We still have a residence in Luxembourg, but the weather is too poor to live there long-term. So we started looking for a new place to settle. As early as 2010, when we moored our previous boat, the “Oysterbar”, in Valencia, Spain, we were impressed by the area. The sea was clean (which has changed noticeably), the people were friendly, and spring and summer lasted until December – warm and almost always sunny.

That was the first time we visited a real estate agent and browsed listings. We started following property platforms like Idealista. But Valencia itself doesn’t offer many houses – mainly apartments. Beautiful ones, but you usually can’t plant a mango tree in an apartment.

We visited many places – from Cornwall and South Africa to the southern coasts of Europe and the Caribbean. We viewed houses in Santa Barbara, Newport (RI), and the Azores. It was a global house search, no doubt.

In 2016, we arrived in the Caribbean and began checking out real estate – just to get a sense of what was available. At that time, we still weren’t sure where we wanted to live later on. We returned to Luxembourg in 2017 and stayed for three years before heading off again.

Canary Islands
Beautiful, warm, friendly people, and affordable – all positives. But I like to swim a lot, and the water temperature was too low for me (yes, I’m a bit sensitive). So we didn’t really connect with the Canaries.

Cape Verde
Great beaches, but a lot of frustration among locals. We were seen as outsiders with too much money. Our boats were too big, and we paid triple the local prices at the market. Fresh food was rare. Bread was soft and white. After two days, we stopped considering it.

Caribbean
Large and diverse. After our second Atlantic crossing, we arrived in Saint Lucia – a beautiful island. But houses are usually built privately and take years to complete. Good locations are expensive and remote. Security is also an issue due to widespread poverty.

We moved on to Martinique, Dominica, and Guadeloupe.
We didn’t stay long in the first two, but spent several months in Guadeloupe due to Covid and missing solar panels. The island is beautiful and diverse, and real estate is relatively affordable. Still, we didn’t find anything suitable.

Antigua
We met real estate agents for the first time and viewed houses and plots. The views were stunning, but the nearest town was 30 km away. Prices were high, and value for money was lacking.

BVI and AVI
Too touristy. Beautiful nature, but during the season, the islands turn into a party zone. Sailing there was great, but buying property was not an option. The islands are small and expensive. Groceries are overpriced and often not fresh, as everything is imported from the U.S.

Bahamas
Great if you’re looking for peace and minimal social contact.

Asia
We visited seven countries in Asia – all beautiful, but we never felt we could build a life there.

Most other regions were too far from our families –
except for the U.S., which is a separate topic.