If you moved to the coast, do you actually use the beach/swim?

[flixispinxi]

My mum & dad moved to their holiday home full time during retirement, it’s on the Dorset Coast. She goes swimming almost every single morning in the sea & always goes to sit on the sand.

My dad has honestly walked on the beach maybe twice in five years. He loves swimming in the pool but hates the sea.

We have the chance to move to the coast but dh thinks we will be like my dad and not use the beach. So he thinks we should save £200k and skip the sea view and live inland.

I am actually from NI so I know! I used to swim a lot at the White Rocks near Portrush, trust me the Indian Ocean is much more pleasant. 😄

Slight difference alright

I am not a beach/sea person but somehow seem to end up living pretty close. Keen swimmer but nothing would induce me to swim in the shit sea currently.

I am desperate to live by the sea and would jump at the opportunity if it was available to me.

I would never swim in the sea as I hate the fish 🤣

Sand annoys me but I would walk on the beach.

For me it would be about being near water and the view. When I am near the sea I feel calmer, I love the smell and the feeling of it. I wouldn’t necessarily use the beach every day.

We can see the sea from home and are about a 5 minute walk from the nearest beach. We go to the beach on hot days but rarely actually in the sea (I'm not keen on open water).

Very often walk / cycle / picnic beside the sea though, and our first baby is due very soon so I'm sure the use we make of the beach will increase over the next few years.

I have lived by the sea all my life (57 yrs) and I don't utilise it as much as I should. I used to when the kids were little but we moved further out of the town we just don't go there. I can see the sea from my house which is soothing.

I love it much more than I thought I would. I go to the beach every day even if just for a walk. It is very uplifting. Dh not keen on the swimming but loves living near it and one of the reasons we bought here was because of him. ( will clarify not in UK and is a holiday home - but have decided will mover her permanently when we can)

I grew up by the sea and swam every summer's day. Lived inland for some years but back at the seaside now and I swim year round.

I’m a sea swimmer but agree wholeheartedly.
There seems to be a ‘thing’ amongst certain groups where you have to whoop & scream to show how spontaneous & crazy you are.
I live above the beach and get fed up with them screaming at 7am or earlier.
The majority of us just get on with it

Ditto those who do yoga or Pilates with booming music.

I was born raised in a seaside town.

I then lived in London for a long time but really missed the sea so I moved to a pretty seaside town in the SE three years ago.

Love it here.

I love hearing the seagulls everyday, walking on the seafront, sitting on the beach and of course swimming when the weather is warm enough.

It feels like I can breathe again!

I am looking at joining a swimmer group as some people swim all year round here.

On another note, my love of the sea means that for me the sewage scandal is my top priority when voting for the elections. I find it so distressing that water companies messed up our seas and rivers that way.

I live a 25min drive from the beach and I go most weekends to walk the dog from October to April when he’s allowed on the beach. From May to September I probably go once a month to walk by myself. Not a fan of swimming in the sea though!

If I lived within walking distance I’d probably go a lot more often.

The sea is filthy tbh, wouldn’t dream of swimming in it.

I live 5 mins from the beach in the North East so the weather is hit and miss but regardless we are always on the beach! Walks, sandcastles, ice creams, surf lessons etc We don’t have to make plans as we can pop 5 mins down the road and have tons to do! When the weather is nice being able to have a lovely day out so close to home with kids outside all day and no driving is amazing!

Sometimes but prefer the lido. Live 5 minutes walk from beach, no sea view (they cost at least £500k more!)

It'd depend on the beach obviously.

I grew up in a seaside town, we went to the beach and swam quite a lot in summer, and walked on it and the prom year round. When my parents were elderly the prom remained a good flat walk for them with the sea view.

We were recently toying with the idea of moving somewhere less rural after I retire and were very taken with a seaside town which has a massive seawater pool. With wetsuits suitable for swimming now a reality (unlike in my hardy youth) I'm sure I'd have used it a lot.

The coast near where we live now is useless for swimming, far too shallowly shelving. Such a shame there's no lido anywhere along it.

I don't swim but absolutely need the shore walks for my soul. I live ten minutes away from one beach, 15 from.a hilly cliff coast walks. I walk both at least twice a week of not every day after work in summer.

It kept me a sane parent when the children were young. A brisk walk on the Irish coast will blow all tantrums and blues away.

You don't need to swim to gain the benefit of the sea.

I live a 10 minute walk from the beach and rarely go. We went pretty much every day when the kids were small but I hardly ever go by myself. I don't really know why, it just doesn't seem worth the effort of getting there. The park is a 2 minute walk, I usually just go there.

I've always lived coastal.

Not on the seafront but always 10 minutes drive to nearest beach.

Used it much more as a kid and when ds was a kid.

Love the fact that we can decide one day to go and it's easy to just get stuff and head off without planning in a drive and parking etc and a picnic or where to eat.

Ds is a swimmer but hates swimming in the sea. He paddle boards or canoes.
But we do travel a lot for his swimming around the country and I've often found it quite difficult to be away for a week in a city with no coast purely for the fact I'm aware how far away the coast is (I get that's strange!) London was ok as in Olympic park which has lots of outdoor space for walking.

My favourite places he's swam are Aberdeen and Swansea right by the sea!

So for me being by the beach per se isn't necessary but I like to be near somewhere open I can walk easily.

We live by the sea and in the summer use it daily, the kids love the beach! We don’t use it much in the winter anymore but before our dog died we took him for a walk on it twice a day!

I'd love to live near the sea or a lake where some form of messing about in boats was possible.

No because the water pollution at present is so bad. I am honestly surprised people do.

Living on the coast but not near any sandy beaches now. But I grew up my whole life on the coast, near beaches until I came to the UK. I've never been a keen sea swimmer. I'd walk along the beach though. I used to roller blade along the coast too but it doesn't seem to be a thing here.

It's not just the swimming or the beach though. It's the light, the fresh air, wildlife, the gulls, the ever changing scene of boats, paddle boarders and dog walkers. Beautiful in summer and stunningly bleak in the winter. I love that sun drenched landscape but also the washed out colours during the darker months. I like the big empty skies and landscapes.

I swim in a sea pool almost daily - if you love it you love it and it becomes integral to who you are. My god it makes me feel good.

Those bastards flooding the sea with sewage (poor wildlife!) all for the sake of money make me sick. I hope the next government cracks down on them.

Go at least twice a week, all year round, do yoga on the beach, just walk on it or on the cliffs near it and it clears my mind. Was always a very city person but I love it here.