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-   -   moving to Spain in Dec. which city... Valencia or Malaga (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/moving-to-spain-in-dec-which-city-valencia-or-malaga-741538/)

rizhii Oct 8th, 2007 01:46 PM

moving to Spain in Dec. which city... Valencia or Malaga
 
I am moving to spain in Dec. which would be the better city to stay in and take spanish classes, Valencia or Malaga?

I will also be traveling to southern Italy, with a side trips to cairo and then back to spain.

Any advise on what to pack - backpack. Thanks

Aduchamp1 Oct 8th, 2007 02:39 PM

Your newly minted Spanish will be of minimal use in Cairo.

car Oct 9th, 2007 01:06 AM

Both cities are by the mediterranean and have a nice and warm winter.
Valencia is bigger than Malaga and probably has a larger cultural and activity offer, while Malaga has very nice side trips around Andalucia, Granada, Sevilla, Ronda.
Difficult choice with the advantage that you will not make a mistake in any of them.

Cowboy1968 Oct 9th, 2007 01:48 AM

Maybe it will be a tiny bit easier to get used to and to use your new language skills (castellano, I assume) in Málaga, without getting "distracted" by the bilingualism in Valencia.

NEDSIRELAND Oct 9th, 2007 02:02 AM

I have to agree with Cowboy1968:

In Valencia, many of the people speak an offshoot of Catalán, which you will also find on street signs, etc. So, Castellano is not their favored tongue

But Malaga also has its shortcomings. People speak Andaluz rather than pure Castellano. They 'swallow their S's.

For Castellano, I prefer Salamanca or Valladolid, or Santander.


victor_d Oct 9th, 2007 02:12 AM

While there is bilinguism in Valencia region, in Valencia city spanish is the first lenguage, and valencian is secondary.

If you are planning some travels abroad while you are in spain, choose the city with better connections to your desired destinations, because in other aspects there is no really difference.

Check aena web page to see the flights available from Malaga and Valencia airports.

www.aena.es

car Oct 9th, 2007 08:04 AM

While in Cataluyna there is a certain level of bilingualism in Valencia region there is a big difference between cities and countryside.
Cities have a very high % of Castellano and the use of Valenciano is not extended.

correfoc Oct 11th, 2007 03:53 AM

If warm weather matters to you, Malaga might offer better conditions for the first few months. Valencia can be cool well into Spring. Valencia has a more cosmopolitan, less tourist-oriented vibe than Malaga.

chimani Oct 11th, 2007 04:48 AM

For a place to live Valencia wins hands down. Malaga (Costa del Golf) is .. no, I'd better not say what I really think.

True, both have a hinterland that offers opportunities if you are up for hiring a car, or taking a big chunk of time and going by public transport.

Weather, or course, is a factor, but from your post connex to the rest of the world might be a bigger one. So go check out the cheap airline websites to see where you can fly to from where. And remember Valencia isn't so far from Barcelona which has excellent connex and is a real trip to visit.

www.airninja.com

Cheers.


victor_d Oct 11th, 2007 12:22 PM

I think Malaga airport have more flights than Valencia with europe in general, but if your interest are south italy and Cairo, both are equalled and have flights to Roma, and may be, seasonal flights to El Cairo.

For a more important airport, Barcelona and Madrid, both are at 350km from Valencia, so both are equally as good or bad options for international flights.

For weather in winter Malaga will be slightly warmer.

For tourism in the time you are staying in spain, there are more important places to visit near malaga than for valencia (most of andalucua can be reached in daytrips from there), but valencia is closer to Madrid and Barcelona.



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