SUN, sea and sand – it’s a lifestyle we all dream of, but only a few of us are brave enough to go for it.
Jacqui Lockhart from Scotland left for Almoradi on the Costa Blanca shortly after the airing of her episode of A Place in the Sun back in December 2017.
Jacqui revealed what her life looks like now[/caption]
Originally looking for a holiday home, Jacqui travelled to Spain in search of her dream escape with the help of presenter Danni Menzies.
After looking at multiple apartments, Jacqui fell for a flat in Almoradi with a communal pool and rooftop costing just £45,000.
Her apartment did start off as a holiday home, but after visiting 10 times in the first year, Jacqui took the plunge and decided to make it her permanent home.
Not to be too morbid, but I was in God’s waiting room. I wasn’t doing anything and things were passing me by.
Jacqui Lockhart
Talking to Sun Travel about her move to sunny Spain – ahead of her return to A Place in The Sun: What Happened Next which airs on Monday 24 March – Jacqui, 64, says: “It took a lot of guts for me to move.
“To say ‘right, I’m not coming back to the UK’ took a lot of courage. But it’s been so good, I absolutely love it.”
Before her move, Jacqui had been living in a small town near Edinburgh where she admitted she wasn’t living life to the fullest.
Jacqui says: “Not to be too morbid, but I was in God’s waiting room.
“I wasn’t doing anything and things were passing me by.
“I’d say the move has had a huge impact on my health, I’m far more outdoorsy than I was in Scotland.
“Better weather does make life so much easier – it’s less painful, there are less aches.
“I go cycling three times a week with my friends, we’ll go out and get a coffee, and we’ll go down to the beach.”
Another of Jacqui’s newest hobbies is sailing, which she likes to do with her partner, Peter O’Reilly, a fellow Scot who she met in Spain.
Almoradi has views of the mountains and is 20 minutes from the beach[/caption]
Jacqui tells us: “He’s actually from across the water in Scotland – it’s strange, he literally lived around the corner from me.
“I never knew him from Scotland, but we met through mutual friends in Spain.”
Back in the UK, Jacqui had a “two up, two down” house, which she still owns and goes back to when she returns to the UK for trips.
She says: “I don’t miss anything about Scotland and I won’t be moving back.
“But I do still visit, usually in July or August, because it gets too hot here, and then Christmas, so I can see my two-year-old granddaughter, Henrietta.
“That’s the only thing I feel guilty about out, I wonder if I should be more part of her life.
“But the flip side of the coin is that when she’s older, she’ll come out and spend the Easter holidays with me.”
Jacqui and her daughter first looked for a holiday home back in 2017[/caption]
Jacqui now has a new partner, Peter O’Reilly[/caption]
Jacqui now lives a much more active lifestyle since moving to Spain[/caption]
Jacqui’s lucky enough to be mortgage-free on both her properties too after working in a banking for many years.
She told us: “It took me a long time to do that, let me tell you – it didn’t happen overnight, I worked a lot of years to do that.”
It’s been only been six years since Jacqui made her A Place in The Sun debut, but so much has changed and she’s really taken the move in her stride.
She’s even been brushing up on her Spanish and volunteering to help her improve.
She added: “I go to Spanish classes every week, and my Spanish friends help me out with that too.
“Once a week I volunteer in a charity shop too which helps me pick up some words. I can hold a very, very basic conversation – mainly ordering a drink.”
She says that one of the biggest perks of life abroad is that going out for meals and drinks works out to be a lot cheaper.
Jacqui said: “I love going out for meals, and it’s so much cheaper than in the UK, you can get a glass of wine for €1.50.
“You can get a three-course meal and a coffee for around €10.”
While Jacqui bravely bit the bullet and loves her new life abroad, she does heed some warnings for anyone hoping to do the same.
I don’t miss anything about Scotland and I won’t be moving back.
Jacqui Lockhart
She explained: “I’m lucky as I have a plan B, I’ll never sell my house in Scotland.
“But I know a lot of people here who have sold up completely, moved lock, stock and barrel and now they’re coming into their dotage and they can’t go back because they can’t afford it.
“I also know some people who came just before Covid wanting to open a bar and then as they started, had to close because Spain went into lockdown.
“They lost so much money and used all their savings to live and have had to move back to the UK and rent which is such a shame.
“My other piece of advice would be to rent first to see if you like the area. Thanks to Brexit, Brits can only rent in Spain for three months at a time, but do that and get to know the town you like.”
Have You Head Of The ‘Santorini’ Of Spain?
There’s a town in Costa Blanca that looks like a stunning Greek island…
Altea in Costa Blanca is just 20 minutes by car from the famous Brit-loved resort. However, it is far removed from the town known for its huge bars and clubs.
Altea is often visited more by locals than tourists, with the laid-back town being much quieter. It’s nickname of the Santorini of Spain is partly because of the white-washed houses lining the narrow roads.
One of the more famous views is of the two bright blue-roofed towers overlooking the streets, part of the town’s church.
The best place to head to is the Old Town, which has amazing views over the beach and of the huge mountain in the distance – part of Parc Natural de la Serra Gelada.
The impressive Plaza de la Iglesia, with the church at its heart, is lined with bars and restaurants, market stalls dot the cobbled streets at weekends and in the summer festivals engulf the whole area.
Along the way are a number of small shops sunken into the buildings, which sell local gifts such as trinkets and clothes.
Otherwise outside of the historic centre is the seaside, with the 500 metre beach being made up of both pebbles and sand.
Jacqui continued: “I love Almoradi, but if I knew then what I do now, I would have chosen somewhere closer to the water.
“I didn’t realise just how much I prefer it. So I would advise anyone wanting to move to experience the town or the village first, and in winter and summer too.”
Still, Jacqui insisted she wouldn’t ever move away from Almoradi now – it has become her home.
Since the move she’s gone on to explore lots of other areas in Spain like Guadalmar, Galicia, Andalusia and the Pyrenees.
Jacqui told us: “Every morning, I wake up, I look out the window across the mountains and I think ‘how lucky am I?’ I wish I’d done this 20 years ago.”
Watch A Place in the Sun: What Happened Next on weekdays, 6pm, Channel 4.
Jacqui does say she wished she was closer to the coast to enjoy beaches nearby like Cala Cabo Cervera beach[/caption]
Almoradi in Spain is located in the province of Alicante[/caption]
