side has long gone, I am more practical now.

It has long been my dream, to live by the sea, but it will never happen, because we just can`t afford to buy a seaside property, our present house not being worth very much. Charleygirl, the shopping would be taken care of by online shopping, so there would be no worries there.
Bridget, if you do decide to move by the sea, I wish you all the very best, and I`ll be green WITH envy!

My dream too, but husband doesn't like the seaside .
I was born and grew up on the NE coast, and like ninathenana grew up swimming in the sea. I miss the wideopen horizon and the fresh sea air.
www.thebeachguide.co.uk/north-east-england/northumberland/blyth-south-beach.htm

I spent most of my childhood by the sea and yearned to get back to it for years. When we retired we moved to be near our DC and DGC and lived happily for 10 years in South Bedfordshire. Then in 2012 I realised my long held ambition and moved to the south coast to be near our DD and her DC. It is wonderful to be near the sea again after 50 years and we both love it. We are 1 mile from the sea and 1 mile from DD. The prohibitive cost of sea views meant this is as near as we could afford! Go for it if you can - sea air is so invigorating.

We moved to the coast after DH retired. Lovely bungalow, nice place but could not settle and returned "home". Would advise anyone thinking of moving away on retirement to rent a place for a while to see if it is right for you.

I have lived a couple of hundred yards from the sea for the past 35 years . I love it. Nothing more comforting at night than hearing the waves on the sand, the sound of ships sailing past or the wailing of seals on the rocks. I have only swum in it 3x - far too cold without a wet suit! Go for it Bridgit

It was our aim too, moving back to where we lived for years,but just a bit nearer to the coast so that we could see the sea.
However, along came the DGC and we would rather be near them - and probably couldn't afford to now anyway.

I hope you can follow your dream!

Hi Bridget, I also live on the East coast, and am just a 5 minute walk from the sea front. It's wonderful, particularly if you get out early on a nice morning. I can highly recommend it

I completely understand your desire, I think many people love the idea of retiring by the sea, I think it's a primeval instinct personally, life, albeit not human, we are told started in the sea first. There's something infinite about the tides going out and coming in and the crashing of the waves, a wonderful sound. My maternal grandparents retired to the Sussex coast and I have many memories of our seaside holidays with them in early childhood. We have a time share in Bournemouth which overlooks the sea on East Cliff so at least I'm looking out at it for one week in 52. We are off there on Sunday I absolutely love walking along the lovely sandy beach that goes for miles. Don't abandon your dream Bridgit hope it comes to fruition for you both.

I've lived 5 mins from the sea on the central South Coast for 38 years and will never move.
I walk and have a cup of tea there most days all year round and every time I say "aren't we lucky" to my partner.

I am getting itchy feet
Perhaps a paddle next week may cure them

I have lived nearly all my life near the sea and find it strange when I have been a long way from it. We live about 15 minutes drive from the sea in a lovely area.

Things to think about. Where ever you live near the sea property is expensive. If you need to drive to the sea parking is expensive and at any Holiday period the roads and beaches are very busy. But at other times with free bus passes you could easily get to the beach without living very close. When it is busy we go in the other direction and enjoy the countryside. This means we have shops and community facilities around us.

An idea would be to take out of season caravan holidays which are usually reasonable priced to test places out until you find somewhere that meets your need.

My parents retired to the seaside, without ever intending to. They wanted to sell their family house and downsize to a bungalow, but bungalows in their area were thin on the ground and expensive. One day, they visited friends near Littlehampton and found a lot of bungalows at a price they were prepared to pay. They checked the area out and found lots of things going on that interested them so moved there. They did sometimes walk along the beach but really had no interest in the sea itself ata ll.

I went to school on the Fylde coast, lived and worked in Berkshire and Cheshire but still visited family by the coast. Our DD and SiL moved with a work transfer to the Fylde coast before we retired but we followed when we had the opportunity and DGC appeared. We have no regrets about moving back. Although we are not near the sea a 10 minute drive or bus takes us to the centre where we can walk along the prom, pier or beach, enjoying the air and watch the visitors having fun. The sunsets are spectacular, the little theatre, picture house and local historical buildings and landmarks supply us with lots of interest and we are not far from the razamataz of busier seaside resorts if we want them.
I can recommend Lancashire with its miles of sandy beach, so take a look, you may be pleasantly surprised.

When we moved near the coast some 49 years ago, it was a purely economic move, it was within commuting distance of our jobs for a short while and we could afford the house we wanted, What a great decision it was,

I, too, have lived close to the sea all my life - for the first 40 years in devon where I had to drive 5 miles [ish] to get to the sea. I learned to swim in the sea.
for the past almost 30 years I've lived further along the coast in dorset and I now live 5 minutes by car from the sea.
during the summers in both devon and dorset the parking was horrendous and we found that the best time to take the children [and now the grandchildren] was after school when the holidaymakers were wending their way to their hotels, etc.
again, in both devon and dorset we had the best of both world with the countryside within easy reach.
no problems with shops, etc - they're within easy reach of my home. so i'm here for life!

I think I might like to live by the sea - we've always quite fancied Eastbourne. But sometimes seaside towns - particularly small ones - can seem quite bleak and deserted in the winter.

I live by the sea - lots of it. We retired to the Isle of Man nearly 13 years ago from Birmingham. We used to holiday there and like you, wanted a nice place to be in retirement.
It is wonderful. We have beaches to walk on and the coastal path to explore. The scenery is stunning. In the summer, we can go out and enjoy the sunshine in a beautiful place. All the tourist places are open and we have great days out. I still feel like I am on holiday. The sea is amazing.
As it is a small place, all the amenities are community based and accessible. I have no worries about being isolated here. The community is strong.
In the winter - it is cold and blowy and you have to accept that, The pay off is you still have the pleasure of knowing you live in a safe, amazing place.
We go back to Birmingham to visit relatives but I cannot wait to get back home after a couple of days of city/built up/ busy hassle.
Go for it - and remember - if you want to, you can always move back ( but I doubt you will).

I live on the North Essex coast having retired here 7 years ago. We love it being 200 yards from a beautiful beach and we have a national nature reserve on our doorstep too. Whenever I feel stressed I just go for a walk on the seafront. I am so glad we came here.