Why move to Catral
Catral is a slow-paced village from which to watch the world go by. Come here for rural walks, fresh produce and a friendly expat community wrapped in a traditional Spanish enclave.
Catral is a village of low-rise sandstone homes silhouetted by palm fronds and surrounded by artichoke farms. Like many traditional Spanish pueblos, it centres around a town square but features an unusually elliptical, blue-domed church dedicated to Los Santos Juanes. There is a conventional high street that expands into modern suburbs built around the edges of the village to accommodate the influx of Europeans who began to invest in the area around the 1990s.
Cartal is set in the tributaries of the Segura river and is surrounded by both fields of irrigated farmland and fenland reservoirs and lakes. The El Hondo Nature Reserve is a huge wetland habitat for rare, endemic waterfowl and migratory birds. Zigzagged by carefully considered walkways, hides and picnic areas it has become a draw for people looking to appreciate the environment in a discreet, rural idyll.
The closest coastal resorts are 30 minutes drive and include the towns of Santa Pola, Guardamar del Segura and Torrevieja. The nearest beaches are Playa Babilonia Guardamar, Platja els Tossals and Playa El Rebollo, all of which feature long banks of golden sand backed by dunes typical of this part of the Costa Blanca.
Community
Until the 1990s, Catral was overlooked by expats in favour of the coastal resorts. However, as these areas filled up with second home buyers and hotels, year-round buyers looked inland seeking more traditional communities, fewer tourists, and less densely urbanised spaces. There is now a decent sized population of expats living in Catral, made up of many different European nationals.
Property
Only about 10% of properties here are apartments or townhouses in the village centre. The other 90% roughly splits between rural, detached villas or country homes.
Amenities
The village centre has plenty of businesses servicing the needs of inhabitants, from pharmacies to vets, and hairdressers to gyms. The nearby towns of Orihuela, Torrevieja and Elche have more evolved shopping districts and Catral is not far from both Murcia and Alicante city centres.
Transport
Catral is less than 30 minutes from Alicante’s airport and less than an hour from Murcia International. The train station Catral-Albatera is a 10 minute drive away and will take you North to Elche and Alicante or South to Orihuela and Murcia.
Employment
The main source of employment in this region is agriculture, but growth industries include furniture, textiles, construction, food and the making of hides. There are also opportunities relating to the swelling expat community.
Health
The Medical Clinic Catral in the village is open 8am – 3pm and the Centro de Salud in nearby Dolores is open 24 hours. There are two dental clinics and the nearest general hospital is Hospital General Universitario de Elche, on the southern edge of Elche.
Schools
There are both state and public schools in the village which between them, cover all student ages from primary to secondary. There is a good choice of international schools in the region if you’re prepared to travel a little further, including the reputable El Limonar International School in Villamartin.
Cost of Living
For the Costa Blanca, Catral is a very reasonably priced place to live. In general, transport, entertainment, services and household bills are cheaper than in northern Europe, but you may have to factor for running a car and buying bottled gas. There aren’t many apartments for sale, and family homes, while inexpensive for their size, are naturally a bigger investment.